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Title: Peddles Author & Illustrator: Elizabeth Rose Stanton Publisher: Paula Wiseman Book, Simon & Schuster, 2016 Themes: pigs, dreams, dancing Ages: 3-7 Opening: Peddles was just a pig. He lived on a farm with other pigs, doing the usual pig things: eating and sleeping and oinking and rooting and wallowing and… Synopsis: Have you ever been … Continue reading →

Take a look at our selection of hot new releases and popular kids' books and let us know which titles and covers catch your eyes. There are so many amazing new kids books coming in 2016!

The first book in Mike’s series, Little Elliot, Big City, debuted on August 26th, 2014 and was the winner of the 2015 Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Honor. I had briefly met Mike a year ago in one of those … Continue reading →

by Elizabeth Rose Stanton

The best part of the whole picture book making process, for me, is that moment when the idea comes—that SPARK happens—and there’s ignition!

It’s mystical, it’s mysterious, it’s magical, it’s COSMIC!

But how do we get to that point where this happens—where “channel D” opens and the idea pops?

For me, it’s just one of those things that can’t be forced. I’m guaranteed not to think up any ideas when I tell myself I have to come up with an idea.

So how do I get primed for the muses to start singing? If I knew a sure-fire secret formula, I would certainly share it with you. But I do know two powerful “tools” that seem to work for me: procrastination and doodling. . . and the beauty of it is, you don’t have to be an artist or illustrator to do either one!

Each one works in it’s own way. There’s research showing that procrastination can lead to creativity, and that doodling can help us think. Combine the two and you set yourself up for some creative thinking!

Certainly, there are merits to doing both independently, but I’ve found when I combine the two, my ideas—always in the form of characters—begin to appear. I call it procrastidoodling, and it’s what I was doing when I came up with the star of my picture book, HENNY.

A few years ago, I was assiduously avoiding an assignment for a class I was taking by drawing all sorts of birds. As I doodled along, I found myself thinking about how silly it is that some birds have wings that are relatively useless—birds like dodos and ostritches and chickens. . .

. . .when out popped a doodle of a chicken with arms! Much more useful, I thought. So I started thinking about all the things a chicken with arms could do…and Henny was born!

Since then, all sorts of characters have popped into my life—and all of them started out as procrastidoodles.

So try this: First, do something you think is frivilous. Waste some time watching a funny video, go for a walk, get relaxed. Then start doodling. Maybe listen to some favorite music while you do it. The trick is not to have any expectations about what you doodle. Trust me, it will free you up to get those ideas flowing. See how many Piboidmo ideas you get.

Who knows, maybe one of them will lead you, like the White Rabbit did Alice, down the rabbit hole to a whole new world—where your picture book will come alive!

Oh—and here’s a great TED talk on doodling. Why not procrastinate for a bit and watch it?

Thank you ! And thank you, Tara, for this opportunity to participate in PiBoIdMo. Have fun everyone!

Elizabeth grew up in Western New York State, studied art history in college, and went on to graduate school to earn a professional degree in architecture. While raising her kids, she kept herself sane by drawing portraits—mostly of other people’s kids—and did some fine art and scientific illustration. Upon completion of her maternal duties, she discovered that all of her architect- brain-cells had died, so she turned to drawing and painting full-time—FOR other people’s kids—and hasn’t looked back since.

Her debut picture book, HENNY (Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books), will be released in early January. She recently signed a contract for a new picture book, due out in 2015, about a little pig named Peddles, also with Simon & Schuster.

Elizabeth is represented by Joanna Volpe of New Leaf Literary & Media in New York, and is a member of SCBWI International, and SCBWI Western Washington.

Visit her at PensPaperStudio.com, her blog, or follow her on Twitter @penspaperstudio.

Elizabeth grew up in Western New York State, studied art history at Skidmore College, and went on to earn a master’s degree in architecture from Columbia University. After working as a freelance architect and designer for, among others, The Municipal Art Society in New York, The Port Authority of NY & NJ, and various architectural firms, she got married, had a couple of kids, moved to Seattle, and had another kid. All the while, she kept herself sane by drawing pictures– mostly of other people’s kids– and did some fine art for a wonderful gallery in Seattle.

Upon completion of her maternal duties, she discovered that all of her architect brain cells had died, so she turned to drawing and painting full-time–most recently FOR other people’s kids–and hasn’t looked back since. Her subject matter wanders over to the dark side sometimes, but generally she keeps things light, and always with an eye towards humor and whimsy. She is a fan of, to name but a few, John Tenniel, Beatrix Potter, John R Neill, James Thurber, Edward Gorey, and Lisbeth Zwerger–oh, and things that go bump in the night.

Elizabeth is a member of SCBWI International and SCBWI, Western Washington.

Here is Elizabeth explaining her process:

My illustration process varies, but generally begins with a lot of thinking about the overall “feel” of what I want to achieve. I tend to do a lot of research before I actually put pen or pencil to paper. I look at a lot of pictures, and I take a lot of pictures. When I’m satisfied, I start drawing the “pieces,” usually beginning with the main character(s), and then moving on to the setting and/or other characters. I then “assemble” them. I rarely plan anything out from start to finish. I tend to make decisions as I go along.

For example, for the IIllustrator’s Workshop at the SCBWI Western Washington conference few weeks ago, our “assignment” was to do an illustration of a classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale–with a “twist.” I chose Hansel & Gretel. I looked at a lot of old illustrations of Hansel & Gretel, pictures of woods and trees, and walked around my neighborhood looking at various trees. What popped into my head first was the notion of, “hungry children.” Hungry children aren’t always thin, I thought, and the house doesn’t necessarily need to be made of gingerbread and candy. So, as I usually do, I grabbed whatever paper or sketchbook that was on hand (in this case it was copier paper) and started sketching and came up with the characters. My work tends to be very character-driven, so that’s where I usually start.

I had an overall image of a classic setting, so I started to think about the next “piece”– the house. I wanted it to be tall and narrow, appearing as though Hansel & Gretel couldn’t fit through the door. I also wanted it to be a little ominous–it is, after all, a Grimm tale. I did an image search for tall narrow houses, and based it loosely on one I found.

10 Comments on Illustrator Saturday – Elizabeth Rose Stanton, last added: 5/20/2012