Creative work

1 Comment Posted on April 4, 2016May 5, 2019 Authors, Creative work, Interviews, Literary world, New writers, Non fiction, Readers

An interview with Sandra Teles of City Writers Room

Finding opportunities to connect with readers, and overcoming a feeling of isolation, are twin challenges in the early stages of a writing career, when you are still finding your feet–and your voice! Recently, an informal writers’ group formed in London(of which my son Xavier is a member) launched an enterprise to rise to the challenge of both those things: City Writers’ Room, a curated blog site showcasing their writing, starting with narrative non-fiction. Today, I talk to Sandra Teles, one of the City Writers Room group.

Sandra Teles is an actress. Having worked in areas of film, television and theatre, she continues taking her experience to the field of writing.

First of all, congratulations to you and the other editors on the launch of City Writers Room! How did it start? And what were the challenges–and discoveries– you faced along the way to launching the site?

Thank you for talking to us about our new venture. We attended a narrative non-fiction writing course at City University London last Summer. Many of us said we’d keep in touch, as most people hope to after they finish a course. Amanda Riddick took the initiative and got everyone together. Some of us continued to meet once a month to discuss our writing. Few months later, we talked about putting our writing on a kind of writers’ forum to critique it, giving each other feedback, etc. It very soon snowballed into creating our own blog. We discussed why we wanted to do this, who were we writing for, what were we going to write about? And finally, we settled on writing about city living — people, places, the challenges, the insights, topics hidden that we tend to deflect because they may not be mainstream.

The big challenge was finding the headroom to write consistently, and it still is. Many will agree the hardest part about writing is the discipline to write, actually sitting down patiently and being able to face a blank screen and not have anything coming to you — until it does.

You could also have viable ideas but they vanish quickly if you don’t write them down. There’s something to be said about scribbling on paper an idea that crosses your mind, or taking a photo of something that captures your imagination. It could give rise to a topic worth exploring. Ideas are abundant, but it’s a numbers game as only very few stick. So getting involved in this venture together has made us more attentive to those seeds of ideas.

City Writers Room is particularly focussed on narrative non-fiction writing about cities, in all kinds of aspects. Can you tell us more about that?

Since we worked on the narrative non-fiction course at City University, we’ve started with non-fiction. We’re still exploring topics that interest us like travel, history, politics, people, even film; and their relation to cities. I write fiction mostly; but it’s been a fruitful exercise reading and writing non-fiction. Both feed off each other so it would be a shame to not include fiction. The other writers (Carole Allsop, Xavier Masson-Leach, Ellen O’Hara and Amanda Riddick) have a strong point of view with regard to the non-fiction topics they choose to write about.

Can you tell us about how City Writers Room works, as a writing showcase?

We talked about City Writers Room being a forum for ideas, writing about people and places. In that we have the freedom to be as creative as we want so we can fine tune our craft as writers. We all have a voice and finding it takes time. We’ve all been writing in one way or another for years, but all of us felt ready to publish at this point in time. It does leave us feeling exposed but there’s comfort in knowing that we support each other in the endeavor.

Your writers are all very different in their approach to writing. Can you expand on that?

We’re very lucky to have come together on this venture. All our styles are different which showcases more variety. Interestingly, we’ve all traveled and lived in a number of cities. And although we have different interests, our strengths don’t clash, only complement. A couple of us really enjoy writing character profiles, so it might even lead to a further collaboration of some sort. For the time being, we are keeping things flexible. It’s an exciting time for all of us. There’s no expectation to be a particular kind of writer. We can stay true to our sensibilities and explore all kinds of writing styles if we want.

What’s the reaction of readers been like so far?

The feedback we’ve gotten has been hugely positive. We already have writers who’ve approached us to write articles for City Writers Room. That’s a big deal — when you get people excited to collaborate. Everyone has a story to tell and hopefully they see this as a platform to express those stories.

What does City Writers Room hope to achieve in the future?

It would be fantastic to bring together a community of writers (local to international) who are willing to share their stories. City Writers Room aims to uplift, entertain and even question the status quo. It would be great to build a space where writers can feel passionate about their work, feel like they can test their material to see what sticks. We’re taking small steps to get there and for now, we’re keeping an open mind as to the direction it might lead. In the very least, if we are able to kick start a process of writing consistently for ourselves, we will have succeeded in the venture.

