I really do hope I make it back to trade shows one day and have a great purpose to be there. But for now the internet is my biggest trade show of all. And right now I feel like the drunk uncle. I've maxed out my information intake capacity and now I need to take a break and do what I do best: make good art. And by "art" I mean writing, I mean drawing, I mean making stuff (whatever stuff is)...away from the other "relatives."

Through June and July I will be doing light Friday posts. Don't miss me too much. Go pick up a book...

And breathe.

With the graduation season in full swing, I've been coming across a lot of "Top" lists for inspiring gift book giving. Some are very cliche and some try so hard to not be cliche that they miss the point entirely. So I thought I'd create my own, for fun, and tell a little tale of how each inspired me. I'm sure there have been many other books on my shelves that caused a spark in me, but these were ones that floated to the top at the moment I was thinking of this. I'm also sure that you have your own that are so special to you they caused fireworks in your chest--and you can remember the time and place of impact. Here are mine:

1. Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke - Like a lot of creative kids, I was a super sensitive teenager who learned to channel things through my artistic talents. I went to an awesome summer arts camp that helped a lot with all of that channeling and it was there that my painting instructor suggested I read this and let me borrow it. I now own two different translations...and refer to it for some of my favorite quotes.

2. Spilling Open: The Art of Becoming Yourself by Sabrina Ward Harrison - In high school I was perusing the small Art section of the Borders in a mall in my hometown (wow, does that sound dated!), I found this book and felt like I found a million pieces of myself in the process. Each page is an explosion of expression, and the author is someone who to this day I admire for her work.

3. Chasing Down the Dawn by Jewel - I know I'm going to sound like a dork when I say I was (and still sort of am) a big Jewel fan. Written in journal-style, this book was my companion freshman year of art school. To this day it makes me want to travel cross-country and document the journey.

4. The Architecture of All Abundance: Creating a Successful Life in a Material World by Lenedra Carroll - Yeah, Jewel's mom. I followed where the apple came from and found this profound read.

5. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho - One of my great friends recommended this book and I finally found out why. It's an epic journey that's so incredibly quotable. To use a cheesy saying, "food for the soul."

6. Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert - Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're already so over it now that it's been glamorized by Hollywood... But I read this book before I was told I should. I remember reading it on the train to Book Expo America (the year it was in D.C.), and my friend sitting next to me asking me what I was reading. I was too early on in the book to give a concise and fully opinionated review. But since then I've read it at least five times, and at least once a year. And every year, depending on where I'm at in life, I hold something new to my heart from it.

7. Living Out Loud by Keri Smith - I don't remember when in my twenties I discovered this book, but it was my first exposure to Keri Smith...before she turned into THE Keri Smith. If I had to give a young person advice about her work I'd say start from the beginning. I appreciate her so much more knowing where she came from and how her books have evolved over the years.

8. Harry Potter (book #1) by J.K. Rowling - The cover above is from the actual edition I read--the super cheap mass market paperback. I was a late-comer to the Potter craze. I was in college and honestly I don't know what finally made me jump in. But I was glad I did. I was taking a short fiction writing class at the time, and trying to find my focus...and how writing would fit in with my "making stuff." And all of a sudden it hit me while reading this book: I want to reach kids through books. Bam!

9. From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg - I first read this book in 5th grade, and of course thought: "How cool! *I* want to live in a museum, *too*!" In college I came at it from an analytical children's book writer perspective and simply thought: I want to write books like this. I want to be like her and Blue Balliett. With my own spin.

10. Black and White by David MacAulay - I first became infatuated with this book while I was a Shop Girl. Then about two years ago I picked this book as part of an exhibit at the Free Library of Philadelphia on the Parkway. The playfulness of it is just one of many things I love about picture books. This was my little write-up for it:

In 1991 David Macaulay received the very honorable Caldecott Medal, given by the American Library Association, for Black and White. It distinguished itself as a very unique children’s picture book by playing with two familiar aspects of illustrative storytelling: Space and Sequence. Upon opening the book you are warned, “This book appears to contain a number of stories that do not necessarily occur at the same time. Then again, it may contain only one story. In any event, careful inspection of both words and pictures is recommended.” The challenge presents itself and it is up to you, the reader, to mine the pages multiple times to discover the stories told.

