Raina Telgemeier's Blog, page 15

DRAMA sweets at Kidsmomo!

Hello from San Francisco! Tour is already a whirlwind and I’m enjoying every second of it. More on that later. Also, tomorrow I will announce the winners of the #DRAMAday contest, so check back here for the results!

On to other news. I recently recorded a video for Kidsmomo, a website/podcast I’m a huge fan of. They’re throwing a contest to win a signed copy of DRAMA–you can enter the here! And not just the book, but the very drawing I do in the video below…!

Hit the link, and watch the video. It’s a how-to-draw-Callie demonstration! Curious about the tools I use to make comics? They’re all here. You get to see me pencil and brush-ink the drawing, all in my little home studio! See anything familiar on my walls and shelves?

Good luck!

San Francisco Bay Area: GRAPHIX TOUR! 9/7-9/10

I’m headed out on a week-long tour of the San Francisco Bay Area, with some of my fellow Scholastic/Graphix authors!

Join kid-friendly creators Raina Telgemeier (SMILE, DRAMA), Doug TenNapel (CARDBOARD, GHOSTOPOLIS) and James Burks (BIRD AND SQUIRREL) for a week of awesome graphic novel events all over the Bay Area! They will be speaking, signing, and drawing for young readers and fans at five unique in-store events.

Graphic Novel Night at the Reading Bug!

The Reading Bug

785 Laurel St

San Carlos, CA

Friday, September 7

6-8pm

There will be prizes and refreshments!



Graphix Author Signing!

Green Apple Books

506 Clement St

San Francisco, CA

Saturday, September 8

3-5pm

Find us in the Mezzanine!

Graphix Authors Meet & Greet/Signing

Towne Center Books

555 Main Street

Pleasanton, CA

Saturday, September 8

7-8pm



Graphic Novel Palooza!

A Great Good Place for Books

6120 LaSalle Avenue

Oakland, CA

Sunday, September 9

11:30am-1:30pm

Graphix Authors Event & Signing!

Books, Inc. Laurel Village

3515 California St

San Francisco, CA

Monday, September 10

7:00pm

James Burks is the creator or “Bird and Squirrel on the Run.” When a feathered and a furry pair outwit Cat, they become fast friends with a zany adventure to boot. Bird is the eternal optimist and Squirrel is terribly afraid of his own shadow. What a pair these two make!

Doug TenNapel’s newest graphic novel is “Cardboard.” When the worst birthday present magically comes to life, Cam and his dad are astonished. Unfortunately, the neighborhood bully gets to it and warps the gift into his own evil creation. Cam must now save his town from disaster. Will he be able to do this in time?

And Raina…well, that’s me.

Thanks, Decatur! San Francisco: You’re Next!

What a wonderful weekend. DRAMA hit stores on Saturday, and Sunday I was a guest author at the Decatur Book Festival in Decatur, GA!

I had a great time hanging out with authors I really admire (dinner with Dav Pilkey, and breakfast with Tom Angleberger and Cece Bell? How lucky am I!) and meeting kids and families from the Atlanta area. My presentation on Sunday afternoon was a lot of fun, and I beat the rain by just a few minutes! I also really enjoyed signing copies of DRAMA for so many smiling fans, and spending some time in Decatur’s own Little Shop of Stories! What a fabulous bookstore!

Of course, the #DRAMAday contest began on Saturday and goes until Saturday, September 8! You can see the contest rules here. I’ve gotten some amazing entries already…keep ‘em coming!

Next up is my extensive tour of the San Francisco Bay Area! I’ll be signing in San Carlos, San Francisco, Pleasanton, and Oakland, and visiting schools all over the area–details below. At all appearances, I’ll be joined by fellow Graphix authors Doug TenNapel (Cardboard) and James Burks (Bird and Squirrel), which should be terrific fun. Come say hello and get some awesome graphic novels for kids and young adults!

Graphic Novel Night!

with Doug TenNapel & James Burks

The Reading Bug

785 Laurel St

San Carlos, CA

Friday, September 7

6pm

Graphix Author Signing!

with Doug TenNapel & James Burks

Green Apple Books

506 Clement St

San Francisco, CA

Saturday, September 8

3pm

Meet & Greet/Signing

with Doug TenNapel & James Burks!

