Ellie Royce's Blog, page 3
October 30, 2019
What's your story? Katrin Dreiling
All stories have a beginning, a middle and an end. But within a story there can be many chapters, sections, volumes, prologues and epilogues. The best stories are filled with passion, perseverance and surprise twists and turns. It seemed so appropriate to post Katrin's story today! Have you seen her gorgeous, spooky, quirky #inktober offerings? you can find them on her Instagram space at https://www.instagram.com/katrinartwo... The Beginning : My name is Katrin and I am a German born illustrator who moved to Australia about 16 years ago with my husband and two children. We then later added another little girl and a big Golden retriever to the family. Before we moved to Australia, I used to be a high school teacher for German and English but I soon realised that I had other dreams and that maybe now was the time to do something about it. So I changed careers 4 years ago and haven’t looked back since. I love to create quirky illustrations that are partly made with materials and techniques children are familiar with and invite them to be creative, too. In my opinion kidlit and its illustrations are very important and shaping influences in a child’s life and they have the power to help raising a kind human being. We can never have enough of those. The Middle: So far, I have illustrated 5 picture books and one school reader and created two more picture books that will be published early next year together with another picture book I am currently still working on. One of those recent projects is a Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream version for little kids that I particularly enjoyed and the other one is a picture book about bedtime for our Australian EK Books publisher, written by Sharon Giltrow. The third picture book is my third time working for Little Pink Dog Books and Michelle Worthington, and will be about the famous Granny Smith. And the End ( which is always a new beginning!): Since I won the SCBWI and Harper Collins portfolio award earlier this year at the Sydney conference I am proudly represented by Essie White at Storm Literary Agency and feel very lucky to have this opportunity to be working with her and be part of her amazing team of creatives. I feel that Essie has the experience and wisdom to guide me through the kidlit industry that I was always seeking. I obviously don’t really know what the future holds but it is my strong belief that if you work hard and are very passionate about something you will reach your goals one day – my goal is to be a published author/ illustrator and to see my book in a book store and that my stories are read and enjoyed by many little people. Thank you Katrin, for sharing your story, and your gorgeous illustrations that always make me smile. You can find Katrin online at https://www.katrindreiling.com/ Talk to you soon...
September 26, 2019
Whats Your Story? Jean Daigenau
Author of CODE CRACKING FOR KIDS Jean Daigenau shares her story of perseverance and passion for writing, against all the odds!
September 23, 2019
My Story - The Magic of Intergenerational Relationships
The Magic of Intergenerational Relationships- connecting through sharing stories.
September 15, 2019
My story- We are all made of stories
Once upon a time, people told stories around a campfire. Ug told stories about how he slew the mighty mammoth and came back to tell the tale. Ugemme told stories about how she gave birth and survived. Urg and Gur told stories about how they were unique and why. The Shaman, Great Ug told stories about how the world was made and how to live in it successfully. And the others listened raptly. Why? Because humans are hardwired to need stories. Our magnificent brains are constantly seeking a way to make sense of all the input thrown at them. According to Lisa Crohn in her (fabulous, I kid you not, you won't be sorry if you read it) book Wired For Story, neuroscientists believe that not only is story the brain's way of ensuring our survival by vicariously living through other people's experiences, but that we actually crave stories because when we reach the end of a story and make sense of it, we get a hit of dopamine - and that feels good! Curiosity, meaning, experience. "How did he/she/they do that? Why? Did they they live? Did they die? Did they find true love/make a million bucks/live happily ever after?" I won't lie. I'm a story addict. I've been known to stop in my tracks, eyes glazed over and mouth hanging open if there's a good story going on somewhere in my vicinity. I see stories everywhere, in everything. So this new research makes me feel validated in my obsession- Hey- it's a brain thing! I'm not responsible, right? And in the end, I'm not apologising. I collect stories, I write them, read them, grow them, eat them, and on good days, I help other people tell their stories, in many different ways. Sometimes theses stories even change lives, mine and others'. The world is a crazy place, especially right now. I don't know the answers ... but I can tell you a story. And maybe, just maybe, it'll be the one you need. Talk to you soon
My story - Why I LOVE Picturebooks
“The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,
