Happy December! My family just got back from visiting family in Franklin, TN, but before we traveled we got our Christmas tree put up! It was so nice to come home to it :) But now I’ve got to get to serious illustrating business, because my February 1st deadline will be here so fast!

For this post, I wanted to share a little of my process (which changes with every book)… Enjoy!


SKETCH: I started sketching out the characters and thumbnails back in February for this book – pre-covid. When I had the whole book roughly sketched out with pencil, I scanned each spread and assembled the drawings into a multi-page PDF, which I sent to the editor and art director at Aladdin/Simon&Shuster. Then, the pandemic hit and I didn’t hear back about the sketches until August! Good thing they liked the direction I was headed in and didn’t have too many notes/changes. Here’s one example of a spread that DID require changes…

FINAL DRAWING (just the lines): According to the notes the editor and art director gave me, they felt that we needed to compress several panels into one full spread. So I came up with this new composition…

They loved it! So I pulled the sketch into Procreate on my iPad and traced over it- “inking” it so to speak into crisper line work…




COLOR STUDY: After the drawing is finalized, I print it out small (4 times) on one sheet of 300lb Arches hotpress watercolor paper so I can experiment with colors. This step is SO IMPORTANT to my work not looking “clowny” using all the colors. A color study really is a game changer – believe me I’ve done both (with and without)!



None of the color studies (above) are perfect, but it gets me far enough to be able to confidently paint the real thing larger. I think the top left sample comes closest to what I’m aiming for.

I was inspired by the colors in these books. Do you recognize them?




FINAL PAINTING: Now, I paint bigger, life-sized, about 90%. I work at this size so it comfortable fits back onto the scanner when the painting is complete.




PHOTOSHOP TOUCHES: You lose a lot of umph and color in the scanning process, so I use Photoshop to pump up the color saturation and I can also add in little details that I may not have thought of beforehand. Can you see the little fish I added nibbling on the upside-down muffin?



Ta-da! Here’s where I ended up (after a little back and forth with the art director first). This could go through a few more changes depending on feedback from my art director, but I think it’s pretty close. To know for sure, you’ll have to compare this email/post to the final book when it comes out in Spring of 2022!

I hope you enjoyed this look into how I work! And keep an eye out for Little Red Writing Hood and the Big Bad Editor (written by Rebecca Kraft Rector) in Spring 2022!

All my very best!

-Shanda

What gift fits in a stocking but arrives after the holidays??

Bedtime Ballet of course!

I hope you’ll consider pre-ordering Bedtime Ballet written by Kallie George and illustrated by me (Shanda McCloskey) as a gift for your little dancers :)

• Read It Again Bookstore (Request a signed -by Shanda- copy in the order comments.)
• Bookshop.org
• Barnes & Noble
• Target.com
• Amazon
• Book Depository (International)

BONUS: Print out the foldable card above to slip it into a gift bag or stocking!

Warmest wishes!

-Shanda

Chris and I had SO MUCH FUN putting on the October Fire Truck vs. Dragon webinar (with about 50 classrooms from all over the country) that we immediately planned another!

We hope you’ll join us on November 12, 2020 at 10:00am EST for the 2nd go around! This time, I’ll be demonstrating how to draw Fire Truck, and of course we’ll be answering more of YOUR questions!

You can sign your classroom(s) up here: tinyurl.com/FTvD111220

Here’s some feed back that we received from the first webinar:

“The webinar was amazing. My first grade class was mesmerized.” – Kara

“We loved your webinar!!!” – Lynn

“Offerings like this that let us easily combine art and library time are very truly just what we need. Thank you both for being creative, open-minded, and…cost-effective, to boot. We will be back for Fire Truck in November!” – Heather

Dear educators (in schools or at home),

Have you ever wanted to bring an author to your students, but didn’t know where to start or simply couldn’t afford it? Or maybe you’re just slammed with other priorities, and thoughts of organizing an author visit makes your head want to explode. Well, I’ve got a treat for you!… 

I’m pumped to be partnering up with the incredible author, of Fire Truck vs. Dragon, Chris Barton, to bring you a LIVE, super affordable, accessible from anywhere, 2-for-1 punch awesome author visit webinar for YOUR students! It only costs $10 per classroom to attend, and will also be available as a recording afterward if you aren’t able to join the live event.

Chris (aka Fire Truck) and I (aka Dragon) will do a read-aloud, show you step-by-step how to draw dragon (so have paper and pencil handy), share insights into how we made our new book, and answer your “burning” questions.

You can register here: https://tinyurl.com/FTvD100820

Hope to see you there!

Also, please feel free to share this info with your fellow educators, your child’s teachers and librarians, and homeschooling families and groups.

So much love,
Shanda

“Donut” Miss This Graphic Novel Panel! With author-illustrator, Mika Song, and agent, Erica Rand Silverman

Register here for this free event!

Meet author-illustrator, Mika Song, and her agent, Erica Rand Silverman (of Stimola Literary Studio) and hear them talk about Mika’s early graphic novel, DONUT FEED THE SQUIRRELS, and their thoughts on the growing graphic novel scene! You’ll also get a peek into Mika’s creating process including her advice on writing/submitting a script for graphic novels and how she created a compelling plot with fewer words. In the Q & A following, the panelists will be happy to answer questions about writing and illustrating graphic novels, picture books, and more! This panel is for anyone interested in writing and illustrating for kids, and particularly those with an interest in learning industry scoop about writing and/or illustrating graphic novels.

BONUS: Mika and Erica are giving away (2) portfolio reviews to illustrator registrants, and there will be door prizes for writers too! The recording of this event will be available for 1 month afterward.

I’m so excited to be helping organize this event with my local chapter of SCBWI. See you there!