Towne Center Books

555 Main Street

Pleasanton, CA

7-8pm

Graphix Author Signing!

with Doug TenNapel & James Burks

A Great Good Place for Books

6120 LaSalle Avenue

Oakland, CA

Sunday, September 9

11:30am



Graphix Authors Event & Signing!

with Doug TenNapel & James Burks

Books, Inc. Laurel Village

3515 California St

San Francisco, CA

Monday, September 10

7:00pm

#DRAMADAY is Close! Plus, September Tour Dates!

The new book is almost here…

…actually, it already is here for some people! I’m hearing reports from friends who have found DRAMA at bookstores, and Amazon has shipped some peoples’ copies! Hooray! Don’t forget, you can amp up your book purchase by entering the #DRAMADAY contest–just snap a photo of yourself as you’re making your purchase, post it somewhere online, and then link to that photo on my Facebook wall! Simple. I’ll announce the winners here on my site as well as there on my page, a few days after the contest ends (Sept. 8).

Fanart for #DRAMADAY–Justin, by Jerzy!

A few items of note:

***If you look around, you might notice that my website has received a gentle facelift! There are some new pieces in my illustration gallery, a couple of additions in the webcomics section, and a brand-new media page, where I’ll put everything from videos to podcast interviews to photos! I’ve also updated my Contact info page, my Info/FAQ page, and my Author Visits page. Check ‘em out. Thanks to Tea Fougner for helping me get the site up to speed.

***My September tour dates are mostly locked in! Here are the places you can find me during the first month of my tour:

Decatur Book Festival

Decatur, GA

Sunday, Sept 2

Children’s Stage, 3:45pm

Signing to follow!

Graphic Novel Night with Doug TenNapel & James Burks!

The Reading Bug

785 Laurel St

San Carlos, CA

Friday, September 7

6pm

Graphix Author Signing with Doug TenNapel & James Burks!

Green Apple Books

506 Clement St

San Francisco, CA

Saturday, September 8

3pm

Graphix Author Signing with Doug TenNapel & James Burks!

A Great Good Place for Books

6120 LaSalle Avenue

Oakland, CA

Sunday, September 9

11:30am

Graphix Author Event & Signing with Doug TenNapel & James Burks!

Books, Inc. Laurel Village

3515 California St

San Francisco, CA

Monday, September 10

7:00pm

Brooklyn Comics & More

493 7th Avenue

Brooklyn, NY

Weds. September 19

3-5pm

Big Planet Comics, Vienna

426 Maple Ave. East

Vienna, VA

Sat. September 22

11am-1pm

Big Planet Comics, College Park

7315 Baltimore Ave.

College Park, MD 20740

Sat. September 22

3pm-5pm

National Book Festival

Washington, DC

Sun. September 23

Children’s Book World

17 Haverford Station Rd Haverford, PA

Monday, September 24

4pm

I’ll also be traveling extensively through October and November! The confirmed dates are listed on the right-hand sidebar next to my blog. I’ve got a few more to add to those, so stay tuned for that!

***DRAMA received a stellar writeup in the New York Times! I’m pretty thrilled about it!



***I’ve been posting interior pages from DRAMA on my Tumblr! A couple more to come before Saturday’s book release!

I’ve got a million things to take care of before I leave for tour Saturday morning, including (if you can believe it) working on the script for my next graphic novel! People always ask me if I think I’ll make more graphic novels…well, the good news is, I plan to make graphic novels until I am old and gray. So, you guys are in luck. And that’s all for now!

DRAMA Book Trailer!

Here’s the book trailer for DRAMA!

Thanks to Scholastic, who made this whole thing and animated my artwork.

And don’t forget about the #DRAMADAY Contest!

The #DRAMADAY Contest!

Since the DRAMA release date is quickly approaching, I’d like to give everyone a chance to get in on the fun–not just buying the book, but making it into a celebration. So: I’m announcing a CONTEST!

DRAMADAY Contest Rules:

1. Take a photo of yourself (or you and your friends) buying a copy of DRAMA on or near the release date. If you want to dress up as the main character, Callie, or any of the other characters…even better.

2. Post it somewhere! Your blog, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr…anywhere!

3. “Like” my Facebook page, Raina Telgemeier’s Comics.

4. Post a link to your photo/blog post/tweet/tumbl/etc on my Facebook page. Be sure to include the word #DRAMADAY (including the # symbol) in the post!

