BLOBS #93 RESULTS

Happy Friday! How did character creating go for you? I waited again until late Thursday night to figure these out. Which is really the norm now. This past week I finished up revising a picture book dummy that went through a major story overhaul. Months in the making. I finally got it ready to query a particular agent, and spent hours and hours crafting the submission. The hardest part is next. Hitting SEND. Then the 2nd hardest part - waiting. I usually have to force myself to snap out of all the query-opening-scenarios running through my head and MOVE ON! This weekly blog helps me do that. Here's a quick peek at a before and after page from the two dummies...

                Old page

                 New page!

Big difference. Now, on to character designs!

A look at my CREATE A CHARACTER sheet at the start and finish. I think it's fun seeing blank blobs fill up with characters and details.

A closer look at each...

                       AMY'S (A PUPPY POP)  

            AMY'S (BABY PREFERS TO BEAR CRAWL)

                    AMY'S (FRUIT LOVING BOY HAVING A SNACK ON GUINEA PIG BEAN BAG)

This one and Baby Bear got me moving. I had fun with the details of fruit loving boy, because how sweet would it be to see more voraciously fruit eating 7 year olds out there? The bottom shape fell into place once I felt like I needed to find a body for him. Adding fruity details to his shirt and lunchbox started to pull things together. I couldn't decide what type of shoes he should be wearing. My first thought were tennis shoes! He needs his natural sugar and carb intake to stay active, right?  But since he was sitting on a guinea pig bean bag, I wondered if he kind of had to be indoors. Maybe a library or classroom. That made me want to put something cozier on him like slippers. But, in school? A regular day just turned into PJ day. This boy is in his fruit jammies. Or wait - fruit JAMs! He may need a vegetable loving friend?

As for Baby Bear. Picturing a stubborn baby is not so hard. This little girl prefers to crawl- the Bear way. She could be a lover of all things Bear. Maybe it starts with a little Bear lovey she gets one day. More and more bear things are requested....bear clothes, bear stories, hair to be worn in bear-tails. Which made me wonder...what DO bear tails look like. More here on that one.

I cleaned up her pose to add more drama in my design phase. And here's a quick color study of Baby Bear...

I hope you enjoyed today's results. Thanks for checking in!

BLOBS #93

Stumped for story ideas? Not sure who will star in your next picture book? Use this week's batch of Blobs to get you started! Download a sheet here. I'll be sharing my results Friday.

MLK Jr. Day

We are observing this wonderful holiday today! We hope you are too. Wishing you a week filled with inspiration.

BLOBS #92 RESULTS

Welcome! I hope you enjoyed fiddling around with characters this week. I find when I need ideas with Blobs, I link all of my characters together to create a family of some sort. Meet GRANDMA ROSE WHO LOVES ROSES, HER PETS THORNY & TULIP, and her GRANDDAUGHTER LILY.

AMY'S (GRANDMA ROSE LOVES ROSES)

AMY'S (GRANDMA ROSE'S PET ECHIDNA, THORNY)

AMY'S (GRANDMA ROSE'S CAT, TULIP)

AMY'S (GRANDDAUGHTER LILY, PLAYING DRESS UP)

I decided to do a color study of LILY. I know how much fun dressing up can be for kids and I thought LILY would love a colorful, flowing gown. My inspiration came from a Shen Yun performance we saw years ago. Now those are absolutely stunning costumes! And when they move - breathtaking. The hanging jewels that frame LILY's face reminded me of rainfall. I thought they might sprout nicely from the floral/sun like gems placed in the center. I also extended her dress to have a train to add some asymmetry. And here's a closer look at LILY...

Thanks for stopping by!

BLOBS #92

Blobs are ready to download! Start creating new characters with your sheet here.

BLOBS #91 RESULTS

Happy New Year! I hope you had a fun holiday break.

It is back to business! And with that, an update. I will be solo character creating here at The Blob Blog. My kids have outgrown our weekly creative exercise. There may be a special appearance here and there, but for now, it's just me.

I welcome company though! If you would like to share your creation, let's do it together! Send me your design and we'll blast our creative powers out to the world and inspire others to create confidently too.

I waited until mid-day, today to attack these blobs. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I had outgrown them too. To date, The Blob Blog has been operating for 2.5 years. That is a lot of random shape creating. Turning absolutely nothing into something can also be daunting if one is in an unmagical mood. As I wondered if this blog makes sense anymore...a spark was put in motion. What binds me to discovering a character, is finding a story to go with it.

