Anyone want to share there current projects?

[lmrush]

@Eric-Castleman You fooled me looks like watercolor great job!

[kassadoodle]

Working on this piece at the moment.

[Gila]

@Eric-Castleman said in Anyone want to share there current projects?:

I am currently working on intgrating polychromo colored pencils into my watercolor paintings

Ooooh - have you ever tried Derwent Inktense? They are watercolor colored pencils, water-soluble. And I currently like them even better than my polychromos, even for dry work. Very smooshy rich texture.

[Dulcie]

Nice idea for a thread @lmrush... great work with the horse and also @Eric-Castleman with the pencils/watercolour!

I've had a lot going on in terms of looking after our two kids (one of them has broken his leg!), and trying to keep up with everything has been tricky...so my forum writing time has been a bit curtailed recently...but I've been meaning to post some art so here goes. I've been trying to do regular, relatively simple pieces to give myself a chance to nail down a process/style, last two pieces here:

[smceccarelli]

@Dulcie The girl with the butterfly is fabulous!!

[Dulcie]

@smceccarelli Thanks very much! I appreciate the kind words

[smceccarelli]

After my ongoing dummy book project was sent back to the planning stage, I struggle to find the motivation to start another big project. So I doodle characters, I started writing a lot more and more systematically (that is where my book projects stumble, so I need to face a mountain of practice to learn to write for children), and I do stuff for my social media channels. This was done for today - happy Saint Patrick's day to everyone!
I very much like how it turned out, especially the rainbow (done in Rebelle)

[Randy Smith]

@smceccarelli Awesome leprechaun! You create so much detail and it never looks overworked.

[Sarah LuAnn]

Most of my time has been spent on client work I can't share yet... BUT I have been trying to do more sketching lately. I think I really want to get more black and white/middle grade stuff in my portfolio, so its good practice to just have the page, pencil, and pen. I was playing with tha Faber-castel soft chisel pen here, its different from the brushpen I'm used to but I'm getting to like it.

[Eric Castleman]

@Gila no, please do not get me interested in something new. I can't handle it

[Gila]

@Eric-Castleman - yes, I am sorry... I know... total art hoarder myself. hides the gouache and other unused analog paints

[Eric Castleman]

@Gila lol I have a bunch gouache just sitting in my cabinet

[lmrush]

@Dulcie I saw these on twitter and they are fantastic! So polished you should be so happy, congratulations!

[lmrush]

@Dulcie Also I am sorry to hear about the broken leg

[lmrush]

@smceccarelli the rainbow is amazing!

[lmrush]

@Sarah-LuAnn very nice!

[Perrij]

@smceccarelli Wow sorry everyone for going off topic on this thread, but could I bother to ask why your book dummy went back to the planning stage? Any learning gems you could share?

[smceccarelli]

@Perrij Three months after signing the contract with my agent I am starting to grasp some consequences of this fact that I did not anticipate. To make a long story short, she will not take any book dummy to her circle of editors until she thinks it has a chance of selling. And she does not believe that the book dummy I proposed to her (a "children-mess-the-kitchen" with a sci-fi theme) is ready for prime time. Don't take me wrong, she takes the time to make thoughtful comments and suggestions, and I am very grateful for that - and sure in my heart's heart that I will profit a lot from this direct contact with an industry expert (I already am). But I am also starting to truly understand the concept of "gatekeeper". Basically, to make your way into traditional publishing you will have to meet the taste of a series of people - from the agent on to the marketing people - who have their own view of what they like and what sells or not.
But yes, that is what I have committed to and I will hold on. Currently working on draft 8 of another book project that my agent thinks holds promise (which does not stop her from sending back each draft for re-working....).

[Dulcie]

@lmrush Thanks so much! I'm really trying to get a higher level of 'polish' on my pieces at the moment, so to hear you say that means a lot...glad some of the effort is paying off!

@smceccarelli Thanks for sharing your - as ever - interesting and insightful thoughts. I'm sure that perseverance on your part will pay dividends eventually!

[Kevin Longueil]

@Dulcie Wow Dulcie - these are really nice!