picture books done in 3D?

Hey guys,

I'm working on improving my school talk and I'm in need of an example of a picture book done in 3D. Sculpture perhaps? I already have the cut paper down. I'm thinking real 3D - something that needs to be photographed. Any ideas? Please do share! Thanks!

meghan

ipad, nook, kindle?

So, I've been traveling a lot this month--school visit marathon!-- and I'm starting to bend towards getting a e-reading device. I loathe checking in bags but being pregnant has made carrying books that much more unwieldy. The idea of carrying a library in a single device has become more and more attractive with each trip I take and with the old ipads dropping in price I am starting to be very, very tempted.

But is the ipad the right device to get? Even though my single purchase is not even a drop in the larger battle of e-books, I'd like to get the one that helps book publishing the most. Apple certainly doesn't seem to need any help (and is of course the most expensive option as well as recent reports of its dubious manufacturing practices). Getting a kindle seems rather like a betrayal of the book industry, considering how ruthless Amazon is to both publishers and indie bookstores. While the nook would support B&N & not indies, at least it would help B&N stay afloat against Amazon. Which device would support the book industry the most, do you think?

Virginia Festival of the Book

Next week I will be packing up the car and heading south for the Virginia Festival of the Book. It takes place in my hometown of Charlottesville, so it's always a mix of visiting friends and family, visiting schools, giving book talks, and enjoying an early dose of spring. In the past I've flown down. But this year Bruno and Tilda will join me and given the mountain of stuff a traveling baby requires, we decided to drive. I am mildly terrified of 10 hours in the car with a toddler, but very excited about the festival.

This year I'll be visiting 5 schools (including the first elementary school I ever attended!), giving a couple of weekend events, and will be interviewed on the local news. I grew up watching my hometown news, so that will be an extra thrill.

If you are in the area, the festival is well worth checking out with hundreds of events around town. But most especially, come join me if you can for these gatherings:

Making a Picture Book with Anna Alter
Sat. March 24th, 2012 - 10:00 AM

A StoryFest Event! Anna Alter shares her latest picture book. Children learn how a book is created from start to finish and then participate in their own art project. Original artwork from Anna's books will be on display. Anna's own books available for purchasing and signing.

Location:
CitySpace--Charlottesville Community Design Center
100 5th Street NE
(434)984-2232

Book Signing at Alakazam
Sun. March 25th, 2012 - 1:00 PM

Author and illustrator Anna Alter shares her book A Photo for Greta and an art activity with her Alakazam fans.

Location:
Alakazam Toys and Gifts
100 E Main St
(434)971-1717

PAINTING I'M WORKING ON...

pretty white girl

I'm traveling around this month, doing lots o'school visits, but this blog post, Why The Pretty White Girl YA Book Cover Trend Needs to End caught my eye. It's written by the fearless & articulate Ellen Oh, who is a great supporter of multicultural authors (as well as being one herself).

One of the topics briefly touched upon was that middle grade novel covers don't suffer as much "white washing" as YA covers. As a middle grade, multicultural author I think that is true. But I still think there is room to grow! What do you think?

authors are rockstars

Today,there's a fun little podcast interview with yours truly at Authors are Rockstars. I love how they we talked about the story of my Newbery dress--you can see we talked only about the most important things!

Listen HERE!

Slippery fish

It seems to me, in general, there are two types of writers. People for whom ideas come easily and the craft and follow-through are a challenge and people who struggle with their idea, but the craft and revising flow unimpeded. This is a vast oversimplification of course, but in general it seems like most writers I've met lean towards one or the other group.

I am in the second group. I wrestle with ideas like slippery fish, but once I've caught one I can whip up dinner in no time flat. This is probably not the best analogy, books have little in common fish and I am a vegetarian, but slippery carrot doesn't work quite as well... anyhow... I long to be one of those writers with ideas buzzing round their heads all the time, who need merely choose which spark will make their masterpiece. But I do love the rush of energy once I've got my momentum going and can really sink my teeth in. Right now I am at the cusp, about to dive in, writing aimlessly until the pieces I need come together. It's a place I cannot stand and will do anything (blogging for instance) to avoid, but usually passes quicker than I think it will.

Which type of writer are you?

two things

I'm posting this on an airplane on my flight back from a lovely school visit (I'm still in awe that I can get the internet while in the air) because there were two things that I really wanted everyone to know about.

First:

 Illustrations from Lissy's Friends and Fortune Cookie Fortunes will be shown (along with the art of 6 other artists) at the Wenham Museum as part of their

Draw Me a Story: A Celebration of Contemporary New England Children's Book Illustrators Exhibit, showing from March 2-18.

I'll be at the reception for it this Sunday, March 4th, 1-4 pm


I hope to see some of you! It's a super cute museum--antique toys and trains, definitely worth the trip!

Wenham Museum 

132 Main Street, Wenham, MA 01984 

Tel: (978) 468-2377

AND second:



Here is the Pocket Pacy giveaway I've been promising!

Even with the great turn-out at the launch, I have a dozen Pocket Pacys left! Would you like one? You can win one by simply telling me what journey YOU would like bring Pocket Pacy on! Simply download the Pocket Pacy Activity Page and do the activity. The activity is very simple-- finish the sentence on the page ("I would bring Pocket Pacy to...") and draw background around her. Here's an example:

Before

after

See! Easy and fun, right? Download the activity sheet HERE.

Then, send me your finished activity sheet scanned or photographed by e-mail at:
gracelin.manager@gmail.com

OR send it to me via snail mail at:

Grace Lin
PO Box 441457
West Somerville, MA 02144-1457

I will choose 3 winners a month until July 1st. Let your imagination go wild--if you win, you don't really have to take Pocket Pacy on the trip you draw! I can't wait to see where you want to take her!