The fun begins.

It started with the first shape. Looking a little nose heavy to me, I pictured a sweet beaver. Or maybe....a not so sweet beaver (I did say this started off as daunting, right?). Then came...an UN-sharable beaver. A beaver who lived in a family of generous, dam building beavers, but he, did NOT want to build a dam. He wanted to keep his sticks. And build his own non-dam things. 

So, say Hello to...BEAVER, AND HIS UN-SHARABLE STICKS (plus STICK CREATIONS)!

PB dummy development coming soon. Blobs DO make sense.

AMY'S (BEAVER WILL NOT SHARE HIS STICKS)

AMY'S (BEAVER'S STICK BOAT)

AMY'S (BEAVER'S STICK DINOSAUR)

AMY'S (BEAVER'S STICK POODLE)

And a quick color study in an unsharing moment....

Have a great weekend!

BLOBS #91

Happy New Year! These shapes need help! What characters do you see? Download your sheet here.

HOLIDAY BREAK!

The Blob Blog will be taking a holiday break! We hope you all enjoy this time with family + friends and visit us in January 2017!

BLOBS #90 RESULTS

Welcome and thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed experimenting with shapes and characters this week. We came up with a few too. Meet PRINCESS PUMPKIN, HUGGING CHEESE CUBES, BIRD plus many more below...

ANNA'S LEFT (STINKY CHEESE), AMY'S RIGHT (HUGGING CHEESE CUBES)

ANNA'S LEFT (BIRD), AMY'S RIGHT (HUGGING BOUNCY TOUCANS)

ANNA'S LEFT (REALLY LONG NOSE GUY), AMY'S RIGHT (HUGGING ARMADILLO LIZARD)

ANNA'S LEFT (PRINCESS PUMPKIN), AMY'S RIGHT (PARAKEET HUGS)

My sketches are all so loose! I've always been a messy sketcher and have forever wanted crystal clear details to come out of my pencil from the start. But, it doesn't happen! It isn't until I start blocking in color when I can really make sense out of shapes and details pop. Does that happen to you?

The past two weeks have been...a whirlwind. As a result, the world of children's literature has started a small movement to help kids feel safe and comforted in the chaos. To help educators and schools relay this message, children's book illustrators have created art - free to download and post in classrooms, libraries, schools etc. Art that makes kids feel hopeful and accepted. To find these images, use the hashtag #hugsfromkidlit.  

In that spirit, all of my characters are giving or receiving some kind of hug!

The sketch I decided to color up was my HUGGING BOUNCY TOUCANS. A few changes were made along the way. First, my toucans were springing just past eachother...not quite a hug,  more of a head nudge...

...but it was getting a little busy. I decided to shorten my beaks and wings in my final so the focus was on the hands making contact, not the bouncy birds.

I experimented with background too. Since the kids and toucans were tighter lines, I wanted to create more of a sketchy background...

I love yellow and wanted more sunshine, so I used the channel selector in PS to take some of the broccoli green out...

I even played around with the sand shapes under the seats...

This straight line version worked better with the hilly background.

And here's the final! If you would like a higher resolution image to post in your classroom/library, drop me a note: amy@amynielander.com. Thanks for stopping by...and kids:

Postponing BLOBS #90 results to next week!

BLOBS #90

Start creating characters with a fresh batch of Blobs here!

BLOBS #89 RESULTS

Welcome to Results Day! We hope you had fun with shapes this week. Below you can find SUPERSTAR WHALE, SHARKS SHARING A KELP SNACK, UNICORN and more!

ANNA'S LEFT (PRINCESS), AMY'S RIGHT (SHARKS SHARING A KELP SNACK)

ANNA'S LEFT (THE SUPERSTAR WHALE), AMY'S RIGHT (2016 ELF HAT DESIGN)

ANNA'S LEFT (PARROT), AMY'S RIGHT (WHEN SANTA'S TOY BAG GETS TOO FULL)

ANNA'S LEFT (UNICORN), AMY'S RIGHT (BIRD)

Have you ever noticed a pattern to your character creating? After turning so many Blobs into characters I noticed when I'm stuck, my character usually turns into...a bird or fish. Thinking back more, fish played a huge role as pets in our household when I was growing up. As for birds...we only had one parrot but my grandparents usually had cockatoos. Is there a connection? Maybe!? Or maybe not. Here are some older fish and bird characters...