1 Comment Posted on November 20, 2015November 19, 2015 Authors, Book talk, Craft, Creative work, Illustrators, Interviews, Literary world, Publishing business

Creative pleasures: an interview with Beattie Alvarez

Today it’s my great pleasure to feature an interview with Beattie Alvarez, a brilliantly creative and dynamic young woman whose talents lie in many different directions. Beattie and I work together at Christmas Press, but she’s also juggling many other creative and professional roles, as you’ll soon discover in this fascinating interview. (Oh and by the way, she’s also the mother of two young and very lively daughters!)

Beattie, you are involved in many creative pursuits–writing, illustration and toymaking. How did it all begin?

There are actually a few answers to this! I have always loved all of the above; my parents (Mum, Dad, and Carl, my stepdad) are all talented artists. I grew up at Julian Ashton’s art school, entertaining myself by shoving rolled up tissue paper in my nose while they drew naked people.

When I was four… or five… I saw Coppélia performed at the Opera House. I went home and wrote, illustrated and ‘published’ my own version of it while Mum sewed toys. By the time I was ten I had a whole shelf of self-published books!

I started writing as an adult when my favourite TV show ended abruptly, with a very dissatisfying ending. I was heartbroken! So I went out, sold my soul for a loan to get my first computer, and wrote my own ending. Then I discovered that it was actually called Fan Fiction and there was a website I could upload it to! The response from other fans was overwhelming. As of 2015 those stories have been read almost 100,000 times!

After that I was hooked!

Tell us about your writing. What have you had published, and what are you working on now? Do you write in particular genres only or do you like to try your hand at many things?

I’m new to being published and it’s so exciting! My first published story was in Reader’s Digest magazine… and it paid! Almost $1 per word! I thought I’d be rich in no time.

Since then I’ve had a few short stories, poems and illustrations published in anthologies and in November I was one of three authors with a story in ‘Three Dragons for Christmas’ by Christmas Press Picture Books — I got to fully illustrate my story as well, which was a lot of fun.

I write anything and everything! Fantasy is my preferred genre, having lived in a fantasy world for most of my life. I’ve got one fantasy novel about the Queen of the Universe that will probably take the rest of my life to finish. I keep going back to add or change or edit.

When my brain is being stubborn I write, what I call, ‘mini murders’. I write them to kick-start my brain — or when I’m in a particularly bad mood! They’re short stories where one — or many — people are murdered, ranging from twenty words to five thousand! One day I hope to be able to publish them in a book called ‘Murder on the Run’, the idea being that you can read one on your lunch break or between train/bus stops.

Then there’s the series of picture books I’ve written about Marguerite MacDougall… and my ‘magical murder’ novel that I’m working on! I’m also waiting for responses from agents and publishers over a non magical, non fantasy YA novel that I finished earlier this year. It was my first attempt at something with no murder and no magic.

You are also an experienced editor of other people’s work. What effect do you think this has had on your own writing?

It gets me writing! I like editing for two reasons: the first is to help other writers out there polish their work and get the best manuscript they possibly can. The other is because sometimes it’s a hard job and I all I want to do is write my own stuff after weeks of writer’s block! Working on someone else’s manuscript that really needed a good edit BEFORE they sent it to me is the best way to get over an imagination blockage.

Tell us about your illustration work, and who has influenced you as an artist.

From Three Dragons for Christmas

For years and years I refused to do art. Partly due to growing up at gallery openings and falling asleep under the food table when they went on too long and partly due to school. I hated art — and English — in high school. They tried to force me to see things that weren’t there and make assumptions about the artist. A curtain is allowed to just be blue! It doesn’t have to mean that the artist was depressed and in an unhappy marriage. It MIGHT mean that blue looked best there or that they wanted to open a new bottle of paint. So I butted heads with both my art teachers and my English teacher (who didn’t pass me once, for the record in year 12!) a few times over that. I became really disheartened when people with talent got lower grades than those who put a black spot on white canvas, but wrote an essay over why that was a real piece of art.

My parents, obviously, all influenced me when it comes to art and illustration. But so did books! I love Ruth Sanderson’s ‘Twelve Dancing Princesses’ and the ‘Brambly Hedge’ books by Jill Barklem, where you can see the full story in the pictures, but there are also other side stories going on, only visible in the illustrations.

