bonnieeverett-hawkes.com

Those silly cows are at it again! Myrtle and Maude Cow now have their very own web site and domain name. They also have their very own fan club. So go on over and visit them at:

http://www.myrtleandmaudecow.com. In case you don’t know who Myrtle and Maude are, they are the cow characters in my children’s book “Myrtle & Maude 2 Happy Cows” that I both authored and illustrated. It is available for purchase at:

http://www.lulu.com/content/390569 or ask your local book store to order it for you.

ISBN: 978-1-60530-243-0.

Make sure you tell all the kids in your life they will have lots of freebies and games and contests.

I am often approached by illustrators just starting out in the field. I am asked many questions pertaining to “how” to get started and “what” to do.  The first thing I usually tell them is to get their own web site.   A web site is one of the most important things a beginning illustrator should do.  There are some crucial guidelines that I think are worth taking a look at when considering a web page or site.  A web site will be a vital link for the illustrator to potential clients: the authors and  publishers.

First remember your web site will reflect you as an illustrator. If you can not afford to have a web host and a site designed for you then you can do one for yourself, but in either case please consider what I have to say.

I can’t brag enough on my web designers and web host, Greenfield Design, a talented group of designers in the UK, number one in my book!

Try to think of your web site as a simple resume’ , in a sense. You wouldn’t send an 6 page resume’, but a crisp, precise one page statement of who you are, what you do and some samples of what you do.

It should download fairly quick and not take 4 hours to download! I have visited a few web sites where I have found myself ready to scream waiting for the site to finished downloading that you swear you are even going to find out the illustrator’s blood type, last will and testament and possibly funeral arrangements.

Of course you want to highlight the positive about yourself and your achievements, awards and outstanding skills, but oh golly, hold off from bragging on yourself until the cows come home.

I have read some illustrator’s web sites that boast about illustrating 50-100 books in the last 6 months for various clients.  Well first of all if I was an author or a publisher that would throw up a red flag immediately, not to get off the subject, but this is an example of where a boast can hurt more than help.  A good illustrator will take at least 3-6 months to illustrate a book many times even longer.  If an illustrator is cracking out books that fast that tells me he is turning out “cookie cutter” characters and most likely digital medium only.  There’s nothing wrong with digital medium, but it should be a tool for the illustrator unless you’re an animator then it is a commitment. A illustrator should be a more varied in the mediums.  Now to the subject of what I mean by “cookie cutter” characters.  This term applies to an artist’s characters and often is found in animated or digital work.  Do the characters all look alike; such as the animals and the people?

I recently had a publisher contact me to illustrate a book, but since I already have too much on my plate I referred him to a friend illustrator’s web site.  The publisher’s response was “You got to be kidding! If I wanted ALL my characters to look exactly the same with huge eyes and garish colors that looked like they were from the planet Zor, then maybe. Can this guy even draw freehand? “  I think this explains what I am trying to say:  character conception or the illustrator’s ability to create characters for different manuscripts.

Include a brief Bio of yourself. You don’t have to tell everything about you, in fact it is not a good thing in this day and age of identity theft and security to include too much info about yourself.  If a publisher wants your professional resume’ he’ll ask for it.

Include links for lists of recent books or upcoming books.

Links are a great way to keep items organized on a web site.

Put a few samples of your work on the site , not 100! and make sure they are not so huge that again it makes your page slower to download. You can make a clickable size increase so if the viewer wants to see a larger view all they have to do is click on the thumbnail size sample.

Include a contact box, but I wouldn’t recommend your personal email address.

Surf around and view different illustrator’s web sites.  Note what you like and what you don’t like.

Just remember to stay organized. I think the most important thing to remember is your work will speak for itself in the end, but as I stated before your web site is a large reflection of you.

I’m really excited about Book 2 in the series “Have You Ever Heard of a Rainbow Farm?-The Missing Color Kittens”  by author Trish Cousineau, is to be released soon by Dream Ridge Press. This book is even more super cool than the first book. It has the same full color format, but is loaded with many more illustrations and the story promises to delight all kids and adults again!  Author Trish Cousineau has outdone herself with this darling story of the three characters, Jesse, Cody and Cassidy and their adventures on their rainbow farm in search of the lost color kittens. Trish’s books not only are wonderful stories for children, but also teach colors, counting concepts, and animals with their sounds recognition. So be watching my web site, My Space site, My Tagged site, My Gather.com site for details of it’s release.

