children's picture book writing challenge—i'm in!

PiBoIdMo, a children's book writer and illustrator response to NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month begins this month, and i've signed up to take the challenge! the acronym stands for Picture Book Idea Month: create 30 new picture book ideas in 30 days. oh boy! let the creative juices flow!

i'm back in the groove on my art and illustration work, and delighted to return to my children's book manuscripts in progress, and new ones about to be created. last month i participated in a 30 day picture book dummy challenge initiated by portland illustrator lee white via Portland Kidlit facebook group, which initiated finding one of my manuscripts written long ago that i intend to illustrate. the dummy is in progress! hooray! i didn't meet the deadline because i had a number of big deadlines and projects in october, but it's on my drawing table and the challenge sure jump-started me.

keep a watch here for updates on my progress.

two well-loved children's books i illustrated are long out of print, so i'm ready to dive in.

the first one i did, How to Get Famous in Brooklyn, is close to my heart with the recent superstorm sandy. i hope my friends and precious places in brooklyn have survived. harold underdown, friend and children's book editor and author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books and major contributor to educating on the children's book publishing process, has been posting his news; he and family are hanging in there! not sure that roller coaster at coney island pictured on top left of my cover made it. here's an article with photos talking about the future of coney island.

photograph © Timothy Murray 2012 from Huffington Post article

The Little Ant, the second book i illustrated, a Mexican folk tale, is also close to my heart, and would have sold thousands more copies if it had stayed in print!