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2008 In this section I will give daily updates, talk to my readers and try to answer their questions. If you would like to write and ask me a question, just click on the Write Me button in the column to the left. I have been getting mail asking what I am working on right now. I am currently painting the pictures for a picture book that is set in Australia. But the story must remain a secret for now (though regular readers on my web site will remember a certain contest I had last year in which I let my readers pick the animal......) |
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Whitney from Minnesota writes: ARE THE DOGS AKIAK AND SWIFT FRIENDS? I don't think they have met. But I am sure that they would like each other if they did. They are friendly dogs. |
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Marty asks: DID YOU DRAW A LOT WHEN YOU WERE A KID? Yes, I did. I drew on paper and cardboard and garbage bags and napkins and on our upstairs hallway wall (got in a lot of trouble for that). One day my second grade teacher gave me a "Marble Pad" and suggested that, if I drew in it, I wouldn't lose my drawings because they would all be in one place! So I began my first sketchbook. I now have 118 and I know where all my drawings are. |
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Jack wants to know: DID YOU HAVE PETS WHEN YOU WERE A KID? My family had a lot of pets. We had fish and turtles and snakes and birds and rabbits and gerbils and guinea pigs and dogs and an ant farm and lizards and a zillion hamsters and a tarantula and two flying squirrels...... and a great Mom who helped us clean all the cages! |
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Gillian says: I HEARD THAT YOU LIVE IN AUSTRALIA. DO YOU? I used to. Now I am living in the United States. But I still have many friends in Australia. Here's one named Charlie. He is an Eastern Grey Kangaroo. In this picture, Charlie is all wet because he just came in out of the rain to play with his kangaroo punching bag. |
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Jason says: I LIKE THAT YOUR BOOKS AKIAK AND TOGO AND SWIFT HAVE MAPS AT THE BEGINNING. DID YOU MAKE THE MAPS? Yes, I did make the maps. I tried out many versions of the maps, too. Here are three different maps that I sketched for SWIFT. The first one is quite graphic. Although I liked it, I felt that it did not look right with the oil paintings in the book. The same with the second version. Finally, I decided on the third style. |
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The question of the Day: Dan says: I THINK IT'S COOL THAT YOU MADE A HUNTING STORY. I LIKE THE FIRST SENTENCE IN THE BOOK. Thanks, Dan. The first two lines of the story are, "Swift smelled the gun oil. He knew we were going hunting a week before we left." I hope that these lines convey a lot of information such as- 1) Somebody was cleaning their guns in preparation for a hunt; 2) Swift knew the sights and smells of preparation, so he's been hunting before; 3) Swift wants to go hunting Here is a sketch of another version of that first page. |
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The question of the Day: Corey wants to know: ARE YOU AFRAID OF BEARS? Let's say I greatly respect bears. I try to stay out of their way. I think they are magnificent creatures, best left alone. Here is a page from my sketchbook with some bear sketches on it. |
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The question of the Day: Morgan asks: IS IT FUN TO RACE? It is! |
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Question: Curt from Springfield asks: WHERE IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO DRAW? I like to draw people at airports and restaurants. |
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