As well as being a writer, editor and illustrator, you have also worked as a book designer and lay-out artist. How did you learn those crafts, and what are the challenges in those aspects of book production?

It turns out that I LOVE book designing! Carefully choosing where the words go to make the pictures stand out (and vice-versa!) is very therapeutic and rewarding.

I learnt on the job with David Allan from Christmas Press Picture Books when we were working on ‘Once Upon a Christmas’. Thankfully I picked it up quickly or we might have been in front of the computer UNTIL Christmas! Since then I’ve helped design several books for Christmas Press and can’t wait for the next book so I can do it again!

A forthcoming book co-designed by Beattie Alvarez and David Allan

Seeing the finished book is the best part of that and knowing that I had a hand in bringing someone’s words to life is very satisfying.

That said, it requires a fair bit of coffee and chocolate, and maybe some naughty words slip out when Adobe and I disagree!

You also run a number of Facebook pages for businesses and organisations, including the New England Writers’ Centre, for which you also run the website. What is your key advice for businesses and organisations wanting to get the most out of social media and the Internet?

Do it! That’s my main piece of advice. So many creative types out there don’t use social media and I don’t know why! They say they don’t know how and what’s the point? There’s a saying from before the digital age ‘any publicity is good publicity’. Social media is free (unless you choose to pay for their ads). Your friends see it and like it. Then their friends see it and like it… etc! It’s about getting your work/business/organisation seen, the more people who see it, then the more sales/contacts you make. It’s simple!

The other piece of advice I have is to keep with the times. A website made ten years ago will probably not look as professional as one built now. There are a lot more options for web design now than there used to be. Buttons so that the user can interact with you and your business, so they can buy things, so that the site is user friendly. People are busy these days! They don’t bother with hard-to-use sites, they’ll just go somewhere easier and faster. So much is digital in this world that you have to keep up.

You are the deputy Chair of the New England Writers’ Centre, a non profit arts organisation. How do you view the issue of successfully steering a small arts organisation through challenging times?

Being willing to change with the times! It’s very similar to what I wrote above, in that you have to keep up with what people want and need. This year the New England Writers’ Centre branched out and tried some new things, updated their website and Facebook pages and we did brilliantly! We’ve received several grants (yay!) this year to ensure that we can keep operating. That’s because we’ve had great grant writers, but also because we’ve changed and can prove that we’re willing to try new things.

You work with your mother, Fiona McDonald, to create unique hand made soft toys. Can you tell us something about that?

Mum and I work at everything together! And we work well. She decided to open a toy shop a few years ago and so we did! I didn’t really do any sewing before that, but now I do a lot! We felt there was a gap in the market for good quality toys that aren’t just for playing with, but for being companions for life. We like toys that can go into battle with you, have tea parties, sit quietly and read a book on a rainy day, toys that inspire play and friendship.

And we’re doing so well that I’ve got calluses on my fingers from sewing so much!

You also help to run the shop, Granny Fi’s Toy Cupboard. What are the challenges and pleasures of running such a unique business in a regional town?

The pleasures far outweigh the challenges! Having a shop filled with beautiful, handcrafted toys, books, hats and all the like make going to work a treat! We’ve also branched out into some merchandise, having spotted yet another gap in the local market. We are now known as either ‘the dragon shop’ or ‘the nerd shop’! We have a great selection of Harry Potter, Doctor Who and Star Wars (to name a few!) merchandise that appeals to the ‘grown ups’ that come into the shop. Although, to be fair, those ‘grown ups’ also buy the toys!

It is hard in a small town to get a lot of walk by trade. The main pedestrian mall is sadly very empty of shops, mainly due to the exorbitant rents that the landlords are asking. Words that I don’t completely understand have been thrown around like ‘negative gearing’. Places like Centro, which was built off the main drag, have severely damaged the shopping strip due to its air-conditioning and under cover parking. People like the ‘one stop shop’.

And of course, there are people who just don’t understand us. We get questions like ‘but you just made this yourself, shouldn’t it be cheaper?’ and ‘but it’s not a real toy, it has no packaging’. Times like that are disheartening, but (after the first few times!) I no longer want to cry when people like that come in. Our toys deserve to go to homes that will love

them!

