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Showing posts with the label easy

How to Draw a Cartoon Puppy in 5 Steps!

Yes, even a two-year-old I've been cartooning since I could hold a pencil. Right now, I have two cartoon novels called Prissy Little Chloe out right now--you can see here  http://goo.gl/d7WN49  and here  http://goo.gl/Mkbrjt  that I'm not making this up! Am I a professional? No! There's no such thing. Although I do artwork for a profession, yes. Anyone can draw cartoons and drawing from my book (no pun intended) here's how you can get started, by drawing a cute, little puppy. The best part is it's drawn like a child, so even if art isn't your strong suit--now you can pretend it is! This one's from my latest cartoon novel  Prissy Little Chloe: Terrier Trouble Lets start with an easy one Starting with the outline of Chloe's furry head, draw two zigzags. Cross the zigzags with a straight line at the bottom and a jagged line at the top for her frizzy cowlick.  Next add in her two big ears. ...

Published a Book? Get Into Libraries!

Easier than writing it  My new children's book " Prissy Little Chloe " is starting out in libraries across Toronto. I'm really excited about that -- namely, it's far easier than I thought it would be! First Contact Once you've gotten your book in print, do a Google search (or your search engine of choice) for any local libraries. On their site under the "Contact Us" tab, you should be able to click on their email address (if it's not hyperlinked to open up in your mail application, simply copy and paste it.) Next, shoot them an email of course! This is sometimes more efficient than a phone call, as it gets redirected to the department that can help you best.  Here's what I say: Hello,  What process does the _____ Library go through to order books? (if you're self-published) Would you consider Amazon-published ______ books? Thank you! or  Hello,  What process does the _____ Library go through ...

The Easiest Way EVER to Publish Your Own Book!

Done in days! The decision made I've always loved to create children's books. When I was in primary school, I never spoke to anyone. I had just changed schools in first grade and was super bored with the idea of learning to speak French. So I would sit at my desk, take out a manilla paper notebook that I got from the whole stack on my teacher's desk - they were for the kids anyway, she just hadn't given them out yet - and draw Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog comics. They were advanced, witty humour; not the gross-out kind, most six year old kids find funny. The kind of humour that was ... book material. I wish I could still find them. When I wouldn't talk in school, I would come home and start running while screaming down the place. Yep, problems from early on. My mom couldn't believe why the school board thought I was mute. Art was my outlet. The year was 2003 and my mom told me I need to get a children's book out there.  Fast-forward 13 odd yea...

3 Simple Steps to Canvas Painting

At least it won't take you 15 years to figure this out these paint hacks!  You don't have to be an art natural to adopt these quick and easy tricks into your next work of art! Whether you've been painting for 15 years or 5 minutes, follow these three steps to make your next piece pop: Step 1 - the outline The most fundamental aspect to giving the painting 99% more structure, by planning it out with light pencil shapes. Many abstract or impressionist art will often skip this step - but it is simply needed for any still-life, landscape or portrait paintings.  It's a little difficult to do this with watercolour paintings without having lead bleed through, in which case I recommend using a blue pencil (which you can find at an arts/crafts store - alternatively, a light blue pencil will do the trick.) With a pencil, sketch (not too dark you can't erase, but not too light you can't see it) the outer lines of the big parts of your subject(s),...

Slowing Down the "Hyperactive" Mind - Simple and Quick Relaxation Technique

 The "hyperactive mind" as Eckhart Tolle puts it, is a mind like mine - inner conversation that consists of meaningless rapid-fire thoughts. Now how do you slow them down or get rid of them, so you can stay present at attentive to what you're doing? Well first off, you don't want to be completely zoned-in - that's no better than being completely zoned-out (like me most all the time) - because then you won't know what's going on around you. So when a kid fly kicks a soccer ball to your head, you'll know why. You clearly need to balance the two - focused on the task at hand, yet alert enough to slap the soccer ball away over the neighbors fence, so that brat of a kid knows his place. What Eckhart recommends is to calm the mind by "spacing the thoughts". He suggests you divert from your diarrhetic thoughts - and your level of concentration instantly increases, you relax and become apt to communicate with yourself through clearer percep...