The Only Woman in the Photo

The first image is the final cover and the second 2 are the sketches from the exploration phase. I really liked the black and white one but Love the way the final came out. It’s a lot more colorful and appealing to a young audience.

The Only Woman in the Photo is finally available for purchase! Happy international Women’s history month!

I thought they made a mistake when I got this job offer in my inbox. Maybe my agents showed them someone else’s work by accident? Why did one of the biggest publishers want to work with me, a newbie freelance artist, who doesn’t even have any practice yet? I kept thinking; I’m not ready for this! My illustration skills felt very rusty having worked in graphic design for 2 years after graduation and I couldn’t get over the fact that I was working with one of my dream clients while feeling so under-qualified.

The more I researched Frances Perkins the more I could hear her voice telling me todo my best and stop worrying. I might be scared, but this was my dream, I needed to give it my all no matter what and my best was enough.  In the end, I was able to loosen up when I realized the kids wouldn’t care if my illustrations weren’t perfect. They wouldn’t see all the mistakes I made or the fact that I was new to painting; all that matters is that Frances’ inspiring story is told.

An artist’s biggest enemy is ego. We strive for perfection when it’s perfection that kills creativity. Frances used her voice to change the world. This book taught me that, no, I dont know everything and I never will but, that doesn’t make my voice any less valid. I discovered that my voice takes the shape of illustration and I can use it to communicate bravery, kindness, passion, optimism and other inspiring virtues which, are all things that speak louder than perfection ever will. 

I hope you are as inspired by Frances’ story too.

Ps: crying happy tears over a positive review from Kirkus!! Feeling like a real illustrator now!

Leading The Way

Leading the way is OUT! I remember getting the contract from Candlewick a few months ago and having to pinch myself. I printed out a copy and hung it on my bulletin board so I would know it was real! Candlewick was one of my dream clients when I switched to full time freelance. It was such an honor that I got to work with them when I hadn’t even been in business a full year!

I was tasked to design the cover as well as create concepts for each of the powerful attributes that would be used to describe each figure in the book. Sort of like little badges that the women had earned by displaying the trait. When I received my copy of the book, a few days later they sent me LITERAL badges with the designs on them! So cool!

Photo courtesy of Theresa Howell

Needless to say, everyone at Candlewick were total rockstars to work with. Super kind and helpful with great feedback. When I handed in the first round of finals they had no revisions! Which has NEVER happened to me!

In my previous life as a logo designer, I used Adobe Illustrator daily to make graphic, minimal designs to tell the story of the company. As an illustrator you have a few more variables to work with but its essentially the same stuff! As much as I love painting I always really enjoy making graphic works and using Illustrator. I love the problem solving aspect and when Im using illustrator, I love getting a good playlist going and letting my fingers dance over the hotkeys. I get into the same a state of flow doing graphic design as I do Illustrating. Such a good feeling. I’m so thankful that I have 2 years of professional GD under my belt. I learned so much about process, shape, business, deadlines and many more valuable skills. I would say to any new illustrator fresh out of art school, theres no shame in not illustrating your first few years out of school! Even when Illustrating you have to design before you can paint! Wherever you are in your journey you can learn something new everyday and apply it to illustration.

Below are some of the sketches I did for the buttons. When I use to make logos, my first step was always to look up descriptive words and synonyms that helped me brainstorm about the identity and voice of the company. I jotted those on my sketch sheet and added a color scheme so I could start to visualize how value would effect the composition. Once they chose the sketches they wanted to see finalized, it was on to Illustrator!

Im so glad I got to work on this project. Its been a blast and its cool to have collaborated with such great folks! so far almost all of the books I’ve had the privilege to work on have had to do with women’s empowerment in some way. It has given me so much purpose as an artist to be a part of telling such inspiring stories. I hope this leads to many new generations of women in politics! Your voice is power!

You can check out Theresa’s other work on her site theresahowell.com as well as her instagram and Twitter.

