tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post3332048139755428656..comments2023-10-15T10:51:39.246-04:00Comments on Art, Words, Life: Brick Walls & Book DecisionsJennifer Thermeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17970621166460145330noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-53875881643782662092008-03-06T08:46:00.000-05:002008-03-06T08:46:00.000-05:00Christine-- That's great advice. I'm going to prin...Christine-- That's great advice. I'm going to print it out and save it! I do wonder if a lot of creative people have that same "issue" (I don't really think of it as a problem) of getting stuck in their own heads too much. Hmmm... this could be the subject of another post...<BR/><BR/>And Elizabeth- Yes, I'm moving forward with the story- wrestling a bit, but I know it's just part of the process. Oh, and yes-- naps are wonderful-- I think they let your subconscious ideas bubble up!<BR/><BR/>I'm spreading the word about "Door Day." Should be fun!Jennifer Thermeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17970621166460145330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-48268628039282767982008-03-06T07:53:00.000-05:002008-03-06T07:53:00.000-05:00Do hope you are having a better time with your sto...Do hope you are having a better time with your story/picture book.<BR/>Sometimes one wrestles with things and then it all suddenly becomes clear......<BR/>I like to get ideas when half-asleep - naptime or night time -I try to get 'into' the story.<BR/>Of course this sometimes keeps me awake - or else it works - but I then go to sleep and forget it...<BR/>Several people want to do DOORS - literally or metaphorically next WED.<BR/>I look forward to seeing everyone's.Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03964291132366262298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-47272347204916399162008-03-05T18:23:00.000-05:002008-03-05T18:23:00.000-05:00i know what it's like to get stuck like that, if t...i know what it's like to get stuck like that, if there is one thing i've learned with working with patients in an art therapy setting is how to help them get out of their head.... don't let yourself get too tied up in the words, if you are set on a picture book, you already know the pictures should tell the story without the words, the words are just there for support, mentally let go of the words for now. you know the story, put the words aside and tell the story with your illustrations, then hang all of your sketches and without looking at your manuscript rewrite the first words that come to you. never let a wall stand in your way, you can always turn around and go the other direction. :) you CAN do make this story happen!!Christine Mercer-Vernonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16172684068981411097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-58618449849133445322008-03-05T17:31:00.000-05:002008-03-05T17:31:00.000-05:00Hi Alicia- Thanks! Yes, I think the trial and erro...Hi Alicia- Thanks! Yes, I think the trial and error is definitely part of the process, whatever kind of art or writing you're doing. Hey-- your characters would make great stories-- I hope you give it a try sometime!Jennifer Thermeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17970621166460145330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-60177559206877909352008-03-05T16:40:00.000-05:002008-03-05T16:40:00.000-05:00What a wonderful post Jennifer!! Thanks for sharin...What a wonderful post Jennifer!! Thanks for sharing this.<BR/><BR/>I think that writing is actually very hard. I congratulate all of you that are able to do it!<BR/>I dream of writing and illustration my own story some day.. I have ideas and stories dancing around in my head all the time...but I know I am not ready, at least right now. <BR/><BR/>I think we all struggle in a similar way with any creative process. There is a combination of thoughts and feelings that is not easy to balance. But I don't think there is an easy way out of it but with trial an error. You had to go through all of this experience in order to realize that your book really needed to be a picture book and that your heart really wanted to illustrate those already imagined pictures in your head. <BR/>I think you accomplished a great deal actually! :o)Alicia Padrónhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04310467713291422507noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-84124000623347821662008-03-05T16:00:00.000-05:002008-03-05T16:00:00.000-05:00Ha ha, Elizabeth-- you're right... it's easy to dr...Ha ha, Elizabeth-- you're right... it's easy to drown your struggles online. ;-)<BR/><BR/>Christine- No, please don't shut up!! :-) <BR/><BR/>You said it EXACTLY with "it seems like your struggle is connecting the two." That happens time and again when I concentrate too much on the words