Some people like to paint and draw inanimate objects. They get turned on to art or inspired by this sort of thing like a beautiful Italian vase on a table by a window with a sheer veil curtain, or an old weather worn wagon loaded down with vintage tack, but I find my inspiration in nature. It could be your cat, dog or bird or in my case I have acres full of nature to draw from. Trees, flowers and wildlife both serious and amusing.

On my  blog I have mentioned Mrs. Turkey many times. She is a wild turkey who lives on our farm. There are several wild turkeys who roam our woods and come to our deer feeder in our back yard for the corn. Our farm is in between two other farms and it is a “safe” farm that means we do not hunt or allow hunting on our farm. We have several wooded acres where the deer and wildlife roam freely and are safe to reproduce and live without fear of a hunter killing them. It is not uncommon to see a doe and her baby right in the middle of our driveway on your drive up to our house or a turkey running smack up the middle of the drive.

This morning Mrs. Turkey was back and she came back with seven chicks. I watched them as she took them to the deer feeder and they followed suit as she pecked at the corn. She then took them to the soft dirt . She rolled and shuffled in it to preen her feathers and then in turn each little chick did the same exact thing.

We have two raccoons who regularly come to feed at the feeder. One is a young one, the offspring of the older one who was the only one we saw last year. I love to watch him eat the corn. He picks up a kernel, rubs it in his hands to clean it and then eats it. He does this with each kernel he eats.

If that isn’t enough inspiration for children’s books there is always the birds. Red ones, brilliant blue birds, woodpeckers with red heads and solid black bodies and red heads and black and white ladder designs on their bodies, Blue Jays, Golden Finches and the list goes on. Oh and of course the squirrels, last year mama squirrel had three babies. We have red squirrels and gray squirrels and sometimes there are as many as twelve squirrels eating at the feeder at once. Chaos happens when the squirrels are eating and the Cardinals arrive. Look out if the Blue Jays come too as soon they all start running each other off, but if a Woodpecker shows up he will get first choice and everyone runs! Who the heck needs T.V. my windows are continuous entertainment and inspiration for my art!’

‘Yes it will soon be that time again, summer. As far as I am concerned, it already IS summer. Today the temp is supposed to reach 90 degrees, HOT, HOT, HOT. I am not too excited about this as I had enough of the hot weather when I lived in Texas for 21 years. I was more than happy to leave “the Hellhole” (as I called it to the grasshoppers) and return to God’s country, the midwest. Now all you Texans don’t be sending me hate messages, my kiddos and grandbabies are still there and lovvveee Texas to pieces.

Anyhow, back to the subject of summer. Ah yes, the scent of new mown grass, the sound of sprinklers swishing, birds singing in the trees, children laughing and playing outside..I do love the summertime. Then there is painting in “en plein aire” which means using natural light to paint in, sunlight, outdoors. Summertime is a wonderful time to join your local art association or guild as many of these organizations get together and paint in the area parks or nature habitats to paint or sketch. Natural light painting is a creative experience and once you try it you’ll tend to want to stick with it. Of course when an artist is outdoors surrounded by God’s beauty you might find yourself overwhelmed with inspiration, so take along your camera too and get in some good shots while your’re at it.

I was born drawing, scribbling whatever you want to call it. It was a gift the Good Lord decided to bestow on me. And as long as I could remember my heart’s desire was to illustrate children’s literature. Well life sometimes gets in the way and although I continued to draw, paint create in anyway I could create, things just didn’t go the way I dreamed as a child. I married and we started a family. My husband and I entered the pastorate and the dream of going to art school was put on the back burner of my heart. I had plenty of opportunity, however to use my talent. There were churches and denominations always looking for an artist to design brochures, flyers, newletters,posters, paint murals, illustrate Christian literature, teach seminars and workshops, you name it, I did it and I did it for 26 years. Homeschooling my last child through his last year of high school, I entered my first year of art school, I was 45 years old. I was as giddy as a kid starting kindergarten. I was on an exciting artistic adventure. Then after my first year, my old enemy, arthritis struck me again. I had to have surgery on my right hand, I am right handed. Would I be able to ever draw again? Would I be able to finish school?