Look for patterns in your own character designs and let me know what you find!

As for a color study - I decided to do a quick sketch of my ELF with the modern hat. I pictured it being perfect for a TEEN ELF to wear. What do you think?

Thanks for stopping by!

BLOBS #89

What characters do you see? Create your own with new blobs!

BLOBS #88 SABINA HAHN RESULTS

Guest Artist: Illustrator, Animator & Sculptor Sabina Hahn

Welcome to Results Day!

We are so fortunate to have Sabina stop by this week. She is an incredibly talented freelance illustrator, animator & sculptor. I met Sabina and previous Guest Artist, Steve Light, at the same Highlights Picture Book Bootcamp. Sabina and I were not grouped in the same crit group, but still exchanged work during the workshop. Her animation background is evident in her dynamic storytelling, pacing and page layouts. Her stories were also sweet, fun and compelling.

The best part about having Guest Artists is I am always in awe of what they come up with! What they see in my crazy shapes is refreshing. It makes me feel like The Blob Blog is not only an exercise in creativity but a Vision-Builder too. A way to practice seeing the potential in things. Sabina went a completely different direction than I've ever seen or tried before and it reminded me of a Hidden Picture puzzle. Here's a quick look back at the sheet I sent to her Monday...

and here, is what she sent me Thursday...

Can you find the shapes? What a great kid activity, right? Thank you Sabina! Now on to our interview...

How did you get started in your career as an artist?

The simple answer is that I didn't want to do anything else.

I did study math for two years in college and I was just good enough to know that I am not good enough to really appreciate the beauty of mathematics. I decided to appreciate art instead. And although I moved on to art, I still love numbers.

Who was your favorite book character as a child and why?

Alice in Wonderland.

Ceramic bookends

I identified with her the most and still do. The absurdities of people, of rules, of language are so light hearted there but also sharply observed. I find myself quoting the book all the time. "...here we must run as fast as we can, just to stay in place" is my current favorite.

Which character has been the most fun bringing to life in your previous/current work and why?

Figuring out different monsters for a story I am working on was a lot of fun. 

I identified with her the most and still do. The absurdities of people, of rules, of language are so light hearted there but also sharply observed. I find myself quoting the book all the time. "...here we must run as fast as we can, just to stay in place" is my current favorite.

Where do you find the most inspiration for your characters?

My kids. Books I read. Phrases I overhear. I keep an on-going list of snippets that I illustrate for my daily drawings. 

Which Blob inspired you the most and why?

I enjoyed trying to connect all the blobs together and making it into a tiny (and very simple) story.

Thank you Sabina again for your time and creating memorable characters for us to enjoy!

You can follow Sabina's daily drawings and other work through Instagram, Tumbler, Twitter and Facebook.

BLOBS #88 Guest Artist Week

It's a Guest Artist Week!

Find out who will be putting their spin on Blobs tonight on Twitter or my FB page!

Give them a try too! Download a fresh set of Blobs here.

BLOBS #87 RESULTS

Welcome to Results Day! Find SMOUG, NINJA CAT, STUNT FISH and more below. Transformations follow...

ANNA'S LEFT (DRAGON DINOSAUR), ELLIOT'S CENTER (SMOUG), AMY'S RIGHT (ROBOT BIRD WIP)

ANNA'S LEFT (THE GNOME), ELLIOT'S CENTER (GHOST), AMY'S RIGHT (REAL BIRD)

ANNA'S LEFT (NINJA KITTY), ELLIOT'S CENTER (GANDLOLF), AMY'S RIGHT (SLIDING CAT ABOUT TO CRASH)

ANNA'S LEFT (NINJA CAT), ELLIOT'S CENTER (UNDERWATER SUB), AMY'S RIGHT (STUNT FISH)

I decided to color up my SLIDING CAT since I wondered what he/she could possibly be sliding into? Before getting into color, I wanted to study real cats with new pens I picked up from the store today...

To exaggerate the sliding I widened my scene...

I felt like staying with neutrals but wanted a tiled background. Maybe this was taking place in a laundry room where the humming of the dryer put another giant pet to sleep. My tile came from the number 2 shape...

Not square but good enough for the rough scene...!

Now, the colored version...

Does he look like he's sliding at a high speed to you? Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to check in next week for another big surprise...

BLOBS #87

What characters can you create with Blobs #87? Download a sheet here.