What I have found very interesting is the response from tourists. Those that come from cities really DO understand us and our toys! They can’t believe how cheap our prices are and suggest that we open a shop in Melbourne or Newtown in Sydney.

But for all the hard times there are always more people that love what we’re trying to do in Armidale. They love our toys and the fact that 90% of what we stock is handmade in the area and that their money is going to support the local economy.

Maybe one day we will open shops in cities, but we will always be based in Armidale. It is our home and we love it.

Beattie’s older daughter Isobel, with a hand-made friend!

Leave a comment Posted on November 10, 2015November 10, 2015 Book talk, Creative work, Inspirations

My post on mentoring, on Writer Unboxed

Today, I have a post on mentoring, from both sides of the fence–the mentor and the mentoree–on Writer Unboxed.

Here’s a short extract:

Nobody writes in isolation. Writers experience mentoring in one way or the other at every stage in their careers. Early writing mentors are usually teachers, family and friends. Later, as we take our first steps towards trying to build a career as a writer, other, more professional mentors can improve our understanding of craft, as well as give us the confidence to take those first tentative steps.

You can read the whole thing here.

Leave a comment Posted on October 11, 2015October 11, 2015 Creative work, Poetry

Poem of the Day

My poem Bath Time is the Australian Children’s Poetry website’s Poem of the Day.

Source: Poem of the Day

2 Comments Posted on September 28, 2015September 25, 2015 Courses, Creative work, Illustrators, Interviews

Interview with Nina Rycroft

Today, it’s my pleasure to present a very interesting interview I recently conducted with the fabulous illustrator Nina Rycroft, who I met at the recent Story Arts Festival in Ipswich. As well as being a versatile and internationally-published illustrator, Nina is soon to embark on an exciting new venture. Read on!

Nina, you’re inaugurating a great illustration e-course through your new venture, TreeHouse. Can you tell us about it?

My interest in online teaching began back in 2010 when I became part of an E:lite and CAL funded a program training authors and illustrators with interactive white board and video conferencing equipment for online school-visits and workshops. I not only learnt how to use the technology, but also how to design and present talks and workshops specifically for online use.

I’ve been illustrating picture books since 2000 (13 picture books world wide and winner of the YABBA 2013). Since moving from Sydney to Auckland 5 years ago I’ve enjoyed teaching picture book illustration.This combined with my background in graphic design and love of technology (used as a tool to connect and share stories)…developing an online illustration programme with a focus on visual storytelling seemed the obvious next step.

Last year my husband and I bought our home on the edge of a bush reserve in Auckland. A pole house, so tall, that it looks out across the canopies and the harbour, onto Auckland’s Sky tower ― I’ve always called our home the Tree House. So when it came to naming my new venture, ‘the TreeHouse’ seemed like the perfect fit.

The TreeHouse is essentially an online place that people can visit, join a community, share stories and draw! Much like illustrating a picture book, the TreeHouse offers a place to reconnect to your childlike self. It’s a place to escape the grind of ‘real’ life and explore (and play) with your creativity. The TreeHouse offers a genuine experience where you can unpack your story ideas, play without any expectations, be supported and share the creative journey with like-minded participants, and learn some illustration techniques along the way.

How will it work?

Being an illustrator, I know all too well how isolating this job can be. So I wanted to establish a place where participants can meet, share and support each other. The collective experience is designed to keep you connected, motivated and inspired by other. Participants will gain access to an online community where they’ll be encouraged to share (set tasks) with others using a private FaceBook page and Instagram.

The Treehouse Character Development e-Course covers all aspects of character development including brainstorming ideas, character design, character mapping, drawing with gesture, animation techniques and anthropomorphism. The online programme will run for 4 weeks and lessons are posted daily. Each week is designed to build on the previous weeks skills-set giving you an in-depth experience on a particular topic, with video and drawing demonstrations, printable work sheets and daily tasks. I’ve designed this e-course in such a way that it can be used to develop character for any platform, whether it be for a game, a brand or a product. This programme is designed to expand your ideas encouraging you to think, feel, develop and discover character/s for any kind of story.

