2 Nov 2016, 17:03

I started working on this book dummy project four months ago Getting started on my own book pitch (scary!!) and it rested for a long while while I re-worked the manuscript four times. Now I have decided that the manuscript can stay as it is, while I bring the illustration part forward. I plan to bring this as a book dummy to the NY SCBWI conference in February - and this means that I should not be doing anything else from now on, which is going to be difficult (I know myself).
Anyhow, there are four characters in the story and last week I worked on the missing three (the robots) and after several dozen thumbs and some more refined sketches, I have a lineup that I think works.
Your impressions and input would be highly appreciated. I plan to start building the maquettes next week. Here is a couple of keywords:

  • Mary: strong, big, slow, square, clumsy, wants to help but often ends up destroying things.
  • Norbert: precise, focussed, a little manic - can concentrate for a long time but does not always choose the most effective approach to things. For the story, it needs to have a spike and be able to roll.
  • Peter: a pet robot, jumpy, enthusiastic, always in the way. Has lots of tools hidden inside the shell.
    Below are some of the short-listed variations - maybe I did not choose right? At the beginning I wanted each to have a different mean of locomotion, but in the lineup this looked disjointed somehow.
    Happy to hear your thoughts!

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