And all the sweet serenity of books”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow In a family which was often tempestuous, where there was probably undiagnosed dyslexia and a few other issues, no support networks since we lived out in the middle of nowhere, little cashflow and a fair bit of stress, reading favourite picture books were some of the happiest times we spent together. They saved my sanity, offering precious time out from challenging situations and made beautiful memories with my kids that will last forever. Wonderful, marvellously worded and magically illustrated stories like “The Velveteen Rabbit” “Where the Wild Things Are” and of course “Possum Magic” were relished over and over again. These moments also helped me understand that my two daughters had vastly different learning styles, one being verbal and word oriented, the other being a child who learned visually. The child who was word oriented had no trouble at school, since she could read from an extremely early age. How well I remember trying to sneak away from two kids under four to indulge in a quiet bath and a few minutes peace. Within seconds I’d hear a "thumpity thump" as my verbal daughter dragged her tiny chair into the bathroom, plonked herself down and stated “Now Mummy, we will read”. And she would. And, fair call, I enjoyed being read to (most of the time...) My other daughter had more difficulty in the school system as she struggled with words and letters- leading to the completely incorrect perception by her that she was "dumb". We did our best to show her that she wasn't dumb at all- but we made a few mistakes. The time my husband and I decided that we’d do an intervention and take it upon ourselves to teach her how to read and spell ‘the’ still looms large in my mind. (BIG mistake.HUGE.) We picked a book with lots of ‘the’ words. We read. We spelled. We read again. We spelled again. Finally, after three hellish days of pure torture for all of us we asked “How do you spell ‘the’?” Angelic pink lips uttered the magic letters “T-H-E”. Elated and, it must be said, puffed up with pride at our success where the system had so obviously failed, we said “Now, show us where “THE” is.” She pointed. We looked at the word she’d chosen. " Butter” it said.
Humbled, we gave in. Hey, half a victory is better than none, right? But it was picture books, I discovered, that created a bridge which spanned both learning styles. Although not interested in the words, my visual daughter would discuss the pictures, the colours, the concepts of the story, and what happened when the book finished. My verbal daughter would read, re-read, think about it, talk about it and sometimes re-write the stories to suit herself. Together, we did all of these things and more. Along the way both children were inspired, educated and uplifted, their imaginations and emotions kindled into bright flames by picture books. Today, the verbal child is a University Graduate and Journalist. The visual child is in her third year of University and plans to do Masters, Honours and a PhD (clearly, she did learn how to read- and how!) Executive director of the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation states “Even gifted children benefit from time with picture books, learning how to get the most out of what they read. Decoding the information in picture books can teach a child not only to read but also to interpret and understand” This is why I love picture books. There’s nothing more magical and inspirational for our children ( or adults, let's face it) than being exposed to this synergy of art and literature. Now I am fortunate enough to be a part of making picture books for other kids- our most important audience. It never ceases to thrill me that I'm involved in this artform. A picture book is an often massive and complex concept, distilled and refined through the process of an author, illustrator and editorial team pouring their combined energy and passion into a crucible of hard work which eventually delivers the alchemical result of those four hundred or so words and fifteen or so images.
Picture books can transport us to the moon and beyond, make us laugh, cry, shiver, wonder, imagine, discuss, share and LEARN. (Just don’t expect miracles if you want to learn to spell ‘the’ okay?) Talk to you soon,
And all the sweet serenity of books”
― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow In a family which was often tempestuous, where there was probably undiagnosed dyslexia and a few other issues, no support networks since we lived out in the middle of nowhere, little cashflow and a fair bit of stress, reading favourite picture books were some of the happiest times we spent together. They saved my sanity, offering precious time out from challenging situations and made beautiful memories with my kids that will last forever. Wonderful, marvellously worded and magically illustrated stories like “The Velveteen Rabbit” “Where the Wild Things Are” and of course “Possum Magic” were relished over and over again. These moments also helped me understand that my two daughters had vastly different learning styles, one being verbal and word oriented, the other being a child who learned visually. The child who was word oriented had no trouble at school, since she could read from an extremely early age. How well I remember trying to sneak away from two kids under four to indulge in a quiet bath and a few minutes peace. Within seconds I’d hear a "thumpity thump" as my verbal daughter dragged her tiny chair into the bathroom, plonked herself down and stated “Now Mummy, we will read”. And she would. And, fair call, I enjoyed being read to (most of the time...) My other daughter had more difficulty in the school system as she struggled with words and letters- leading to the completely incorrect perception by her that she was "dumb". We did our best to show her that she wasn't dumb at all- but we made a few mistakes. The time my husband and I decided that we’d do an intervention and take it upon ourselves to teach her how to read and spell ‘the’ still looms large in my mind. (BIG mistake.HUGE.) We picked a book with lots of ‘the’ words. We read. We spelled. We read again. We spelled again. Finally, after three hellish days of pure torture for all of us we asked “How do you spell ‘the’?” Angelic pink lips uttered the magic letters “T-H-E”. Elated and, it must be said, puffed up with pride at our success where the system had so obviously failed, we said “Now, show us where “THE” is.” She pointed. We looked at the word she’d chosen. " Butter” it said.