WEEK 1: Explore character through interviewing and visualisation techniques. Lean about face proportion, facial features and facial expression applying techniques that will bring your two-dimensional face into a three-dimensional format.

WEEK 2: Learn the character mapping process. Explore character within the context of a story. Learn how to use basic body proportions to your advantage.

WEEK 3: Learn techniques that will bring your character to life. Explore body movement, animation techniques and the art of drawing with gesture.

WEEK 4: Explore animal character and the wide use of anthropomorphism in storytelling. Learn a simple but effective drawing technique that can translate animal traits into the human form.

I would suggest participants set aside 5 hours each week for 4 weeks to get the most out of this course. There is no set time to start or finish weekly tasks, so please feel free to fit tasks in and around your lifestyle.

This is an illustration programme- however you won’t be asked to draw every day. Mondays, will be an introduction and an overview for that particular week. Tuesdays and Thursday will be drawing days, Wednesdays visualisation and Fridays you will be encouraged to do a library visit and research.

Who is it aimed at? And what do you hope students will get from it?

The Character Development e-Course is designed for beginners as well as seasoned professionals. It allows you to take your individual skill sets and build on that. Whether you are a home schooled budding artist living in remote outback Australia, or an animation student looking to extend your skills and understanding, this course is the perfect accompaniment for your creative project. You may be a writer or a primary school teacher with a great idea for a picture book and have no previous art training. Or you may be a painter, a printmaker or perhaps you are gifted in textiles, clay, collage or glass. Whatever your creative endeavour, your experience will be a welcomed gift in the story telling arena.

Using my 15 years of experience illustrating picture books, I hope to offer participants access to a supportive community as well as giving them a greater understanding of visual storytelling that will enable them to tell the best version of their story using both image and words.

You’ve illustrated the picture-book texts of many well-known writers. Can you describe the process of working with other people’s texts? Do you work closely with writers or only through the publisher?

I’ve had the pleasure of working with the likes of Margaret Wild and Jackie French. I enjoy visual storytelling, so my favourite type of work is when an author is willing to offer their story to me completely. Every story is different, and the process of working on a book really does depends on the individual publisher, the deadline and or course the joint vision for the story. Most of the time I am in regular contact with the publisher, I do have contact with some of the author, but mostly I meet them after I finish work on their story.

With ‘Dinosaurs Love Cheese’ (Jackie French, Harper Collins, 2013), after an initial conference call (with Jackie and the publisher), discussing the main character and his relationship with his imaginary dinosaur, Jackie was more than happy to let me run with my own interpretation of her text. With ‘Good Dog Hank ‘ (Jackie French, Harper Collins, 2014), Jackie sent me photos of her dog Hank as inspiration for the main character. With ‘Boom Bah!’, (Phil Cummings, Working Title Press, 2008). I was given a week by the publisher to come up with a story concept (using thumbnail sketches) using the author’s text. With ‘Grasshopper’s Dance’ (Julliette MacIver, Scholastic, 2015) I was lucky enough to be given free rein as far as the illustrations were concerned with Julliette (very kindly) changing a character (an orca playing an organ) I was struggling with. With ‘No more kisses’ (Margaret Wild, Little Hare, 2010), I worked entirely with the publisher. I initially illustrated human characters when the publisher was expecting animal characters. We also changed the setting from an imaginative setting ― with characters climbing up a very long ladder into the night sky, sliding down the crest of the moon, jumping from star to star ― into a more traditional setting of an English country garden.

Given that the books you’ve illustrated are so different, how do you approach each individual text?

I would say that over the past 15 year my illustration have evolved. I started illustrating in 2000, when I wasn’t really sure what I was doing, so you see all of me out there in my work.

Over the years, I‘ve been given the opportunity to explore characters of every shape and size ― animal, human and everything in between. I’ve illustrated the milestones of a newborn through to age 5 in ‘Now I Am Bigger’ (Sherryl Clark, 2010), to a boy’s imaginary dinosaur friend in ‘Dinosaurs Love Cheese’. From Australian animal characters in ‘Little Platypus’ (Nette Hilton, 2000), animal character in a big brass band to ‘Ballroom Bonanza’ (Nina Rycroft, Working Title Press, 2007) where I had animals dancing through the letters of the alphabet at the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool.

