One of my favorite professors in Grad school was a brilliant spoken word poet. He encouraged me to memorize the words of my favorite picturebooks so that I could internalize there vocal rhythm.

Recently I have been rereading some of my "How to Write Picturebooks" books. Many of them suggest transcribing favorite contemporary picturebooks into word documents. This too is a helpful method of dissecting the rhythm, flow and length of the words in picturebooks. What I have been discovering is that the books that I personally really respond to are under not 700 words but 459 words.

Before any naysayers claim that this is a sign of our society breaking down and our attention spans oozing out of our brains as we become more and more plugged in...
One of my absolute favorite books from childhood is "Harry the Dirty Dog". I use it with the third graders I tutor in reading and excluding the sequence about the coal chute they all can relate to and love the story. "Harry the Dirty Dog" is a whopping 459 words. It's original pub date is 1956.

My point is;
spare text + clever and relatable story + strong visual story telling = awesome picturebook

And it always has. This is no new equation.

Now I am off to work hard on the writing, hone my visual story telling, make a manuscript the best it can be, and get it out into the world.

ciao-
Lauren

The project I am currently working on is titled
"Kung Fu Weenie vs. Evil Squirrel"

Drawings to follow soon. Imagine Classic Kung Fu Movie in picture book form with Weenie dog as the beleaguered hero.

I grew up loving old Kung Fu movies. We had a lot of weird tv stations when I was little because our tv was... hmmmmm... How should I say this? Heck it was stolen. Long story but a guy owed my dad and so he got us cracked satellite tv.

We had a lot of foreign channels and my favorites were the untranslated Kung Fu movies. I would sit far too close to the screen and make up the words of what the characters were saying. Some times I would play a long with my "My Little Ponies".

A typical young Lauren translation would go something like this.
Bad Guy: "Ha ha ha! Now I steal from stupid Cotton Candy Acres!"
Good Guy: "What's this!? A Thief?! You have stolen from Cotton Candy Acres for the last time! Now you will pay with your life!"

I was always overly dramatic so there were many pony deaths. Sometimes I buried them and dug them up weeks later after they were all covered in dirt and stuff. Then they would attack cotton candy acres as Evil Pony Zombie hordes. Ha hahaha. Zombie Ponies still make me laugh....

I am looking for representation. If you like what you see, email me.

- Cheers -

Lauren

Carter Goodrich wrote and illustrated "The Hermit Crab" with emotional depth. His use of color conveys meaning beyond words. The pale tones of the lovable hermit crab and brash purples of "the new shell" perfectly set up the contrast between ostentation and meek kindness. Goodrich's command over character development via dialog speaks to his experience on films such as: "Finding Nemo", "Monsters Inc.", "Open Season", and "Ratatouille".

The Hermit Crab will be today's book of inspiration on my drafting table. Goodrich is a fellow Risd alum. I take heart in the fact that we share some background and hope that one day I can create pieces of equal beauty and kindness.

To see more of Carter Goodrich's work visit:
http://www.jacketflap.com/pers

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm032

It is my goal to one day be an author illustrator of the same caliber as Loren Long. I just checked out his picturebook "Otis" from the library. It is heart warming and kind in a way few other contemporary picturebooks seem to be. "Otis" reminds me of Ferdinand the friendly bull. Seeing "Otis" on the shelf I was not immediately drawn to the art style. I am a bright color person so the limited palate did not immediately appeal to my personal sensibilities. However, upon reading the tale of "Otis" I saw that Long was using his palate to convey the kind soft tone of the story. He was right to not choose a bold range of colors.

I am definitely a fan and will be exploring the other works of Loren Long.

To see work by Loren Long visit:
http://www.lorenlong.com/

These days I am thankful for the beautiful weather, flowers and time to paint.

This past weekend I had the great honor to meet, and hear lecture two of my living heroes. Those two living heroes are Paul O. Zelinsky and Jane Yolen. Jane was clever and engaging but it is some thing Paul O. Zelinsky said that has really stuck with me. For his more realistic pieces he uses models to capture the lighting, modleing composition etc. but he makes a conscious effort to have it not look like a photograph. Recently I have been working on my skills of drawing children. In order to do this I work from photos supplied by facebook friends. with the help of their photos I am able to study how lines of children nimbly tuck in and around themselves in tidy little rounds. I have learned that children are always in motion and so should drawings of them. I have learned that all planes on a child are very curved.

