Whether speaking at a school, library, or conference, I truly love talking about the bookmaking process. I enjoy speaking from the heart, sharing my failures that eventually led to published work, and inviting participation through interactive drawing demonstrations. After years of teaching, I'm comfortable speaking in front of crowds of all ages. When presenting, I like to emphasize that every artist and/or writer is capable of learning their craft. No one is born with perfect talent. We all need to develop our skills, to learn how to endure ups and downs in our careers and stick with it no matter what. I focus on how mistakes are a vital part of the creative process. It means we are learning, experimenting and growing.
I also focus on how important it is to follow our instincts with art making. By using our imaginations and coming up with silly or bizarre ideas, we break through to new ideas. If we are afraid of outside judgment, we remain rigid and our ideas don't become as exciting as they could be. I invite kids to help me create characters–I draw what they suggest, and we have a fun time putting our fearlessness to work.
This March I will be visiting three schools in New Jersey, which promises to be a lot of fun. |