I would have to have my thumb joint totally removed and a tendon taken from my wrist and put in my thumb joint so I would be able to move it. The recoup time would be at least a year. So school would have to be put on hold.

But I did return to school that next summer after nine months of physical therapy and I graduated with honors two years later at the age of 48 years old. I have since been actively involved in my dream of illustrating children’s books, children’s magazines and much more.

So follow your dream no matter how old you are. One of my favorite artists as a child and now as an adult was always Grandma Moses. Little did I know she would be my inspiration in more ways than one.

I was recently asked the question… “I have written a children’s book,should I have it illustrated?”

Actually the answer to this questions depends on a couple of things, one if you’re going to submit your book to a publisher the answer is definitely NO, unless the publisher states they accept already illustrated manuscripts. Some of the small independent presses will let you know if they leave this up to you or not to secure an illustrator and if they honor an author/artist collaboration. This is a contract between the author and artist agreeing on royalties percentage etc whatever pmt agreement you decide on. But most traditional publishers have their own in house illustrators as a rule and do not want your manuscript illustrated when you submit it, in fact it can hinder your chances of your manuscript getting accepted.

Pick up a copy of Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market it will give you all the houses and their requirements for submission and all the info you’ll need to know.

Now on the other hand, if you’re planning on self publishing which is a huge market right now with POD by all means seek out a good illustrator and get your manuscript illustrated. There are many free lance illustrators such as me that do this as well as many self publishing companies that have illustrators who work for them. I also work for some of these companies. These companies also offer many other services for you such as editorial, layout etc.

Now I have known some authors and illustrators who have produced a book together and self published and then it was picked up by a traditional publisher so there you go.

Don’t know if I have succeeded in answering this question or just confused you further??? Hope I have helped??’

‘Geez Louise…I know I am waaay behind in this blog, but then I am waaay behind in everything these days due to my surgery on my finger. I have been desperately trying to finish up the book I have been illustrating as the author tells me the local libraries are already screaming for it. This is a super , terrific thing I must say. I mean how many authors can have libraries calling them begging for a second book in a series and a kid’s book at that. I just think it’s wonderful and especially since I get to illustrate it. But like I said I do have to get it finished. I have other authors waiting for me to illustrate their books so I really have to step it. ring has sprung and talk about tough trying to concentrate on the drawing board when it is so gorgeous outside.

Well I finally wrapped up the maple syrup venture, much to my delight. Whew! That was quite an ordeal, but boy was it worth it. I have gallons of delicious maple syrup to pour on my pancakes this year. We purchased a jacob lamb at the local Amish auction this last weekend so now I have a new baby to tend to. She is so sweet and shy. Our little farm is becoming quite the petting zoo now. Jesse our saddlebred horse is also from an Amish home. We have named him the official greeter of Rustic Ridge Ranch as he is the first critter you’ll see when you come through the gates. He expects everyone to have an apple or some feed and paws his hoof on the ground to tell you so. Mrs. Turkey and Mr. Raccoon have also returned to the deer feeder in the back yard along with some small deers. As you can tell I have been doing alot of looking out the windows lately.

I was recently asked about copyrights and where to find info on it. There are alot of good groups on Yahoo that can help you out, also there is the copyright site the government has I don’t have that URL handy, but I am sure if you google it you can find it without much trouble.

Well I have rattled on long enough for now. Until next time..

later gaters…

I have been so busy illustrating the second book in the Rainbow series for author trish Cousineau-Peiffer that I has seriously neglected this blog. It is soon to be finished I hope and off to the publishers. She tells me the librarians are screaming for the second book. I recently had finger surgery which put me somewhat behind on the illustrating so I have madly been trying to catch up and get it finished.

