Inspiration

Work as Love

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treeforestWork is love made visible.

And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.

Kahlil Gibran “On Work” from The Prophet

After working intensely on one of my major jobs and getting it off to press, then shortly afterwards actually allowing myself a Labor Day weekend respite from the computer to attend to other creative projects – and relaxation – I find I am back. I  have work to do, (for which I am grateful), but am desirous of more time to just muddle about. So I searched out a quote, which might inspire me to get back in the mood of working … work is love made visible.

It’s a start, anyway …

Winged Migration – A Spectacular Visual Treat

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WingedMigration-flamingosThis movie, released in 2003, is one of the most spectacular I have seen. There is almost no narration, there are occasional notes on the bottom of the screen indicating the type of bird and the location and distance it flies during migration, and the most incredible music created just for the film. Not to mention breathtaking landscapes from one end of the world to the other. What is even more extraordinary, is how the birds were filmed – the view is most often from the bird’s perspective. For bird/wild bird lovers or just nature lovers, this is one to see. Available on Netflix.

Be sure to see the Special Features and you’ll be amazed at the 4 year chronicle it took to make this film and how the birds were filmed this way. I smiled in wonder all through the movie and again just watching the trailer. For a sneak peek, check out the trailer.

Honored to Receive the Honest Scrap Award

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honestscrapawardI recently found I was chosen for an award by a fellow blogger, The Battered Trunk.

I readily found what I, as a new recipient, needed to do, but was unsure exactly what the award was about. A little online delving, and I found the following definition of the Honest Scrap Award on Buddhist Minister Rev. Danny Fisher’s, site. He says the following:

This award is bestowed upon a fellow blogger whose blog content or design is, in the giver’s opinion, brilliant. This award is about bloggers who post from their heart, who oftentimes put their heart on display as they write from the depths of their soul.

Wow! A special thanks for the award, then, Marstead!

And the instructions for the award are as follows –

THE HONEST SCRAP AWARD:

1. The Honest Scrap award must be shared!
2. First, the recipient must reveal 10 true things about themselves in their blog that no one else knows.
3. Second, the recipient must pass along this prestigious award to 10 more bloggers.
4. Third, those 10 bloggers must be notified they have been given this award.
5. Those 10 bloggers should link back to the blog that awarded them the Honest Scrap award.

OK – first the 10 things –

1. I was pretty much sewing all my own clothes starting at the age of 11.
2. In high school, I was accepted to all the top NYC/Phila Fashion Design Schools until I had that duh! moment and realized that I would be snuffed out like a bug under a stiletto heel. What was I thinking?! And I went back and re-applied to art school. Whew! That was close!
3. I don’t think there’s a creature on the planet that I wouldn’t find fascinating given the proper introduction (or distance, depending on the animal) I’m remembering an all-too-close encounter with a baldface hornet a few years ago.)
4. I miss the ocean.
5. I thought Howdy-Doody was an incredible waste of time and never ‘got’ the Three Stooges.
6. Notwithstanding the health implications, I could happily live on homemade bread and sweets, the best array of cheeses, and really good coffee.
7. I easily embarrass myself doing mental math in front of people (thank you nuns with flash cards starting in first grade.)
8. I always believed in angels.
9. After seeing the movie On the Beach as a child, I really believed the world could end. Like then.
10.I remember the flute passage in Seven Beauties playing in the courtroom while the proceedings went without sound being one of the most lovely pieces ever, but am not sure I could watch the movie again right now to listen to it.

OK – the blogs – let me say first, I have very little time to check out others’ blogs, and barely enough to keep my own freshened up regularly. I am not a big blogger, and honestly don’t know a lot of blogs to even list. However, that said, here are 4 that I visit regularly or periodically that I will say put their heart on display, and yes, two are dog rescues. I may add more later – this is what comes to mind right now.

Diary of A Children’s Book Writer

Writing for Kids While Raising Them

BAD RAP’s Blog

French Bulldog Rescue Network’s Blog

And thank you again Marstead of Battered Trunk for noting me for this award.

Outfoxing Your Reluctant Artist – 2

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Kerry Blue ProfileStalled? Change your venue!

