In celebration of February, the month of luv, I want to tell you about the pups I love and how they live forever in my book illustrations. It’s actually the theme of my next Pencil Pusher Kids Newspaper that snail-mails out in a week or two. But you grownups can enjoy the front page here …
A Starred Review and 25% OFF!
I’m so proud of this star from a really tough cookie … Kirkus! And it’s a fantastic time to pre-order it. These early orders are super helpful to bookmakers like me. THANK YOU to all who order it or tell someone about it!
A Friend’s New Book For Teachers!
Shannon Anderson, a seasoned teacher, author, and long-time writer friend, just released this incredible resource for teachers! Just a few pages in and I’m already salivating…
I highlighted this part because I’ve volunteered in my kid’s writing classes and tried to bring some extra excitement to the class writing assignment at hand. I’m not really sure if I did though. It’s tough to teach this stuff. Heck, I’m still learning it! But I do know that I need AN AUDIENCE THAT CARES ABOUT WHAT I HAVE TO SAY to get to the finish line whether that be in my writing or my art. I’m not the kind of person who makes art for my own pleasure. For me, it’s got to have a purpose, or it’s a no go.
Yes! Show them your strange process, imperfections, and writing struggles!
Sometimes, I still can’t believe I am an author … I have no business writing for a living … Wait! Yes, I do! I have great ideas. Though it may take me more time than others to string the sentences together, I am just as much of a writer as anyone. I don’t care how scholarly you are. Writing is a heart muscle.
Comment on this Substack post for a chance to win this copy of WRITING FROM SCRATCH: Lesson Plans to Boost Your Classroom Writing Instruction by Shannon Anderson!
This post was originally posted on Substack.
Every student can design a piece of the machine!
- Look at the table of contents inside the book, SMASH, CRASH, TOPPLE, ROLL!: The Inventive Rube Goldberg, for inspiration! It stretches over 4 pages that all connect into one long chain reaction machine! All the parts use versions of the 6 simple machines and/or some imaginary components (such as a ghost or a monkey holding bananas in just the right place at the right time)!
2. As a group/class decide what simple task your machine (as a whole) will accomplish. Will it sweep the floor, feed the dog, or something else.?
3. Note who will “start” the machine on (page 1). Use this printable as the first page if you like. Then decide who comes next (page 2), and next (page 3), and so on … and the last person “ends” it and shows the completion of the machine’s “task.”
The starter will only connect with someone else’s chain reaction at the right side of their paper. And the finisher will only connect at the left side of their paper. All the other in-betweens will connect their chain reactions at the left AND right sides of their paper.
4. Work together with your adjacent peers to properly “connect” your machines at the correct places as you plan and draw.
5. Fill the page (left to right) with your own drawn chain reactions-big or small, realistic or imaginary, just like Rube Goldberg!
The group’s complete drawn machine can be as many pages long as the number in your group, and would make a fun hallway display or accordion book!
Tips:
- Draw as clearly as possible so it’s easy to tell what is happening at each step of your chain reaction machine.
- Plan and draw lightly at first before committing to darker lines.
- Make some marks on each side of your paper to remind you where your machine needs to “connect” to the person’s machine drawing on each side.
- Discuss and Work with your peers to decide if falling dominoes (or whatever) can leave your page and enter theirs at the connection point. And vise versa. A chain reaction machine is only “believable” if the connection points flow seamlessly from one to another.
- If your machine gets too low (ex: gravity, falling, dripping), think of something to move the action “up”. Examples: a helium balloon, a swing, a catapult, a lever, a pulley, and inclined plane, heat/fire, etc.
Have fun making Group Goldberg Machines! I’d LOVE to see what your class creates. Please send me photos or tag me in social media posts :)
It was an action-packed December as I had an illustration deadline approaching and the holidays stacked on top of each other. I had to be patient and OK with only making super small steps forward each day. It was amazing how those small tasks added up to a finished book … and (pretty much) on time, too!
My calendar “said” it was impossible, but each day I gave myself something small to accomplish. And those little accomplishments felt good. They created momentum and an unintimidating path to the next (small) thing I could check off the list. This minimalist calendar helped me :)
Last Monday, I turned in the final illustrations for Lilibet Makes a Friend (by Kersten Hamilton, illustrated by me) which comes out next year with Disney Hyperion! I’m sure there will be some tweaks I’ll need to fix, but all in all, I’m DONE!!
To celebrate, I’d like to share peeks at some of my favorite moments in the book …
This story is about a girl, Lilibet, who longs for a friend. She sets out to (literally) make one since she can practically build anything she puts her mind to. But when a boy named Peanut insists on helping her, the results get real.
Lilibet has her own pet Punk Rock there on a shelf – a nod to my upcoming graphic novel :)
I’ll post more about Lilibet Makes a Friend as it gets closer to its publication in 2026. Till then, thanks for reading and cheering me on!
Next Pencil Pusher goes out in Feb!
The Spring 2025 issue of The Pencil Pusher will be all about dogs :)… how I used one as a catalyst in a story and how I’ve illustrated my own dogs to “live forever” in several of my books. And, of course, there will be some kind of “hairy” drawing activity!
Here’s an example (above) of how my boy (Ace) makes an appearance in my new non-fiction book SMASH, CRASH, TOPPLE, ROLL! (which is available for pre-order).
If you are a librarian, teacher, or parent, you can learn more and subscribe your student(s) to The Pencil Pusher HERE. If you are already subscribed and you’d like to make changes to your subscription, go here.
This was originally posted on Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/shandamccloskey/p/the-art-is-in?r=5cnb3&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
There are three hours left in 2024, here in Georgia! I’m home with my husband and a kiddo who has the flu, but it’s OK and even nice to chill after the rush of the last two months.
One accomplishment of mine over the past year is I put a screenshot (on iPhone Notes) of every book I read, and tonight, I made a “quilt” by putting them together in one lovely rectangle:
Looking at this reading record reminds me that my co-writer husband and I completed our first contracted graphic novel script earlier this year! (PUNK ROCK, Abrams Fanfare 2026). Such a BIG moment for us that holds much hope and thrill for us. And as you can see, I was reading LOTS of graphic novels to see how the stories progressed from panel to panel, page to page, and chapter to chapter.
Keeping a reading log isn’t an impressive accomplishment, but I’m happy I did it! It’s a window into my months-earlier mind.
Happy New Year, er’body!
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