Humbled, we gave in. Hey, half a victory is better than none, right? But it was picture books, I discovered, that created a bridge which spanned both learning styles. Although not interested in the words, my visual daughter would discuss the pictures, the colours, the concepts of the story, and what happened when the book finished. My verbal daughter would read, re-read, think about it, talk about it and sometimes re-write the stories to suit herself. Together, we did all of these things and more. Along the way both children were inspired, educated and uplifted, their imaginations and emotions kindled into bright flames by picture books. Today, the verbal child is a University Graduate and Journalist. The visual child is in her third year of University and plans to do Masters, Honours and a PhD (clearly, she did learn how to read- and how!) Executive director of the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation states “Even gifted children benefit from time with picture books, learning how to get the most out of what they read. Decoding the information in picture books can teach a child not only to read but also to interpret and understand” This is why I love picture books. There’s nothing more magical and inspirational for our children ( or adults, let's face it) than being exposed to this synergy of art and literature. Now I am fortunate enough to be a part of making picture books for other kids- our most important audience. It never ceases to thrill me that I'm involved in this artform. A picture book is an often massive and complex concept, distilled and refined through the process of an author, illustrator and editorial team pouring their combined energy and passion into a crucible of hard work which eventually delivers the alchemical result of those four hundred or so words and fifteen or so images.
Picture books can transport us to the moon and beyond, make us laugh, cry, shiver, wonder, imagine, discuss, share and LEARN. (Just don’t expect miracles if you want to learn to spell ‘the’ okay?) Talk to you soon,
September 12, 2019
Out of Hiding! My Secret Garden and other bon mots...
I have, I suppose, as the title of this blog suggests, been in hiding, more or less. In a quiet place, "doing the verk" as Jen Storer (she of the many facets but best known as children's author and Royal Majesty of The Duckpond, a kindly kidlit Facebook community) continually admonishes. The quiet place I should add, exists largely inside my head, as life itself has been anything but- which is probably why I needed it ! I've spoken before about my creatorium, my own personal creative space that exits in an otherwhere, where something is always bubbling and word wrangling is the only game in town. I've named my blog "The Creatorium" because it's going to be the virtual home of this space, a place to chat and talk about the creative dance in all it's many, varied, rainbow hued, exhilarating, frustrating, infuriating and joyful guises. And that's great. But sometimes I need to retreat to my Secret Garden. It's a place of quiet and stillness, where I can nourish my psyche with art and music and poetry, read and listen to other people's words, learn and wrestle with the Great Mysteries of Life- -and watch Grace and Frankie on Netflix. ...It's hard to blog from that place, you know? You sink in. You get comfy. You even wonder if you'll ever emerge from the Secret Garden again. Then suddenly, you realise it's time. Time for a new website (let me know what you think?) Time to talk about the two new picture books you have coming out in 2020 (and what amazingly exciting journeys to publication they both have been- more on them soon!) It's time to GET ON WITH IT. I'll be re-publishing lots of blogs from the archives as well as sharing some of the great things I discovered and learned. (And I'm still going to make time for Grace and Frankie because you know- it's fantastic and as usual I am WAY late to the party!) So here I am! Nice to be back. Talk to you again soon,
