Toronto Illustrators Blog

“You cannot write for children. They're much too complicated. You can only write books that are of interest to them.”

        – Maurice Sendak

This photo was taken by a lovely lady whose daughter is a big fan of my book, The Pirate and the Penguin. The daughter didn't want a Chirp drawing, nor did she want a drawing of a pirate. She wanted a penguin, and nothing else, thank-you very much.

On Saturday May 5th, I spent some time at the Toronto Comics Arts Festival, drawing Chirp cartoons, penguin cartoons, and basically cartoons of almost any kind (sorry – I can't do superheroes!) for all the wonderful kids & parents who popped by. It was a most joyous afternoon.

This event takes place every year around this time at the Toronto Reference Library. Every year it seems to get more insanley crowded than the year before. Here's a video of the event, just to give you an idea of what I'm talking about (and yes, I make a very brief appearance).

It is heartening and astounding how popular the world of comics and graphic novels has become in the past few years. I remember when I was in high school, feeling very much like the odd little artist, because very few people I knew in high school were drawing cartoons with any level of seriousness, or reading comic strips or collections of New Yorker and Punch cartoons. Some of my art teachers were not exactly very impressed with my cartooning work, and didn't consider it much of a talent. I can still recall doing an art field placement in a sophisticated design firm in Burlington, surrounded by all these older, cool designer-types; many of them were divorced, and were playing the field, obsessed with their appearance, obsessed with impressing their rich clients, obsesssed about getting old.  The 1980s in Burlington, Ontario, seemed to be overflowing with adults acting like complete idiots. These people did not know what to do with me, this shy girl who drew cute little cartoons in the corner of the office. I could not wait for that wretched field placement to be over.

So to see all these marvellous quirky people – hundreds of them! – taking refuge in (of course!) a library, to celebrate and honour the wonder of cartoon art, well, for me, I still find it quite overwhelming.

Are you sitting down? Well then, get off yer duff and start moving! Yup, Chirp‘s May issue is all about moving in some way – cycling, swimming, skiiing, jumping, dancing, running, surfing – the moving list is a long one, kiddo! And while you’re busy moving, don’t forget to get a copy of this issue, ‘cuz, well, the comic inside is one of my faves! (Hee hee).

Yeep! Ya know, life gets very confusing when you try and host more than one blog. Oh let's face it – life is just confusing, be you kid or adult. I totally forgot to talk about my new illustrated book, Kid Confidential: An Insider's Guide to Grown-Ups! It’s written by the hilarious and talented Monte Montgomery, and published by Bloomsbury US.

So whaddya think this book is about? Well, it’s a field guide for kids, of course! Here’s a little bit about this way cool way fun book:

Being a kid isn’t easy. Compared to adults, kids are inexperienced, powerless, and short. Just as it would be wrong to send travelers to a strange city without a map, kids shouldn’t have to navigate a world run by parents, teachers, and other adults without an in-depth guide to how the older half lives. With charts, diagrams and more than twenty tactics for survival, kids will be armed with the information and skills they need to venture into the exotic world of the Humanus Giganticus.

Now how fun is that? Jeepers, I sure wish I had such a guide when I was a kid. Life was so bizarre and confusing and scary back then! That’s why I hid into the world of cartoons. And now, hopefully  my cartoons can make life a little better for the next generation of kids. Here’s a sneak peek inside the book!

Now the best part – I've been hosting a Book Giveaway Contest on my kidlit blog, and if you hurry, you can still take part. But the deadline is May 6th, so git going, kiddo!

Are you sitting down? Well then, get off yer duff and start moving! Yup, Chirp's May issue is all about moving in some way – cycling, swimming, skiiing, jumping, dancing, running, surfing – the moving list is a long one, kiddo! And while you're busy moving, don't forget to get a copy of this issue, 'cuz, well, the comic inside is one of my faves! (Hee hee).