Monday, March 31, 2008

Magic Week

This week I want to show some Magic: The Gathering art I've never shown anywhere else on my blog or portfolio site.
Magic, and their parent company, Wizards of the Coast, paid nearly all my bills for years, particularly the long frustrating years when I was trying to get a break in children's publishing.
Here's a pretty lady giant, getting her flying goat groomed by hobbits or whatever.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Character In Search of a Story #9

Boy, I haven't posted anything in a while.
I've sort of been keeping my head down, trying to get on top of the book I'm working on. But here's a C.S.S. I drew a long time ago and never posted.

BILL FUFFO
and here's C.S.S. #8.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Great Art From Friends' Central School

More great kids' art, this time from Friends' Central School in Wynnewood, PA. (Click for larger view)
At top left is me with one of their classes, who suggested I draw this Frankenstein-chicken-giraffe creature. Then we have some great sandwich sculptures. Next is the Shaffex, an Adam Rex-giraffe-fish creature drawn by Chloe! Then there's a sign with some Boov at the bottom, and a portrait of the class or classes that made the sandwiches. Lastly, a bunch of sculptures of Boov and Boov accessories. Thanks for a great visit, FCS!

Monday, March 3, 2008

Appearance at Elkins Park

I should have mentioned this earlier. I'll be appearing at the Elkins Park Library in Cheltenham Township, PA Thursday evening from 7-9 p.m. It's all a part of their Read Across America Celebration. I'll read, show pictures, guess your weight and age, the usual thing. See you there!
Elkins Park Free Library, 563 Church Rd., Cheltenham, PA

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Back Pattery Redux

Some really great developments for The True Meaning of Smekday recently:

It won a Cuffie (the Off the Cuff awards compiled annually by Publishers Weekly based on a poll of booksellers) for Funniest Book of the year, tying with Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

It was named best of 2007 in the Fantasy and Science Fiction category of the Cybils (the Children's and YA Bloggers' Literary Awards). Pssst! was also short-listed for the Fiction Picture Book award, incidentally.

Finally, Smekday has been short-listed for the 2007 Andre Norton Award for best in YA Fantasy or Science Fiction.

I am gratefully speechless about all this, so here's a picture of Dracula holding a piece of garlic bread.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Inside the Secret Lair

–The world will rue the day it crossed Grit Sanderson!

–Right, no doubt. Who’s he again?

–Wh–I’m Grit Sanderson! That was my name before I became the bitter Doctor Chill!

–Oh.

–I thought you knew that.

–No. Huh.

–What?

–Nothing. You were saying? They’d rue the day?

–YES! The world will tremble in fear when–

–Your name is really Grit Sanderson?

–Don’t you think I’d know?

–It’s just…how is it you don’t have some…like…sand powers or something? Grit? Sanderson?

–Well my parents didn’t name me after I fell into the vat of liquid helium–

–I know, I know, but…still, that’s just how these things usually work out. Lightning Lord’s real name is Fry Watts. Grizzly Blair’s name really is Blair. Blair Honeytree, actually.

–Yes, I know Blair, thank you. We used to date.

–I figured you’d be…I.C. Weathers, or something.

–No.

–Nippy Winters…

–I want to be alone.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Wyncote Elementary

I had a great visit with this school recently, and I wanted to share some of the kids' art. The teachers there devised some very clever projects that tie in with one or more of my books. Like conversations between students and animals at the zoo, a la my book, Pssst!

And speaking of Pssst!, collaged vehicles, like this rocket:

Ooh! Monsters!

And aliens. Look at that Boov on the left!

And I'd like to end with a disgusting sandwich.

Thanks, Wyncote! By the way, if you're a Wyncote student and you made one of these, sorry if I blurred your name. It seemed like the right thing to do.

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

"Smekday" Now a Legitimate Word...

...according to Google, at any rate. Some time ago I mentioned to my wife that it would be a big deal to me if Google ever stopped asking "Did you mean someday?" whenever Smekday is entered in a search. And I've just noticed that they've stopped asking. And Google defines reality now, right?

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

I Suspect This Might Make a Good T-Shirt Design.

Bank Street Kids

I finally have a picture to show of a great visit I had last year with some of the kids at the Bank Street School in Manhattan. Really great, enthusiastic, whip-smart students.
I love how I apparently never remembered to roll my pant leg back down after biking to the train station that morning.

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Life Imitating Dracula

Got this message from a friend a while back, about her son, Kyle:

We had broccoli for dinner tonight. Kyle was (by far) the last one eating. I was already washing dishes in the kithen when he walks in, pointing to me saying, “Vhat are you staring at?”