Where I work, some of my favorite items in the collection are letters between editors and authors/illustrators. I appreciate them so much, because when I was an editor I remember that so much of my job was emailing with a balance of business & personal. The book Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom, collected and edited by Leonard S. Marcus, houses many letters between Nordstrom and her troop of talents. Nordstrom was the editor who "discovered" Sendak, and her letters to him (many of which are in the museum's collection) are never without wit. In honor of Mr. Sendak and the woman who launched him into the world of (children's) book publishing, I give you this letter between Sendak and Nordstrom from Dear Genius (pages 166-167):

TO MAURICE SENDAK                 September 23, 1963

Dear Maurice:

We just rushed by messenger a pasted up Where the Wild to George Woods, so it can at least be considered for TEN BEST ILLUSTRATED. Of course the Holt Sendak will be included, and it seems dreadful for your Where the Wild Things Are not to be too.

Spencer Shaw is on the Newbery-Caldecott Committee. Just found out. Did he dote on you? But natch!

Maurice, before I sent the paste-up I went through it, rereading the words, and looking at the pictures again. It is MOST MAGNIFICENT, and we're so proud to have it on our list. When you were much younger, and had done only a couple of books, I remember I used to write you letters when the books were finished, and thank you for "another beautiful" job--of words of wonder from me. But I must send them, anyhow, when I look through Where the Wild Things Are. I think it is utterly magnificent, and the words are beautiful and meaningful, and it does just what you wanted it to do. And you did just what you wanted to do.

I've felt sort of down in the dumps about picture books lately, (and about those who write and illustrate and buy and review them, too, to be frank!). But this bright beautiful Monday your beautiful book is exhilirating [sic], and it reminds me that I love creative people and love to publish books for creative children.

As for creative plate makers, more later.

Yours sincerely,

 

1. The Mystery Project - I'm so excited to participate in this Art House co-op project. What I wasn't excited for was the color marker I received: Light Tan. Probably one of my least favorite colors. Ever. But I'm sure I'll find a way to have fun with it and with the theme I received. The basic gist of the project is to use the marker to make artwork, leave it in a public place for someone to find, take a picture of it (evidence!) and share it on the World Wide Web for others to be inspired. YES!

2. Someone Special - There's nothing more awesome than receiving handwritten cards via post...especially when those cards remind me that "Anything is Possible..." and have an epic smiley sticker on them.

3. Underground Pool - My friend Ellie gave me this literary journal that her students just published and I can't wait to eat it up. If you'd like to check it out, too, simply click on the title. It's available to view online as of right now. Side note: the title "Underground Pool" is sort of an inside joke to UArts-ers because there is, like, this really weird underground pool in one of the buildings. Don't ask.

4. Hoot Tile - Going along with really weird things in weird places, I recently paid a visit to the basement bathroom of my local coffee shop. I don't remember the last time I was down there, but I forgot how awesomely amazing the bathroom is. It's covered floor to ceiling in utterly random mosaic pieces and graffiti. Because I love owls and I love people who love owls, this tile was memorable.

5. A Dare - On a really horrible day that I wanted to scratch off and end as quickly as possible, I was reminded to not wash it away. That every moment counts and that there was still time in the day to do something fun. So I did. And took a picture from my rooftop.

What nouns make you full?

I tried to justify C. for these three, but really it was a weak moment. I even had dramatic inner dialogue that went something like this: "I only live once, right?" "I'm supporting these creatives and the publishing industry, so it's all good, right?" "I mean, it's not like they're a $700 pair of Manolo Blahniks." You know you do the same thing too sometimes. Am I right?