I prefer the word stalled to blocked, because sooner or later we always get going, and blocked is so …. well, final. One of the things I have found to work when I am feeling stalled is so simple it sounds like the obvious – do what you’re doing someplace else. If you normally draw in your studio, but the space now seems as arid as the desert, take your sketchpad and your materials someplace else. Try the kitchen table, the back porch, the patio, the park, a favorite restaurant or someplace further away.

If it’s writing, and you, as many of us do, write at the computer, but it’s staring back at you with all the blank stare it can muster, shut it off. Grab a notebook and your old-fashioned pen or pencil and go elsewhere. If in the house isn’t far away enough, go further, maybe even for a drive or a subway ride to some other part of town. Sit in a gallery or the library; go eat someplace with fabu food. Hang out with your friend’s dog or cat. You get the idea.

When we have associated our art with a particular location, that very same location can seem the antipathy of inspiration when we have something really BIG to do or are looking at a looming deadline or want to get back to something we started a while ago. Perhaps you haven’t spent time in your creative space recently. So jump start your project somewhere else and you may just find your self rolling along in no time. Works for me; hopefully, for you, too.

NJ SCBWI June Conference – A Few Thoughts

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ChildReadingThe June 2009 Conference was, once again, spectacular. There was an amazing group of agents, editors, illustrators, authors, and art directors waiting to critique, guide, challenge and enlighten the 240 participants. And there was plenty of talent on the attendee side as well. Both new and familiar faces were present to submit manuscripts and illustrations, in hopes of landing that book deal or finding the perfect match in an agent or editor. And it happened or is in the works already for some of the folks who were there!

This year, I attended Saturday only, but it was no different than Friday in that critiques, first page sessions, and talks were scheduled all day long. At the same time, items were available for bids in 2 separate auctions; participating  illustrators’ work was on view; and the Book Fair was open for perusing. As we rushed from one activity to the next, up and down the stairs in Stuart Hall, it couldn’t have felt more like being back in college and trying to figure out where our next class was. It was familiar, crowded, and wacky, and more than one of us – way more, actually – were periodically to be seen standing stock still trying to figure out what we were supposed to be doing next. 

Everyone, by the end of Saturday, is totally wiped out. But in a good way. If you want to be published in children’s books and are not attending conferences, you need to consider it – you’ll be amazed at the jolt of inspiration you’ll get.

It had been my thought when I started this to offer a few tips about attending a conference such as this, but I suspect they’ve all been written up somewhere online. Or maybe a few would help. Here’s the most important ones overall I can think of …

  • Reduce your stress – The activity is non-stop, so it behooves attendees to minimize stress, and I suggest doing this by being totally prepared ahead of time – right down to what you will wear, directions, being all packed up and ready to go the night before. Be prepared by being somewhat familiar with the editors and agents who will be attending – come already having researched at least some of the author or agent’s web sites, their bios, what kind of books they’re doing, etc.,  (that is, if you didn’t do all this before you sent in your application!) When you have minimized your stress, you will also be much more able to hear your critiques.
  • Have the right attitude – being optimistic is the best way to go. Every editor’s and agent’s view on your work will be a little different, and it is important to be open to all comments. The faculty are present to offer their input with the best of intentions in helping you further your work. Be prepared for both praise and criticism and for things you do and don’t want to hear. Listen carefully, ask questions, and let what is said sink in, as you will be revisiting their suggestions later. And later again. Stay positive.
  • Follow-Up – Once home, write thank-you notes or letters to the faculty that you met with. Review the critiques you received and make additional notes while everything is fresh in your mind. Bring your experiences back to your writers’  groups, (you do belong to a writers’ group, right?), and share what you’ve learned with one another. This is another way to keep your critiques fresh in your mind, and to go over the feedback with the people who know you and your work the best. Plus, it’s a great way to figure who you may or may not want to meet with in the future, who may be most open to your particular style of work.
  • More follow-up – get down to the re-writes, the edits, the next dummy or illustration revisions. Get ready to submit to those faculty members who expressed an interest or openness in seeing your work again. But don’t wait too long – the next conference will be here before you know it!!

If you want to get the most from your writing, join SCBWI, and find where your local SCBWI is and join them, too. (New Jerseyans, you’re here.) Get in the know about the big field of children’s books. Search out a children’s book writers’ (and/or illustrators’) group nearest you. The support, encouragement and shared information is invaluable.