I’ve explored different illustration techniques, depending on what the story required. ‘Pooka’ was heartfelt and needed a soft, delicate approach, whereas ‘Dinosaurs Love Cheese’ asked for brighter, stronger colours, I decided to use a smudged charcoal line in ‘Good Dog Hank’ as I wanted to have the messy mischievous side of Hank come through in the line. ‘Once a Creepy Crocodile’ was bright, playful and rhythmic. Illustrations really do set the tone and mood of a book, so really, the technique that I choose really does need to suit the story. Having said this, if you look at my initial character sketches and storyboards, my interpretation of idea and character onto paper is recognisably me.

When I first started illustrating picture books, I would take any job that was offered to me. I never had the privilege of picking and choosing. In fact when I didn’t have work on the horizon, I would create it, then go knocking on doors to find it. It is delicious to be handed a story that evokes a strong feeling in me. It’s rare, but when it does happen, I am more than happy to give the story 3-6 months. When I work on someone else’s text, I am always mindful that the story has already been on an incredible journey even before I received it. So when I do get a story to illustrate, I really do take the care and give it my all.

I approach each story in a very similar way. I make a point of giving myself the space to read any manuscript for the first time. I’d rather put it off, to make sure that I have time to fully comprehend what I am reading. It’s probably the only time that I don’t multi task. I find that my first ideas, the ones that pop into my head immediately after reading the story for the first time, are usually the best. Once reading a text, I then furiously start jotting down my ideas in whatever way I can. My initial thumbnail sketches usually take about a week. I make sure to warn my family as I’ve been known to forget to pick my kids up from school, clean, cook dinner, laundry etc. For that week, my mind is literally in the clouds. Personally I love the feeling of being lost in thought, it just doesn’t work very well in every day life!

Once I have my thumbnail sketches ironed out, I then start work on the main characters. I may do a series of character maps and send these off to the publisher and author for approval.

I then start work on larger, more detailed sketches. The publisher may have an idea how the text should be broken up, so I use this as a guide, along with my thumbnail sketches. Because it’s easier to scan and then email, I try to fit two double page spreads onto one A4 sheet of paper, working my way through the story from start to finish. I send these through to the publishers as I am working on them.

It the story requires, I use printouts of the larger sketches and make them into a dummy book, basically a mock up picture book with turning pages. Sometimes I need to feel how the book feels (and reads) with its turning pages. The sketches and mock-up picture books are the skeletons of the visual and can take anywhere between 2-3 months.

Once all of my character and layout sketches are approved and complete, I then need to consider colour and illustration technique. I choose a random illustration (one that shows the main characters). I then enlarge each smaller sketch to the size that it would appear in the book, and illustrate a double page spread. Once this is approved, I do this for the other 14 double page spreads. The ‘colouring-in’ process can take anywhere between 1-3 months, depending on the illustration technique I have decided to use. The front cover is always illustrated last ― the icing on the cake. Sometimes it’s very straight forward, other times, it can be a time-consuming process.

You have also worked as an author/illustrator. Can you describe your process there?

I’ve worked as an author/illustrator for my picture book titled ‘Ballroom Bonanza’. I got to a point where I had no work lined up and I was looking for a new challenge. The entire process from initial idea, writing, sketching through to illustrating, took much longer than I had first anticipated ― four-and-a-half-years longer than I had anticipated.

I came up with an idea for an animal alphabet picture book where the animals competed in a dance competition much like the film ‘Strictly Ballroom’. I wanted to explore illustrating all types of animals, so this project seemed like the perfect challenge. Working with image and text was a new experience and I loved bouncing from one to the other.

The initial story and sketches took three months to complete. I then sent a dummy book to two publishers before getting a positive response. This is when the story took a life of its own. Everything from that first dummy book changed. The plot, the characters, the length of written story, even the format of the book went from 32 to 40 pages. A hide and seek element was added, and even the illustration technique became more elaborate and detailed. I would say the text and dummy book took 3 years to complete, then the final artwork took another year and a half. I thoroughly enjoyed the dance between word and image and hope to do this once again.

Which illustrators―past and present–have been an influence on your own work?