I've done a lot of work on my own book projects this week, too. Both of my days off spent suctioned to this coffee shop and my laptop. You never know if the work will pay off or book projects picked up, but I enjoy the mystery of it all. Because when something does work out, it feels like magic.

This is a book trailer that was released this past week that includes two book projects I project edited in conjunction with Running Press and also wrote intros for (Steampunk Frankenstein and Steampunk H.G. Wells). Because the book-making process takes so long from manuscript stages to final product, I always get really excited to see how the book babies launch and how they grow. I wish nothing but the best for these little guys!

(From left to right, top to bottom) 1. Flower Orange - Masking Tape 2. Spot Yellow - Masking Tape 3. Polka Dots - Duct Tape 4. Bright Floral, Bird, Heart Washi Tape 5. Butterfly - Masking Tape 6. Garden Flowers - Packing Tape 7. Pink Polka Dot - Duct Tape 8. American Girl magazine currently has a feature "17 Crafts to Make with Tape" and maybe one day they'll make their way online. Otherwise, check your library. I did not write the article/projects. But some of them are very similar to some projects in my Stick It! book. There are some neat new ideas as well, though.

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know what exciting new things you're making!

2. Philly has become such a bike-friendly city. I can't help but always stare at bikes chained to posts, trees, and obscurely grounded objects...especially if they're as colorful as this one.

3. So excited to receive advance copies of this little book I wrote. It's one of the best feelings--to finally hold a finished copy of a book in your hand that you've worked on.

4. Type Crush. Saw this in the elevator of a parking garage. How perfect.

5. I walked past this old, boarded up theater today and couldn't help remember when it was alive. More than ten years ago my friends and I saw E.T. there and I had never seen a movie theater like it before. A true classic. I hope one day they revive it into something wonderful.

6. When I first moved to this city, the big monster on the block did not exist and I was woken up at 4 am every morning to the sounds of it being built. It was just a building to me then, nothing more nothing less. Now, on beautiful blue-skied days I'm reminded of how far I and it have come.

7. Not from this week, but part of a series. For one week after something really good happened to me, a number of times when I looked at my clock it said 11:11...and I snapped a pic every time it happened. Silly, I know, what can I say. I am a constant clock-watcher, but I never notice any patterns. So, when it happens, I can't help but notice.

What were some snapshots from your week?

[Taken with iPhone at Lovers & Madmen coffee shop]

I've been thinking about turning points a lot these days, as my life is in the process of taking a turn (for the good). Between freelance copyediting and proofreading and working on book proposals, I've been drinking a lot of coffee, reading The New York Times fascinating obituaries, and pondering at what points do choice/chance affect and shape our lives.

As I was skimming The NY Times recently I came across two interesting examples. How different they and the world would be if they never ended up on the path they did...

Noble Fleming (Arbiter of Tea Taste--head of Royal Estates Tea, the subsidiary that bought tea from around the world for the Thomas J. Lipton Company, whose brand is the biggest seller in the United States)

Mr. Fleming was just 19 when he got into tea tasting, by happenstance. “I had been reading a lot of Kipling about Burmese temples and wanted to get out of rainy old London,” he told The New York Times in 1980. “So when Thomas Lipton’s top tea taster, who was a friend of the family, agreed to take me on as an apprentice in India, I jumped at it.” [source link]

Denise Vale (Rehearsal Director of the Martha Graham Dance Co.)

She grew up in Pittsburgh and took gymnastics, then dance. After seeing Ms. Graham’s “Clytemnestra” on television at age 20, she moved to Manhattan and spent five years auditioning for the company, while partying all night and working as a waitress, she said. After several years teaching modern dance at the University of Oklahoma, she returned to New York in 2000. She lives in a rent-regulated apartment in the East Village. Five years ago, she said, “I was ready to go to Home Depot and sell granite countertops.” Instead, she was hired by the Graham company as rehearsal director. [source link]

I promise a quality, wordy post next Friday. For now all I'll say is: Go outside and DO something. Something fun. Whatever fun is to you.