http://kck.st/xPhGoW
About this project
I come to kickstarter because my children’s and young teens’ book store, needs a new look. I want to make children’s literacy as valued as the newest pair of sneakers. We desire a trendy looking store that puts literature along with tangible- handmade art on sleek pedestals and modern shelves.
I am an award winning children’s book artist, who is also a NY city to Decatur, GA. transplant. I’d like to bring my Brooklyn sensibility as well as my passion for history and culture to teens and parents who may have never thought about these things.
The store will feature my published children’s books and sell handmade products at a reasonable price. Additionally the mall’s management is fine with me bringing in creative friends to do weekend long intensive workshops. It would be a fulfillment of a dream to teach the community to stop buying back their own culture from corporations. Most of the expensive items they wait in a line for, can easily be made or personalized with their own creativity. I miss the days when kids would buy a brand, then paint it, tear it, sew it and redesign it in to their own expression.
Workshops teaching book-binding,painting,t-shirt production,silk screening, even computer and cell phone cover design painting will be offered. I will have something to teach any aspiring art student or curious craft enthusiast.
This will be the first store of many, I hope to make a franchise out of this but for now it’s a Decatur, Georgia aspiration in a site that needs a serious makeover.
“Children can have too many toys, but never enough books.” – Jarrett Krosoczka from his Picture Book Month Essay.
When The New York Times declared, “Picture Books No Longer A Staple for Children” in an article published in October 2010, the controversial article incited a barrage of responses from the children’s book industry, many in defense of the venerable picture book. In addition, the digital age has ushered in an unprecedented amount of ebooks and, with devices like the iPad, the color Nook, and the Kindle Fire, picture books are being converted to the digital format.
Thus, Picture Book Month was born. Founder Dianne de Las Casas decided it was time to celebrate picture books in their printed format so she created an initiative to designate November as “Picture Book Month.” Katie Davis, Elizabeth Dulemba, Tara Lazar, Wendy Martin, and Australian International Liaison, Christopher Cheng, came on board to champion the cause and spread the word. A logo was designed by Joyce Wan. Videos were created by motion graphics designer, Carter Higgins. PictureBookMonth.com features essays from “Picture Book Champions,” thought leaders in the children’s literature community. Each day in November, a new essay is posted from such notable contributors as Peter Brown, Suzanne Bloom, Denise Fleming, Leslie Helakoski, Eric A. Kimmel, Jarrett Krosoczka, Tammi Sauer, Dan Yaccarino, and Jane Yolen. Looking ahead, 2012 Picture Book Month Champions will include such notables as Doreen Cronin,Tony DiTerlizzi, Brett Helquist, Tom Lichtenheld, John Rocco, Karma Wilson, as well as international authors.
Though the website officially opened on November 1, the site has seen over 25,000 visitors in the first couple weeks. The initiative became a movement and the movement went viral. Not even a third of the way through November, a Google search of “Picure Book Month” lists over 4 million results. It has been tweeted, Facebooked, Googled, linked, and blogged. Press coverage come from media outlets like Oprah.com, Huffington Post, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus Reviews, to name a few. Organizations such as the Children’s Book Council, Reading is Fundamental, and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators support the initiative as partners.
The Picture Book Month website also features links to picture book resources, authors, illustrators, and kidlit book bloggers. In addition, parents, educators, and librarians can download the theme calendar to help them plan their picture book celebrations and access picture book activities. Libraries and schools worldwide are holding Picture Book Month celebrations. Join the celebration! Visit www.picturebookmonth.com.
“But if you really want more curious, intelligent, creative children in the world, then go ahead and give them picture books.” – Peter Brown
Hoping for school visit around 2/26/10 within hrs of Union Pier, MI. Will give a great deal! And a prize to whoever connects me!
People always tell me they picture me as a writing, speaking, conferencing, selling and publishing whirlwind of activity. And I think that about other people.
I’m a very slow writer. Freakishly slow (to me). The Curse of Addy McMahon took me 9 years. Dancing with the Devil (my YA WIP) has been a WIP since 2004 and is JUST NOW closing in on being really good.
I do have lots of balls in the air all the time. I like the excitement and lure of different projects. Here is what I’m in the midst of at any one time in the next few months…
Things that occupy my mind and time, in this order but obviously not importance (since I include loved ones!):
Section 1:
designing iPhone app for one of my books
designing video game for same
find coders and take bids for above
Section 2:
last rewrite of my YA WIP
first draft of a MG novel
first draft of a secret project
Section 3:
Clean up studio. Truly, it’s a Hurricane Wreck
Section 4:
exercise/cook food/eat candy/family/kids/homework/friends/don’t yell at my kids
Section 5:
my newsletter/TV appearances/add a blogtalkradio component to this mix
Section 6:
school visits/conference appearances/video chats
Section 7:
thought process recycles with random other stuff I have forgotten here….
With the exception of my Twitted (Tweetered? This could get ugly) updates, I took the summer off, which you’ve probably already figured out.
I’ll be back in September!
See you then…or maybe sooner…
