Monday, February 20, 2012

2012 - A wonderful year of websites, consultations, art, picture books, and e-courses

2012 has been unbelievable for me. I'm calling it My Magical Year (so far). I took a huge leap of faith and signed up for the Hello Soul Hello Business e-course and since then all sorts of magic has been coming my way.

So here's My Magical Year (so far)
  • I worked with the wonderful Dixie Chan, children's book author, horse breeder, and tax preparer, helping her with the initial copy, designing her website and stationary, and creating all the custom textures. Do read her site and blog, which includes terrific tax tips and a wonderful little description of my upcoming Hero's Art Journey. She's very funny. Here's some of the fun that Dixie and I had. Her website is www.dixieleechan.com



  • After Dixie's website, I got an email from fabulous children's book non-fiction/history author Jeri Chase Ferris, whose work I have long admired. Jeri wanted me to work my magic with her and I really wanted to do it. So we are in the process. Here are some before and after screenshots tho the after isn't completely done yet. Jeri is also a history person and the picture of the girl on the horse in the new website is Jeri as a child. Unfortunately, I only had a "rinky dink" little image to work with but am still pretty pleased with it so far and the best part of course is.. so is Jeri. Here's the current site... at http://www.jerichaseferris.com/  Check back for the new and improved version : )


  • Another exciting recent client is children's book illustrator Doug Dworkin. Doug has great drawing and compositional skills but his work is/was (?) very Disneyesque, cartoony, computery, and flat, which is fine for working at Disney or doing mass market but most contemporary publishers are more fine art oriented. I love his old style, but it's not doing what he needs it to do for the publishers he'd like to work with. Here's an example of his old style, which would be great for greeting cards but not so good for the current market.

 

I'm hoping in the end that he has a portfolio with both styles. So... We played around, a lot, and was it fun. I'm showing the before, the layout, and the very beginnings of working differently using color and texture. Am not 100% thrilled with the color yet (I'd like more pink perhaps on the elephant) but will see what Doug does. Doug is also going to be changing his line quality so it's less uniform and more lively and perhaps adding cross hatching. Can't wait to see what happens. We also came up with a wonderful story to go with this illustration - Yay Doug and Mira!! Here's his website where you can see more of his work www.dougdworkin.com




  • I also started working with sociologist Ruthie Tyson consulting on a way too long picture book manuscript and fell in love with it, agreeing to co-author and co-illustrate it (Ruthie is an extraordinary pumpkin carver, which gives you a clue about the book but that's all I'm telling for now). Normally, I tell my students not to do things like this but what can I say, I'm a fool for love.

  • My work with seniors continues to be an absolute source of joy and nourishment for both me and them and although financially not great, it feeds me in so many other ways.
And finally,

I've been video taping and interviewing all sorts of extraordinary contributors for my upcoming hero's art journey e-course that starts in just 2 weeks!!! I'm really hoping that you sign up before I get a producer for the event, when the price will go up substantially. I'm also including a free keep forever e-book with this course and this course only of all the course content so that those who take it can refer back whenever they need in the future. Here it is for 5 weeks of magical transformation plus an additional 3 weeks of access after that. It's live but you get to log in and participate whenever you like. The people signed up so far are a wonderful mix of very beginner to professional and all of them are warm and caring, which helps when we're vulnerable. Starts March 5th for only $99 (payment plans can be arranged if needed) AND it has a 100% money back guarantee if you don't think it's tremendous value. See www.herosartjourney.com for more info or just sign up here for a life changing adventure - http://tinyurl.com/7a9qdwv - and if you sign up soon, you will get a wonderfully inspiring thank you gift :)

And just to intrigue and tempt you further...