The portraits inside were done by Kylie Erwin and you can check out more awesome portraits on her site https://www.kylieakia.com/

We Could Be Heroes

This was my first cover project and I absolutely fell in love with illustrating youth fiction. I love doing children's stuff but, stories for older youth audiences always have nuances of darkness that bring a bit more passion to the illustration. As optimistic as I am, I’m the first to acknowledge the value of having real talk with kids about confusing emotional topics. I don’t believe in “taboo topics,” I think Taboo is just another name for fear and fear isolates people. When we acknowledge the evil, hardship and sadness in this world, we are better equipped to problem solve, persevere and be grateful for the insane amount of miracles that happen every day. This is why I believe media is so important. When used for good, it can reach out and help someone who may feel totally alone and without resources in their community. A good story can bring people together, especially if it resonates with them on a personal level. 

When I was struggling with my health, reading stories about others who were going through the same thing made me feel so full of strength, I knew I would be just fine. If they were doing it, I could too. I am so excited to see so many books coming out about kids who overcome fear and find strength in their differences, not use them as an excuse. The premise of this book captured my heart, not only because one of the main characters is a dog, but because all the characters fit into the category of “misfit.” There’s something “wrong” with each of them but, they find comfort and strength in each others shared struggle. Strength enough to be heroes. 

I did this cover during a time of terrifying uncertainty in my life. I took the leap to become a full time illustrator and whew! Talk about feeling pretty alone! I’m a pretty social person and was really missing the daily human contact of a day job. I was going through a lot of changes and found myself in need of guidance and support. The kid lit publishing community in New Hampshire is small, needless to say, so I didn’t know where to turn to for feedback and advice. In time, Illustrators and writers started messaging me with questions about the transition, work habits and advice. I’ve been having coffee dates and Skype calls with local artists, teachers and illustrators from around the country about the trials and tribulations of pursing a creative profession. I’ve even been invited to tell my story at colleges, programs and elementary schools where I’ve met inspiring, young, creative minds who taught me things I couldn’t learn from anyone established in the field. The connections happened totally naturally as a byproduct of putting my work out into a community of like minded people. Hearing successes inspired me and aligning with struggles gave me strength to find a solution. I now feel like I am a part of a small but growing group of people I can call on for help, inspiration and feedback. But, it all started with Margaret. 

As I was working on this project, I got a message through my website contact form from the writer herself, Margaret Finnigan. I had never spoken to any of the writers of the things I had illustrated for, since the agents and the publishers usually act as the liaisons. I opened it expecting some kind of criticism but, was moved to almost tears as I read such kind words about the the life and expression in the sketches and how I was meant to be an illustrator. We continued communicating throughout the process and she kept me posted on the status of the book after I sent the final illustration. I had a lot of self doubt at the time, but her kind message did more for my confidence as a new illustrator, than I think she will ever know. 

I was always surrounded by a positive community, but since becoming a freelancer, I felt like I was now living a secret life. Nobody really knew what I was doing or how the industry worked except the faceless people I communicated with daily, on a professional level. I felt like all the compliments I had gotten prior to freelancing didn’t count. I am a professional now and needed some kind of validation to know I had the right stuff. Getting a genuine, positive affirmation like “you have a bright career ahead of you”  from someone established in a creative industry, definitely makes you feel like you’re on the right track. Honesty and authenticity, I’m finding, are priceless in this line of work. Margaret went out of her way, off the record of the forum of project emails, to give me an honest compliment at a time when I needed validation. That email gave me the strength to push through the winter of 70 hour work weeks doing my best work because her gratitude gave me my purpose. The stories we tell with our pictures and words, matter to someone.

You can check out the official cover reveal and read about the book here As well as participate in a sweet giveaway!

Keep up to date with “We Could Be Heroes” as well as Margaret’s other works by following her blog and twitter. 

We Could Be Heroes is set to release 2/25/20 from Atheneum.