Doxies are great for one's ego if you are not super athletic. I just took them for a two mile run... I never said that I ran the two miles yet the statement is true enough. Ahh the joy of short legged dogs. :D

For some reason today while I was drawing this question popped into my head. Do Vampires Poop? Because I am just thinking if they really do just drink blood that has got to make for gross poops. Hmmm... Also at the end of Harry Potter and The Sorcers Stone... Why would they leave clues of how to get past the enchantments? Why not just enchant and be done with it? I love Harry Potter but I think J.k. made it a little too easy for the first years to get past the enchantments.

I am just saying..

I have culled and researched and found... a few really wonderful agents.

Six weeks in advance of my New York Shmooze I have submitted/queried a few truly amazing and talented agents.

I prefer the cherry picking method vs. the shot gun. Each of these agents seemed to be something really special. Let's hope my efforts pay off in the form of a fruitful and profitable relationship for both agent and me.

April 16th - 20th, 2010 I am planning a trip to shmooze in New York. Also I will be catching the Tim Burton show at MOMA. I heart you Tim Burton.

I have officially earned my MFA. The diploma is off at the framers and everything. The last residency in Vermont was full of joy and a tinge of sadness. It was all over, and that was both glorious and tear jerking.

I know that I will see some of my classmates again. You know who you are. What an amazing group of creative people. And as an exciting future possibility the director of the program invited me to submit a proposal to present future workshops at the MFA residencies. So, Hurray! Perhaps I will return to my Vermont alma mater as a teacher in the not too distant future.

This is amazing!
Last night I had dinner with Alvina Ling of Little Brown. Let me just say she is so super nice and approachable. She was so willing to share her insights and wisdom and not at all snobby. Which with her experience and awesome stable of books she would totally have the grounds for snobbery but it's not there.

Then after dinner I found myself walking next to Harold Underdown. His book on the Children's publishing industry has been my bible. I think I sort of overwhelmed him with praise. I never thought I would be one of those obnoxious fans who ran up to some one saying things like "I am a hug fan of your book!" But there I was still bubbly and thrilled from a lovely dinner and a day of instruction from masters and I effused compliments all over that poor man.

I met with my reader Caldecott award winner, Eric Rohmann. I will write more on this later because there are just so many good things to say about getting to work with him. It is such a great and rare opportunity to work with an author illustrator. Not some one who writes, or does illustrations but some one who concerns themselves with the whole beasty.

I can not wait to go to Chautauqua. I feel so honored to have received a Highlights Foundation Grant. This is just going to be amazing. I am overjoyed at the opportunity to work with Eric Rohmann, author Illustrator of "My Friend Rabbit".

When: JUNE 27th, 2009
FEES: $15 Early Bird Registration, $20 after May 15th
Where: Joseph-Beth Booksellers @ SouthPark Malls
4345 Barclay Downs Drive, Charlotte, NC 28209 US
Registration Due: June, 15th 2009,

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM Open Forum discussion of illustration work of all types.
Come and share your work with other creative professionals and get to know illustrators in the area. Each person attending will have a chance to ask the group questions about their work. This will be an excellent opportunity to build the bonds of our regional illustration community. Hopefully this will be a great success and we can have more events in the future. Food will be available to order from the Bronte Bistro.

INCLUDED IN THE COST OF ATTENDING:
A. 5 - 10 pieces of your work will be featured on the SIC blog.

B. Nicole Tugeau, Artist Representative of Tugeau 2, Inc., has agreed to do a written review of
the first 20 people to register!!! Nicole Tugeau normally charges $50 per review so this is a great
opportunity for our regions illustrators. (Work must be published to the SIC web page in order to be reviewed by Nicole Tugeau) Bring your work on disc to the Illustration Schmooze and Portfolio Critique or email 5 - 10 pieces to ljpatton@alum.risd.edu prior to June 27th.

C. The cost of the space at Jospeh- Beth.

About Nicole Tugeau, Artist Representative of Tugeau 2, Inc.,
The Tugeau 2 TEAM is a diverse group of dedicated, timely, and enthusiastic artists from across the United States and four countries abroad. Our focus is on children’s picture book and children’s educational publishing.

Nicole and Jeremy Tugeau are the agents behind the T2 TEAM. They are ecstatic about their ever-growing agency, and they are committed to working hard for the network of illustrators who surround them. Nicole heads up the agency on a day-to-day basis. She most enjoys the partnership-making, the relationships and the success stories that come with being an agent. Jeremy is a long-time children’s illustrator, and he continues to work as an artist in this field while maintaining involvement with Tugeau 2 as a creative resource and promotional guru. When they aren’t working at making T2 the best agency in the world, Nicole and Jeremy are reading to their two small children, Ruby and George, walking to the playground, and dreaming of their of next family vacation.