That’s it! You have until Saturday, September 8 at midnight EST to enter.

***

I will pick three entries at random from the posts on my Facebook page! I’m going to award three (3) prizes:

1. Original art of the DRAMA characters, by me!

2. A chance to “meet” me over Skype! You and I will both appear as guests on a future episode of the Comics Are Great live broadcast, and we can talk about whatever you like on the air!

3. A SMILE t-shirt in your choice of sizes.

***

Here are some other things you can do if you simply want to participate in #DRAMADAY:

–Write a review on Goodreads, Amazon, Shelfari, B&N, or any other site that lets you review books!

–Draw some fan art! There’s nothing an artist loves more than seeing her characters interpreted by others.

Here are a couple of web banners you can post on your site, to help spread the word about #DRAMADAY!

Thanks to my friend Jerzy, who not only made the banners you see here, but suggested the idea of #DRAMADAY in the first place!

Still Busy…! Plus: Kids Read Comics Video!

Gosh, DRAMA will be out in less than 3 weeks!! I’m so antsy. And, still BUSY. There is a lot to do before a book launch, it turns out…

People have been asking me about my fall touring schedule. I’ll be all over the country, doing a TON of events, but I’m still waiting for confirmation on some of the dates and times. I’ve begun putting confirmed events on my calendar–check the sidebar to the right of my blog for the first batch! I’ll be hitting several other cities on both coasts and in between, so keep your eyes on that Upcoming Events list! It’ll be much longer soon!

Here’s a video (including some still photos) of my time at Kids Read Comics in Ann Arbor, MI, back in early July. We had a great weekend! Met a ton of awesome kids, some super awesome teachers (hello, Nerdy Book Club friends Colby, Brian, Beth, Marquin, Jen, and Sarah!), and loved spending time with other kids’ comics creators. As always, thanks to KRC show-runners Dan Mishkin, Dan Merritt, Edith Burney, and Jerzy Drozd–another awesome event to be proud of, guys!

SMILE Tops the Chart! And…DRAMA Is In My Hands!

Hi everyone!

I’m home from 3 weeks of travel, with many stories and photos to share…unfortunately I’m a little short on time, so I’m just popping in with a quick post for now.

Yesterday I got some amazing news: SMILE, which has been hovering on and around the New York Times graphic books bestseller list for the past half-year or so…has, much to my amazement, hit the NUMBER ONE SPOT!!! I can hardly believe I’m a #1 New York Times Bestselling Author.

This little book of mine wouldn’t have gone anywhere without your support, so I really have all of you to thank for this incredible honor. As I’ve said before, graphic novels don’t happen overnight: they take literally years of hard work to produce. It’s nice to be rewarded so handsomely for my efforts! Thank you all so much.

ALSO…

Look what arrived at my house yesterday!

Hardcover; softcover

Jacketflaps and endpapers on the hardcover edition

Back covers: softcover; hardcover

I even made a little flip-through video, so you can see what a great job Gurihiru did on the interior colors!

DRAMA will be in stores on September 1. You can pre-order it online, or at your favorite local bookstore or comic shop! I’ll be doing a big wave of touring and events this fall, so check my events listing (to the right of this very blog) to see if I’m coming to a town near you!

San Diego Comic-Con, July 11-15

San Diego Comic-Con is upon us!

Here’s where you can find me over the course of the crazy weekend.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 11 – SUNDAY, JULY 15

I’ll have some Smile t-shirts for sale at the Bolt City Booth (formerly the Flight booth), #2235. I’ll be hanging out there when I’ve got downtime, too!

THURSDAY, JULY 12

2:00-3:00pm

SIGNING: CBLDF

Booth #1920

All proceeds from books sold go to a great cause.

FRIDAY, JULY 13

2:00-3:00pm

SIGNING: Cartoon Art Museum

Booth #1930

Come get a drawing of anything you like! All donations benefit

San Francisco’s Cartoon Art Museum.

SATURDAY, JULY 14

11:00am-12:00pm

SIGNING: Explorer: The Mystery Boxes

Bolt City Booth #2235

Come get a copy of Explorer, signed by the creators!

1:00-2:00pm

SIGNING: Cartoon Art Museum

Booth #1930

Come get a drawing of anything you like! All donations benefit

San Francisco’s Cartoon Art Museum.

