Z.R. Southcombe's Blog, page 14

Dream big // writing tips for children

In this video, I discuss: -How I felt when I first started writing (scared!) -How giving things a go is important

Celebrate your victories // writing tips for children

In this video, I talk about why criticism and celebration are both important parts of the creative process:  

Breaking the rules // writing tips for children

In this video, I discuss: Why it’s important to understand the rules. When it’s okay to break them!  

How to become an author // writing tips for children

In this video, I discuss: Being an author basically means ‘having a book published’ An overview of how to write and publish a book

April A-Z blogging challenge: theme reveal

Okay so I’m a little bit late with this, but I was still deciding whether I’d participate or not. Last year I used the Caretaker of Imagination as my theme, as I had just released it. this year I’m looking at the process of...
Read more

Finalist for the Sir Julius Vogel Award 2016!

So just a quick announcement today. A couple of days ago I received an email informing me that both The Caretaker of Imagination and Lucy’s Story are FINALISTS for the Sir Julius Vogel Award. I’ve been super busy with school author visits (which...
Read more

In the Studio: Illustrations complete for ‘You Can’t Cure A Witch’s Curse’

The illustrations for the next book You Can’t Cure A Witch’s Curse are now complete, minus some little touch ups (darkening the darks etc.). Woohoo! I discovered early on in the illustration process that it’s difficult for me to work on...
Read more

Business Blog: Why I do free school visits

I know this is a controversial idea so I’m going to begin with couple of notes: Authors (and other artists) deserve to be paid for school visits. Schools are not just paying an ‘hourly rate’ for an author’s time, but also...
Read more

Business Blog: Use what you have

I signed up for BadRedHead Media’s 30 day marketing challenge (where we get one actionable item per day) and it was a big reminder to really do things – not just think about doing them, or sit back and hope...
Read more

In the Studio: Illustrations and Making Space

So I’ve done lots of work on my illustrations this week, though technically none of it has been in my studio. It’s been on the couch, at the coffee table, in front of the TV (or laptop). In theory, this...
Read more