first without the pictures. Maybe because I think the story needs a strong structure, so the literal part of my brain focuses on the words-- when really I need to think about both at the same time. It's not an altogether rational process, I think! And I think it has to do with how each particular story comes to you, too-- visually or verbally. I love your suggestion-- I'll give it a try!Jennifer Thermeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17970621166460145330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-70732565671696547482008-03-05T13:00:00.000-05:002008-03-05T13:00:00.000-05:00kind of an afterthought, and you can tell me to sh...kind of an afterthought, and you can tell me to shut up....but as an art director, i suggest this to my artist's.....go back and re-evaluate your illustrations, tell the story with your pictures 'first'...then go back and re-evaluate and edit the text. it seems like your struggle is connecting the two. if your pictures tell the story well, there is probably text you can edit, thereby shortening your manuscript to better suit a picture book. start backwards...work forwards.. :) hope that helps.Christine Mercer-Vernonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16172684068981411097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-34840911476809838102008-03-05T12:45:00.000-05:002008-03-05T12:45:00.000-05:00JenniferI have never done a picture book - though ...Jennifer<BR/>I have never done a picture book - though I can draw - sort of.<BR/>I'm working on chapter books for 8-12 yr olds and get all my friends' children to give me feedback....they rather enjoy the importance of it!<BR/>Have horses in my current one - so got a 10 yr old with her own horse (!) to tell me a bit more about what it smelled like..etc.<BR/>How one struggles being creative.<BR/>One can always give up and play on-line solitaire...but not for too long......Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03964291132366262298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-58178167930941414152008-03-05T12:37:00.000-05:002008-03-05T12:37:00.000-05:00Gail- Thanks, I hope so! The whole process of thin...Gail- Thanks, I hope so! The whole process of thinking it through has been really interesting.<BR/><BR/>Eric- I like the way you word that-- creating them rich enough-- There have been projects that I've dropped in the past, but they didn't nag at me like this one did. It's like a feeling in your belly that doesn't go away. (Not sure if that's a great way to describe it!) And yay, for readers! I know I have blind spots, and need someone to point them out.<BR/><BR/>Christine- It's oddly comforting to know that others deal with this, too! I need to be reminded of that. Sometimes it's so hard to put a project aside (I tend to do the obsessive thing, first) but you're right-- it usually does lead to a fresh outlook.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for sharing your thoughts, everyone!Jennifer Thermeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17970621166460145330noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-13101380875457555662008-03-05T12:17:00.000-05:002008-03-05T12:17:00.000-05:00Oh gosh, i hit walls all the time, if it's not in ...Oh gosh, i hit walls all the time, if it's not in a graphic design project, it's with my art. exploring different avenues may not always turn out as planned, but in this case it solidified your original intention was the best option.so it's a success! sometimes setting things aside for a few days and sleeping on it brings about a breakthrough!!Christine Mercer-Vernonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16172684068981411097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-20428015274298296532008-03-05T11:41:00.000-05:002008-03-05T11:41:00.000-05:00Boy, I know those feelings!I'm working on a script...Boy, I know those feelings!<BR/>I'm working on a script right now and I'm always paranoid about hitting that wall. I think for me, I try to create a mine rich enough that it can with stand changes of heart and the occasional obsstacles. However, I don't think I've accomplished this yet. There are always gaps in the story. Thank God for people willing to read them.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15375615378259386972noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1205891765030546361.post-45669399255092468402008-03-05T10:32:00.000-05:002008-03-05T10:32:00.000-05:00Interesting Jennifer. Another thing about "I've le...Interesting Jennifer. Another thing about "I've learned a bunch of great things from this experience..." you'll probably end up with a better picture book than you would have had if you had not gone through this whole process.<BR/><BR/>Good luck with it!<BR/>gailgailhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15291909095989120673noreply@blogger.com