I even came up with a bunch of descriptive keywords that you'll learn about with my unique methodology that you won't learn in any other course  -

easy, fun, empowering, very beginners to professionals, artists, therapists, children's book writers and illustrators, teachers, coaches, aspiring artists, drawing, painting, watercolors, acrylics, pattern, texture, collage, glitter writing, mixed media, stamp making, masking, transfer and xerox transfer, animals, faces, figures, landscapes, tree of life, family tree, Victorian silhouettes, gods, goddesses, or guardian angels, mandalas, monsters, dragons, portraits, self-portraits, composition, balance, perspective, cave paintings, renaissance, surrealism, multiculturalism, historical art, contemporary art, multicultural art, children's picture books, anthropomorphism, colonial expansionism, manifest destiny, visual culture, mythology, spirituality, Joseph Campbell, The Hero's Journey, Valerie Estelle Frankel, From Girl to Goddess: The Heroine's Journey, Van Gogh, Van Eyck, Ashley Wolff, Elisa Kleven, Hugh D'Andrade, Maya Gonzalez, Claire B. Cotts, Lissa Rovetch, Marissa Moss, Jim Averbeck, Paul Rodeen, Deborah Warren, Yuyi Morales, Maria Van Lieshout, Max Ernst, Picasso, Basquiat, Warhol, lesson plans, worksheets, art history, and more...

Oh and the VERY last thing...

I'll be speaking with other authors and illustrators and publishers (including the publisher of New York based publisher of Lee and Low) here on March 3rd. Here are the details. It will be a memorable evening plus it's just after my birthday : ).

Just a reminder to please join us on Saturday, March 3rd for THE NEXT
CHAPTER: A gathering to celebrate Children's Book Press' past and
future!

Saturday, March 3rd, 2012
7:00 PM (Program begins at 7:30 PM)
The Green Arcade Bookstore
1680 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94102
FREE and open to the public
All ages welcome!
Enjoy light refreshments while listening to tributes by authors,
artists, former staff and other community members. A limited number of
Children’s Book Press’ archival paperbacks will be sold at their
original 1975 prices!
Please RSVP to cbp.nextchapter@gmail.com
by February 27th.
Hope to see you at The Green Arcade!
Take good care,
Harriet Rohmer, Founder & Former Publisher
Dana Goldberg, Former Executive Editor

I would love to see you so do come to any of these events if you can. AND I'd love your support in continuing my magical year, so far : )
Mira
PS As always, feel free to email me at miraguy AT gmail.com (including if you would like the bring a friend special discount rate for the Hero's Art Journey course) and Please forward this to anyone you know who might be interested.



Saturday, February 11, 2012

And the Winner is!!!!!


There were so many fantastic entries, it was really hard to choose!!! I often found myself laughing out loud - But choose I did. Thank you so much for participating. As a consolation prize for those who participated, please email me and I will send you a high resolution of the image without the text for you to print out and keep (it's quite lovely) AND a $20!!!! discount for the amazing Hero's Art Journey e-course starting March 5th (see button on left for more info), which is insanely helpful for both writers, and illustrators, artists and non-artists (and it's even got a 100% money-back guarantee)!  Email miraguyATgmail.com (and even if you didn't participate - feel free to email me).

So, here is the winning entry and the reasons why I chose it.

mouse stood on bird
who stood on elephant
who stood on alligator
who stood on turtle
who stood on snake
and still they
could not see...CATERPILLAR.

All they saw were beautifully-painted wings.
All they heard was a soft flutter.
All Mouse felt was joy.
"High enough!" Mouse called down. "The view...is amazing."
Butterfly winked. "It sure is."




Miranda Paul of Rate Your Story channeled me when she wrote this entry and sometimes it takes someone else to show you what you intuitively or unconsciously knew all along. See below for the original painting WITH a butterfly. The other things I like are how concrete the answer is (abstract ideas can be challenging for young children), and the many illustration opportunities it offers as the animals go in search of caterpillar. Most of you did both of these with beautiful language useage and if I hadn't originally painted this with the butterfly... .

Speaking of language, this entry also offers great language learning opportunities for children with imagistic language related to places e.g., under the flowers, around the bushes, above the rocks, and on top of lion's head as they keep searching, overcoming the "No, not there" obstacle, until they reach the climax of finding butterfly! Yay!!

Finally, if this manuscript and dummy when completed gets published, Miranda will receive a credit in the book and a free copy as well as her choice of a free 1hr picture book Skype consultation or free admission into the Hero's Art Journey course.

Here's the original painting before I reworked it and congratulations to everyone else who submitted. I'd love to see you in the Hero's Art Journey course or one of my upcoming children's book writing or illustrating courses coming later this year : )