BLOBS #86 STEVE LIGHT RESULTS

Guest Artist: Author Illustrator Steve Light

Welcome to Results Day!

We are absolutely honored to have Steve Light on The Blob Blog this week! He is the picture book Author Illustrator of HAVE YOU SEEN MY DRAGON?, HAVE YOU SEEN MY MONSTER?, SWAP! and the upcoming LUCKY LAZLO (Candlewick Press) to name a few.

I first met Steve at a Highlights Foundation Picture Book Workshop this summer. Steve was on the faculty and I immediately felt a caring and passionate presence. His enthusiasm for story making was contagious and his love for pens - totally astounding. It was clear his devotion to the art form turned him into an Ink Master after he shared his Author Illustrator journey with us.

Not only does his storytelling shine in his books, but he has a memorable way of delivering stories - in person. An impromptu talent show occurred one night during the workshop weekend and Steve reenacted Three Billy Goats Gruff. I think we all turned into preschoolers while listening because his "Trip, Trap, Trip, Trap" 'ing had us on the edge of our seats!

Thank you Steve for your generous time and being a Guest Artist here. Now, onto his awesome designs and interview!

A closer look at how each Blob transformed...

Who was your favorite book character as a child and why?

Snoopy! It was also the first thing I drew that looked like something at the age of three!

Which character in your books was the most fun bringing to life and why?

The Dragon from "Have You Seen My Dragon?" but I really had fun drawing all the Alice in Wonderland characters in my book "Lucky Lazlo" that comes out in December from Candlewick Press.

Where do you find the most inspiration for your characters?

I always have a real person or child I have taught for each of my characters so they seem more real. Some background characters are even neighbors and people I see in the city.

Which Blob inspired you the most and why?

I like the second one. I turned it into an alien woolly mammoth pack animal. I really saw Mickey Mouse in it but wanted to go as far from that as I could - mission accomplished!

Thank you again Steve for your time! Your designs are all spectacular!

BLOBS #86 GUEST ARTIST WEEK

We have a Guest Artist this week!

Check FB/Twitter for the announcement tonight...

or find out Friday, when our ink-loving Author Illustrator will be sharing his own designs.

Get your set of Blobs here!

BLOBS #85 RESULTS

Welcome! Our characters are finally ready after a busy week. Lots of querying on my end (never my favorite thing to do) and more waiting for responses (least favorite part of the story making process). I do have a couple local exciting events coming up after just finishing my Skype with JFK elementary last week. One is an October 23rd, Books and Authors Event at Leon & Lulu. And in early December I'll be participating in a Lake Orion Library holiday book signing. Stay tuned for more details on that actual day and time.

Also, minor website changes will be attempted soon! Little tweaks here and there will reflect some of the school visit/picture book making progress that has been going on. 

Now - on to characters! What did you create? Our dog CHEWY has made another appearance as well as MAN BUN BOY and a very happy FOX. 

ANNA'S LEFT (SLUSHIES), ELLIOT'S CENTER (GHOST), AMY'S RIGHT (FISH NEEDS A NEW TANK)

ANNA'S LEFT (MOUSE), ELLIOT'S CENTER (BILBO - OUR GUINEA PIG), AMY'S RIGHT (FOX)

ANNA'S LEFT (SUPERSTAR FISH), ELLIOT'S CENTER (MAN BUN BOY), AMY'S RIGHT (FISH)

ANNA'S LEFT (CHEWY EATING A CUPCAKE), ELLIOT'S CENTER (DEATH STAR BEING EATEN BY A SCALLAR), AMY'S RIGHT (FOX'S HEAD)

This week I combined two of my shapes to create one character. This resulted in FOX and his really big FISH. I wanted to color up my design as is, but did not want this profile shot. My design evolved quite a bit from the intial sketch... 

I did some quick sketch studies on real foxes than moved on to some character development thinking my FISH was going to turn into a much wanted pet gift for FOX...

Meet FOX GETS A PET FISH! I added many more details to my color design. A decorated den, some ripped up wrapping paper, a more kid-like fox character who is completely ecstatic about his new birthday gift and a miniaturized fish.  Maybe FISH gets bigger and bigger in a story...? As for how FOX feels about his fun new friend - I tried to inject the same enthusiasm we had when we got our new puppy. Pure love and joy! Fox DO like fish in a friendly way, right?

Thanks for stopping by!