Meanwhile it has turned Spring and almost summer is approaching here at Rustic Ridge Ranch. We have yet another new addition to the ranch, a new Jacob lamb, an ewe. Her name is Milly. She like all Jacobs is black and white. Our big mongel puppy Tater thinks she is another dog and runs around her pen anticipating that she is going romp with him. She replies to his invitation to play with head butts against the pen sides. I don’t know if I mentioned getting Tater. He is a small “horse” actually. Something of a cross between a Golden Retriever and a German Shepherd. Everyday he and our old cattle dog Joe go with me to gather the hen’s eggs and I reward their faithful companionship  with a warm egg. Tater although has the appearance of a cumbersome oath of a dog, takes the fragile egg in his enormeous jaws and carries it ever so gently across the lawn to the place he decides he wants to eat it without even slightly cracking the egg!

On the illustrating front, I am digitally illustrating this new book. Which many are under the impression this takes less time or is easier to do, don’t be fooled. To digitally illustrate can be even more difficult and time comsuming than to illustrate freehand using other mediums such as watercolor or pastels.  I always begin with hand sketches and then scan them,from there I compose the digital illustration that I will color in Photoshop.Whether you use a stylus or just a mouse as your tool of choice to color your work is a personal preference, but getting your work done to  your satisfaction takes time and work.  Illustrations have to be saved in the proper formating and burned to CDs and emailed to the author and publisher.

All illustration takes work and isn’t just a matter of jotting out a quick sketch in a few minutes slapping on some color and wham a finished product. Unfortunately I wish everyone could appreciate the artist’s effort more, but I guess this has been an ongoing battle even before I came on the scene.

Anyhow enough of the soupbox sermon…

until next time…later gaters…

Wow! It certainly has been some time since I have posted on my blog. I have been so busy that I haven’t had the time to catch up here.

Summer has gone and Fall too. The beautiful Fall leaves barely were here at all this year due to much rain that washed them all down.  Winter has come, but no snow for us yet. Christmas today and still not a snowflake in sight. It has been a strange season for us. One day it is in the 60’s, then the next day it is 70 degrees quite unusual for the midwest. Then the next week the weather will drop to the 30’s. Crazy isn’t the word to describe it.  I am still waiting for my snow, wonderful cold, wet snow!

It has been a season of change and sadness for me. My tiny dog of 12 years, my little Chihuahua, Peanut died. She is now buried in our pet cemetary with an appropriate headstone of solid marble that bears her name and details. I miss her so much, my little pal.  Then just this week my Shih-weinie dog, Oreo, was hit and killed by a car. The motorist didn’t even stop. Oreo is now resting next to Peanut.  Two little friends now gone from our farm.

We have had the new addition of Jesse who is an old Amish saddlebred buggy horse that was headed for the slaughter house.  Now this old boy is one smart critter.  He was really on the boney side when we acquired him, but he is sharp as a tack. In the morning when we head out the front door now not only will one hear Mr. Rooster crowing, but also Jesse’s neighing.  Ah! Life in the country..the only way to live!

On the book scene…lots of activity here. A couple of years ago I illustrated an EBook for ChildrenzBooks.com titled “Have You Ever Heard  of a Rainbow Farm” By Trish Cousineau-Peiffer. Well Trish has ventured out and self published this book as a wonderful print book over at Lulu.com  Trish tells me the book is selling like hot cakes in her state of Iowa and she is booked up with library and school visits.   This is super to hear. I have always been proud of this book and look forward to doing more with Trish in the future. Take a look at the book in my Book Illustration Gallery if you haven’t already.

Another book finally published is “Rodney Raises a Family” By Judy Caughron Byers. Tangerine Sky Productions did a terrific job on this book Kevin Scott Collier editing it.  I am immensley proud of this book. Judy and I have waited a long time to see it in print. You can also see it in my Book Illustration Gallery and where you can purchase it as well.

In November I had a exhibit of my portrait and illustration work at a local resturant and the owner asked me to keep it going until  the first of January. I had a wonderful turn out for the opening reception and sold lots of books.A nearby town’s newspaper did a write up on me and then just recently my local town newspaper did a write up on me as well.Right now I have about four books waiting on me to illustrate by various authors so looks like I will be busy for awhile.

I’d like to do some more portrait work, have had many express an interest in me doing some western characters. We’ll see what I come up with.

Hope ya’ll have a joyous Holiday season and a propserous New Year. God Bless!