Waiting for Proof..

Super duper trooper! At last, after holding my breath for approximately 14 days and relentlessly bothering the nice people at CreateSpace, my Vincent proof arrived in the post! There was no security guard, no needing to sign a tablet, it literally came through the letterbox with a bill.

And even better news - after thorough examination, no need for any revisions! Hurrah. So all that fretting and stitching together of brain cells to work out how to format the story so that it printed correctly was in the end, well worth it.

All I need now is to wait for my U.S. tax identification number to arrive in the post and it can be bought on Amazon.com. If you want to see a sneak preview, the link is www.createspace.com/Preview/1098336

Vincent book proof is on it's way from the printers.

(Tapping fingers on desk...)

Waiting for postman.

Still waiting for postman.
Knock at the door!!!
Not postie.

Hairy Scary Day.

Today, I have mostly been pulling my hair out.

I've been filling in forms to get a U.S. Tax Identification Number so that I can sell Vincent on Amazon in America. As you can see, after I pulled all my hair out, I wasn't left with much, so on the way to school to pick up the smallest one I went via the specialist wig makers to purchase a funky hairpiece and 'gone bananas' hat. Cool or what?

Let me help, I'm good at painting...

As you can see, I have to admit, it's not all my own work, I've had some help. 

'Let me help ~ I'm really good at painting...'

By Crikey, I think I'm done!

It might have taken me the best part of 3 months, but at last I have drawn, scanned and fiddled with the last piece of artwork for Vincent. If nothing else, at least I now know what I'm doing and where I'm going, artistically speaking.

Vincent is now on a bit of a 'just be yourself' sort of journey. No sheep, no convention. He's just himself. Ok, so he's a Vampire Bat, but heck, he really doesn't like the smell of blood. He likes blackberries. So what?

The pics above are of Vincent's flight through the forest and into the castle where the scary vampires live. What a dopey bat, hasn't he noticed the hacked off hand on the table and the arm reaching out of the coffin? 

Vincent and the Vampires

Frustrating week! Just as Vincent was well under way, we decided to redecorate our bedroom. This means that the area I call my 'studio' (it's actually the 4ft by 3ft space at the bottom of my bed) is now under a mountain of tools, paintpots and teddies. Still sometimes it's good to have a break, step back and look at the drawings with fresh eyes. At least Maisie dog isn't stuck under the bed anymore.

Being buried under a Vampire Bat is not an entirely unpleasant experience. Vincent is vegetarian anyway, so not much chance of being fatally bitten. Here's a sneak preview of what the front cover looks like thus far...

I had a moment of artistic crisis last week. Having got several spreads into the book, I suddenly wondered if using my now preferred pigment markers for the black pen work, was really the right thing to do. I had a look through my favourite picture books at how other people draw trees and came to the conclusion I should go back and try the dip pen again to see if it looked better. I did and it didn't. So thankfully, breathing a huge sigh of relief, I carried on forwards into the woodland with my pigment markers. Figuratively speaking.

Aritistic crises are overrated.