Annie -
The Illustrator
How long does it take to illustrate a picture book?
Nathan will read me a story he has just written and he'll show me the little rough sketches he has drawn to accompany them, from here I'll draw up a very basic plan for each page so that we can get an idea of how the finished book should look. When we're happy with the plan, I go to my desk and begin the full-size sketches, adding in more detail as I go. Once these are finished and we have the rough copy of the book, I'll use my electronic XP-Pen Pro 16 or my Castle Arts pencils (depending on how I want the drawings to look) to create the images for the final book.
Back to the original question! It takes me aaaages, I've never timed myself and so I can't put a number on it, but each drawing can take me many hours!
What’s your favourite children’s book?
I have a lot of fun reading about Albie's exciting adventures with my children. Written by Caryl Hart, the series of books follow a young lad with an amazing imagination. He meets pirates, aliens and even eats jellybeans from a prehistoric plant! The illustrations, by Ed Eaves, are so colourful and busy, giving us lots of detail to pick out as we read.
My own favourite books as a child were Ted and Dolly's Fairytale Flight by Richard Fowler - it has a hot air balloon in a little plastic pouch on the front cover, which moves though a slot in each page as they travel through a fairytale world; and There's an Alien in the House by Penny Kitchenham - a series of six smaller stories in one large hardback book. I read both of them so many times as a child that they're falling apart, but I still have them (and the little hot air balloon!) and I'm warmly reminded of my childhood whenever I see them.
When did you start drawing?
When I learned how to hold a crayon! I used to draw animals, all sorts of hideous beasts that Frankenstein would be proud of creating - lions with six legs, cats with both eyes on the same side of their head, pink sharks with way too many teeth, mutant flowers, shapes, letters, you name it! I would sit on my mum's lap and colour in every single letter 'o' as she read her newspaper I was obsessed with colour and creating and would fill pad after pad with my doodles!
What’s your favourite thing to draw?
I love drawing flowers and get inspired by what's growing around me. When it's too chilly to sit outside in the winter, I'll look through the seed catalogues that companies send out and will draw the images they use to illustrate them.
What’s your least favourite thing to draw?
People. I find it very difficult, so when a story requires me to then I just get my head down, focus as much as I can and try to get them drawn as quickly as I can!
Have you ever wanted to write your own stories?
Never say never, but unless I can think of a great idea then I'm happy reading what others have written and illustrating stories.
How does it feel being a character in a story?
It's cool to think that another human thinks that you're worthy of being in their story, makes me feel all fuzzy inside.
What’s it like working with Nathan?
Depends - what did he say about me?! He's a joy to work with. While he's writing, I know to leave him alone to go through the process quietly. Once he's done writing, then he'll get his little family together as he's always keen to known what we think of it. Then we get down to the design, I'll keep him updated with the progress and I'll show him what I've done, living together means that we can talk about the details and get things changed without waiting, making the process a bit quicker.
5 Tips for illustrators
1. Get a good quality pen or pencil - if you draw with poor quality tools, the pencil nib may break more or the pen may not feel comfortable, these details can put you off wanting to draw. I work with a Zebra Zeb-Roller DX7 and Sakura Pigma Micron pens - the finer the nib for me, the better! My pencils are by Castle Arts, but I find them a little soft and so I'll do some research before I buy my next set.
2. Different papers suit different materials - on the front of drawing pads, it will tell you what medium (pens/ paint/ pencil/ printing) that it suits the most - don't ignore this, the experts know! If you just want to doodle, then any paper and pen will do!
3. The blank page can be a terrifying sight, making that first mark might feel intimidating, but go for it - if you can't think of what to draw, maybe draw your favourite character from a film/ game/ story, a pet, or maybe you could look for a game like Inktober which is a list of 31 prompts, one for each day of the month, and you use that word as inspiration.
4. Draw daily - use your mind and hands to (or whatever you may draw with) to create anything.
5. Have fun - drawing can be used as a way to express yourself, to get your feelings, out, to entertain yourself or others, but whatever it is to you, enjoy it!