The Tugeau 2 TEAM works hard for artist’s rights and fair wages. They also pride themselves in unrivaled client service.

www.tugeau2.com



SEE YOU IN JUNE!!!!

Come Join us at our Illustration Schmooze and Portfolio Critique
Because it's good to have a fresh set of eyes look at your work and great to have a chance to meet with other illustrators.
Host: Southern Illustration Club
Date: Saturday, June 27, 2009
Time: 2:00pm - 4:00pm
Location: Joseph-Beth Bookseller' @ SouthPark Malls
Street: 4345 Barclay Downs Drive
City/Town: Charlotte, NC

For more info Email: info@LjPatton.com

I can not begin to express how very, very excited I am about receiving this grant from the Highlights Foundation to attend the Writers Workshop at Chautauqua!

I can NOT WAIT!!!

Writers Workshop at Chautauqua HERE I COME!!!

THANK YOU HIGHLIGHTS FOUNDATION!!!

All of the speakers were amazing!
But these 3 editors really made the conference.

Caitlyn M. Dlouhy of Atheneum taught me so much about voice at this conference. I went to both of her workshops and happily got to sit with her at lunch. In addition to being a wealth of knowledge she was so fun. Right now I have the phrase "No Physical Description" written all over my notebook with little stars around it. The characters in my book wont "have eyes that twinkle" and I got more than a twinkle of inspiration from her talks.
Thanks Caitlyn!

Mary Kate Castellani's knowledge of the market was out shown only by her obviously kind heart. I never got to chat one on one with Mary Kate but you could tell from her comments how passionate she is for the industry and how important she considers children's books to be.

Abigail Samoun of Tricycle press brought whitty honesty to the discussion. When asked if Celebrity's went through the same editorial process Abigail quipped "Have you read Madonna's picture books?" Ha ha I almost fell out of my chair. :)

Thanks to all of the Southern Breeze organizers that made this truly exceptional event possible. And a big special thanks to Elizabeth Delumba, Liz Conrad, and Daniel Powers for giving this novice author illustrator some great insight.

I am in the 4th semester of my MFA-IA at Goddard and this weekend I am headed off to the Southern Breeze Chapter of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Spring Mingle conference in Atlanta. Huzzah! Excitement a plenty!

I spent the month of October as Artist-In-Residence at The Burren College of Art and it was AMAZING!!

The other artists there were very inspiring and the grounds complete with Ancient Castle were nothing short of magical!

It was in the ancient castles of Ireland that Goblins and Faeries crept permanently into the ether that is my story world. I am sure those Irish Goblins and Faeries will show up in future Gavin and Millie stories. :)

We need more illustrators here.

I just got "Voyage To The Bunny Planet" by Rosemary Wells in the mail today. I just love this book. I like the flipping between rhying and non rhyming. I had just been working on that in my own story and had been wondering if that was ok.

Thanks to all of my wonderful friends at Goddard for making this past residency the best yet! I am super excited about the work that is to come. Rick Benjamin's advisee group is awesome. I am so excited to be working with him as an advisor. I have already been in touch with some of my advisor group members and can not wait to see their work.

Great things are to come... I just know it!

LjPatton has been awarded an artist residency at the Burren College of Art in Burren Ireland. LjPatton will be creating new works in an ancient Irish castle!

Residency dates will be from October 1 - October 31st.

The caliber of work shown at Kress is exciting. I am looking forward to being a member of this creative community. How appropriate that I am showing at a gallery located on Patton Ave.

The Kress Emporium presents a collection of excellence in art from luminous stained glass and hand-thrown ceramics to elegant paintings, evocative sculptures, extraordinary handcrafted jewelry, and much more.

The Kress building is an important architectural landmark, built in 1928, featuring exquisitely detailed polychrome terra cotta tile in neoclassical motifs.
http://www.thekressemporium.com/

Where is Woolworth Walk?

Woolworth Walk is located at 25 Haywood Street, in Asheville, North Carolina. We are right in the heart of downtown Asheville's historic district and situated within one-and-a-half blocks of all three of the city-owned, multi-deck, parking garages.

The building stands at the intersection of Haywood Street and Battery Park Avenue, between the Civic Center and Pritchard Park, and directly across the street from the Haywood Park Hotel. Nearby landmarks include Pack Square Monument, the Flat Iron building, the Grove Arcade, and Wall Street, known for its wonderful shops, galleries and restaurants.
www.woolworthwalk.com