SUNDAY, JULY 15

11:00am-12:00pm

PANEL: Kids Read!

Room 11AB

Listen to four great graphic novelists read LIVE from their latest works! With Jorge Aguirre (Giants Beware!), Jimmy Gownley (Amelia Rules), Raina Telgemeier (Drama), and Colleen AF Venable (Pet Shop Private Eye). Moderated by Scott Robins (A Parent’s Guide to the Best Kids’ Comics).

***I’ll be reading a scene from DRAMA!!

1:30-2:30pm

PANEL: What’s Cool in Graphic Novels?

Room 8

Six authors with great new graphic novels discuss their inspiration, creative process — and their new books! Authors Zack Giallongo (Broxo), Kazu Kibuishi (Amulet: Prince of the Elves), J. T. Petty (Bloody Chester), Thien Pham (Sumo), Doug TenNapel (Cardboard), and Raina Telgemeier (Drama) are joined by moderator Calista Brill (First Second Books).

3:00-4:00pm

SIGNING IN AUTOGRAPH AREA

AA4

Books will be on sale, and I will have a limited quantity of DRAMA galleys to give away to those who make a purchase!

See you there!

Kids Read Comics, Ann Arbor, MI, July 7-8!

This coming weekend is one of my favorite comics events:

KIDS READ COMICS!

If you live anywhere near southeast Michigan, I hope you’ll join us for this FREE kid-focused event! This year, the festivities take place in and around the Ann Arbor District Library (Downtown Branch). There are activities for kids and teens running throughout the entire weekend, and I will have a table in the Artist Alley where you can buy books, artwork, and T-shirts! I’ll be happy to sign any books you bring from home, too!

Vitals:

Kids Read Comics Celebration

July 7-8

Ann Arbor District Library, Downtown Branch

343 South 5th Avenue

Ann Arbor, MI 48104

(734) 327-4200

Directions

Here are the events I’m doing over the course of the weekend:

SATURDAY JULY 7

10:30 am – 11:30 am

Comics Quickfire!

Part drawing jam, part fast-paced game show! Volunteers from the audience are paired off with (or against) professional cartoonists in a series of fun-filled drawing challenges! Comics Quickfire attendees are encouraged to participate, even if they can only draw stick figures or make silly suggestions. Featuring Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy), Raina Telgemeier (Smile), Chris Houghton (Reed Gunther), Gale Willams (Patbird & Galesaur), Jerzy Drozd (The Front) & more!

AADL Multi-Purpose Room – All Ages

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

Turn Your Life into a Comic!

Raina Telgemeier, author of the graphic memoir Smile, shows how everyday moments of your life can be made into a comic strip!

LOCATION: Robot Repair & Supply – 826 Michigan (115 East Liberty Street) – All Ages

SUNDAY, JULY 8

12:30 pm – 1:30 pm

Comics Quickfire!

Part drawing jam, part fast-paced game show! Volunteers from the audience are paired off with (or against) professional cartoonists in a series of fun-filled drawing challenges! Comics Quickfire attendees are encouraged to participate, even if they can only draw stick figures or make silly suggestions. Featuring Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy), Raina Telgemeier (Smile), Chris Houghton (Reed Gunther), Gale Willams (Patbird & Galesaur), Jerzy Drozd (The Front) & more!

AADL Multi-Purpose Room – All Ages

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Interactive Graphic Novel Theater

A live comics reading involving lots of audience participation and silliness. Raina Telgemeier (Smile) and Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy) will perform chapters from their all-ages graphic novels, including a scene from Raina’s upcoming book Drama! Illustrated panels will be projected onto a large screen for all to see, and volunteers from the audience will be chosen to play some of the characters.

AADL 4th Floor Meeting Room – All Ages

All of the programming can be found here. There is so much to do, it’s kind of mind-boggling! Come for a few hours, or come for the weekend.

And, if you’re interested in how this sort of event comes together, the four organizers of KRC (a comics writer, a librarian, a comics retailer, and a cartoonist/teaching artist) were recently interviewed in an episode of the KIDS’ COMICS REVOLUTION podcast! If you’ve ever wondered how to organize a comics event in a library, this is a great resource.

I’ll be flying straight from Michigan to California for San Diego Comic-Con, but I’m going to put my schedule for that in a separate post. Needless to say…it’s going to be a fun couple of weeks!