It's a pretty good impersonation.

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Frankie Say...


And a general Happy Holidays to those of you who aren't in to that sort of thing.

Monday, December 3, 2007

Robert's Snow auction is GO!

I almost forgot to post that my snowflake is currently up for bid at the Robert's Snow auction. Here's a picture of it again. Bidding ends December 7th.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Back Pattery

I should have blogged about this a good while ago. It's been a busy fall. But The True Meaning of Smekday received a shockingly good review in the New York Times Book Review a few weeks ago. I hope that link is still good–it didn't work for me yesterday.

Also, I'm proud to say that The True Meaning of Smekday and Pssst! have been appearing on some Year's Best-type lists lately. Here's a possibly incomplete list:

Pssst!
-Top Ten Book Sense Autumn 2007 Children's Picks
-Amazon Top 10 Editors' Picks: Picture Books
-A Best Book of the Year by the Miami Herald
-A Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Book of 2007
Smekday
-New York Public Library Best Books of 2007
-School Library Journal Best of 2007

Okay, enough of me.

Friday, November 30, 2007

New picture, finally.

Wow. Even I've been finding my blog boring lately. No pictures. So here's one:

It's the color rough (Rough. I can't emphasize that enough.) of the cover to my next book of monster stories, Frankenstein Takes the Cake. Which I'm still working on, and which will be out in the fall of next year.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Politics and Prose

Last minute alert–I will be at Politics and Prose in Washington, DC on Wednesday, November 14th, at 10:30. Whilst there I'll be discussing my policy of interest rate reduction to instigate long-term economic growth.

Naw, I'll be signing kids' books.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

Attention Wilmington and New York:

I will be at the Barnes & Noble in Wilmington, DE at 7PM on Thursday, November 8th to talk about my new picture book, Pssst!.
And I will be at Books of Wonder in Manhattan from 12 to 2 PM this Saturday. And I'll be joined by Jon Scieszka, Lane Smith, Laurie Keller, S. D. Schindler, Alyssa Satin Capucilli, Henry Cole, and Amy Schwartz! Or they'll be joined by me. Or whatever.

Anyway, if either city wants me to keep out, now's the time to say something.

Monday, November 5, 2007

An Introduction–

How cool is this? Here's a transcript of an introduction written by 6th grader Brooks Gonzales, which he read before I took the stage at a reading this past weekend in Austin, TX:

In my study of Adam Rex
I had to read a lot of text.
Adam Rex, he likes to rhyme
With puns and limericks from
Time to time.

In his book titled Pssst,
It's not your ordinary zoo.
You will meet cunning and
Clever animals all the way
Through.
They convince a little girl
To do their bidding.
And when you read the end
You'll say
You've got to be kidding!

In his book, Tree Ring Circus,
One thing you will agree
Is that it isn't about a circus
But more about a tree.
His attention to detail
Is clever it's true
If you read through it fast
You won't have a clue.

His most notable book
Frankenstein Makes a
Sandwich,
Would appeal to anyone
Who likes monsters, It's a
Small World, and a whole
Lot of fun.

He is hip this man, named
Adam Rex
Including pop culture in
The fine print of his text.

While reading the book
Some things that I noticed
Was that Latin dance, the Yeti,
And Phantom of the Opera were
Of focus.

His books show detail, humor and wit
And when you start one
You won't want to quit!

Thanks, Brooks, for the best introduction I've ever been given.

Saturday, November 3, 2007

Sorry to be one of THOSE people...

...but I feel compelled to spread this around. I watch it about once a week, whenever I need a punch of happy. I feel if everyone on Earth were to see this we would all come together in a spirit of togetherness or whatever.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Happy Dia de los Muertos!


Austin area readers–come see me this weekend at the Texas Book Festival!

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Whoops–Halloween Event!

I'm posting this much later than I should, but I'll be reading, signing, and drawing pictures on Halloween at noon at the Please Touch Museum here in Philadelphia. Are you a kid? Do you know a kid? Then you should maybe come see me.

Halloween @ Noon
Please Touch Museum
210 North 21st Street
Phiadelphia

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Radnor!

Thanks to the kids at Radnor MIddle School for being a great audience when I visited recently, and for making this banner! I hope they all have a Happy Smekday.

Monday, October 22, 2007

The Toy Pad

Just a note to tell readers in Pennsylvania that I'll be at THE TOY PAD at 826 East Baltimore Pike in Kennett Square this Staurday, the 27th, at about 11AM. I'll draw, maybe read, and sign books. Come see me!