I spent my early childhood in London, so in a way I grew up on anthropomorphic characters, from Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit series to the original Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear. I learnt about visual story-telling from reading Pat Hutchins picture books like ‘Rosie’s Walk’ and ‘Goodnight Owl’. Pamela Allen is also a wonderful visual storyteller, the most memorable being ’Mr. Archimedes’ Bath’ and ‘Who sank the Boat’. Julie Vivas’ ‘Possum Magic’ taught me how to use watercolour. I loved how she never overworked her illustrations, and the watercolour wash was always so expressive and minimal. I’m always in awe of Armin Grede’s brave use of line and Lisbeth Zwerger’s design, composition and watercolour genius. And I love the child-like playfulness that Stephen Michael King and Bob Graham bring to their stories. To top off my long list of influential illustrators, Ron Brooks is a master artist that I have great admiration for: ‘Old Pig’ and ‘Motor Bill and the lovely Caroline’ are both illustrated with elegance and grace.

More on the Treehouse Character Development e-Course

Date: 15th February – 11th March 2016

4 week illustration e-course with lessons posted daily
Daily video’s, drawing demonstrations, printable work sheets and set tasks
Access to all course work for 6 months upon enrolment
Access to a private community

Cost US$295.00

If you are interested in the Character Development e-Course, please contact Nina at ninarycroft@me.com

Like The Treehouse on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thetreehouse.biz?fref=ts to be notified of The Treehouse website launch, e-courses and other Treehouse events.

Find Nina on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/nina.rycroft

Nina’s Redbubble page, where you can buy some of her prints, is here.

2 Comments Posted on September 7, 2015September 6, 2015 Creative work, Inspirations, Plays

My take on Shakespeare’s final years: a mix of novella and play

A few years ago, I wrote a rather unusual–not to say odd!–piece of writing called Shakespeare’s Last Play, which is a mix of play and novella, set in Stratford, in the last year of Shakespeare’s life. Knowing it was unlikely to attract the interest of publishers, I published it myself as a short e-book through my PressBooks site. It’s available there for reading, free, on a Creative Commons license.

I re-read it the other day and thought it was worthwhile drawing readers’ attention to it again. Here’s the introduction:

I’ve always been fascinated by the fact that in the last few years of his life, Shakespeare retired to his native Stratford and to all intents and purposes never wrote another play, at least not under his own name(there is some indication he may have collaborated with others.) What makes such a great writer, so driven, imaginative and very much a part of London theatre life, suddenly fall silent? What might his life have been like, in those final years at Stratford? These questions, and reading somewhere that not long before Shakespeare’s death, his writer friends Ben Jonson and Michael Drayton and theatre manager John Hemmings visited him in Stratford, were the inspiration for this book.

I chose to write it in an unusual format, half novella, half play, as a way of evoking an atmosphere half-way between the page and the theatre.

You can read the full work here.

Leave a comment Posted on August 20, 2015August 19, 2015 Celebrations, Creative work

Great to have been a part of this musical feast!

Last year, I had the very good fortune to be commissioned by the New England Conservatorium of Music in Armidale, Australia, to write three poems for children, which would be then set to music and performed by choirs of school children at the tenth anniversary celebratory concerts of New England Sings. As those who’ve followed this blog know, the event was a big success and right now it’s attracted attention again because NECOM has just won a prestigious award at the annual APRA/AMCOS Art Music gala. I am so chuffed to think that my work–the three poems, Frosty School Morning; Midday at the Waterhole; and Lyrebird Sunset, all set to music by Harley Mead–was part of it!

Leave a comment Posted on July 20, 2015July 11, 2015 Creative work, Poetry

Windmills: a poem for children

Inspired by seeing so many windmills in Europe–in Germany, France, and the UK–I wrote this little poem–for children, but I hope enjoyable for everyone!

Windmills

by Sophie Masson

The giants on the hill paddle in bright air,
Eddies of fine cloud flying everywhere.
A gust of wind excites them as they gather in the crop;
A sunny stillness quiets them, their arms go slow, then stop.
In humming rows they stand,
White giants across the land,
Waiting for a breeze to blow,
Waiting for a chance to show
They thresh the wind without a care,
And harvest and mill the breath of air,
To turn into heat and light,
Far away and out of sight.
In humming rows they stand,
White giants across the land,
Looking across the seas,
Waiting for the breeze.

Feathers of the Firebird