StinkyKids Book 3

Yikes, I haven't posted since November?  Well, I'm still here, but not freelancing as much since I took the full-time job at Hallmark.  It's too bad I won't be able to post on this blog the things I've been working on there for some time (just look at Hallmark's ridiculous roster of licensees and guess which ones I might like to work on, and yeah, I probably have :)).  But yeah, it's nice to be living normal hours again and having time to do some creative renewal, because I didn't do much of that for a few years.  

I did however recently draw the third book in the "StinkyKids" series, which will be available for purchase starting October 1, 2012.  The typography for the cover above is FPO, not final.  Also, another artist colored the book, just like on the first two books.  

Another cool thing is that the first book in the StinkyKids series won a 2010 Silver Mom's Choice Award, and the second book also won a 2011 Silver Mom's Choice Award.  Maybe the third book will finally get us a Gold?

UPDATE 11/12:  Looks like "Have a Heart" received a 2012 Silver Mom's Choice Award as well.

Here's a few non-spoilery spreads.

StinkyKids & other

I've been in the midst of a ton of huge life changes lately, but the work has still been getting done somehow. I finished the second StinkyKids book, and that's the cover above. I only pencilled & inked the book, while another artist colored it. According to Amazon.com, the book should be available September 16.

Also below are some simple illustrations, where there were supposed to be two to an 8 1/2 x 11" sheet of paper.

StinkyKids on TV

Yesterday CBS Atlanta did a story on Britt Menzies, the StinkyKids creator. I drew the first StinkyKids children's book for her, and am about to start on the second. Check it out HERE. (Can't embed the file on this site, sadly.)

StinkyKids in Publisher's Weekly

StinkyKids creator Britt Menzies has been doing a fantastic job of promoting her property. The first StinkyKids book (which I pencilled) is due to arrive in stores on November 1 and Publisher's Weekly did an overview of the StinkyKids property to celebrate the occasion. Check it out here.

Wacom eNews 2/11/10

This is really cool--after I posted below (Dec. 10) that I had drawn that Stinkykids book completely on my Cintiq tablet, I got contacted by Wacom and asked if they could write about us in their monthly eNews mailer that they send out to many thousands of people. So I gave them a new quote and some art, and waited for the eNews to show up this month. It came out today (minus the art, not sure why), and the section I appear in is in the .jpg below.

There's a web version of the e-mail blast on the Wacom site HERE.

StinkyKids book

Hello Wacom readers! Below is the post that caught Wacom's attention and had them include me in their February eNews blast. About the book: it's not published yet but people can send an email to Britt (the creator and author) if you're interested in purchasing the book she'll put you on a list to send out information when she has it. She also said when the time comes she'd send out autographed copies! The StinkyKids website is HERE.

Also, if you missed the Wacom eNews blast and would like to look at it online, click HERE.

Below is the original blog post. I hope you enjoyed what you've seen and will visit the rest of my blog and website!

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I illustrated three books in 2009, "Stinkykids and the Runaway Scissors" being the second one. "Stinkykids" is a new property created by Britt Menzies, and I think she's got a hit on her hands! She's already been featured on ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, and from what I hear she's got some pretty big promotional plans for next year as well. As for the book, it looks like it's going to be in bookstores nationwide in January.

The book was written by Britt, drawn by me and colored by John Trent. Of note for me personally was that this is the first book I ever illustrated without pencil touching paper--I drew the entire thing on my Wacom Cintiq tablet! Below are a couple of finished spreads, with my original sketches above the final art.