How Martha Signs book in Portland!

I will be reading and signing copies of my newest picture book, How Martha Saved Her Family from Green Beans at the entirely appropriately named, Green Bean books in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, May 4th. Stop by around 2 to join in the fun. Drop in about 1:45 to see me sweating and worrying that I forgot what I was going to say.

Green beans are welcome as long as they behave. I’ll read, draw some beans and answer questions about green beans. But I won’t pick any green beans up. They bite.

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A little local press for Martha and the bad beans

I’ll be at the West Linn Public Library reading and giving a drawing lesson on April 30th at 4:30. Here’s some more info from the local newspaper about the book and event.

As mentioned in the article, I’ll also be at Green Bean Books (yes, that’s the most appropriate name ever for a bookstore that sells this book!) on Saturday, May 4th at 2:00. Drawing lessons, creating some wanted posters for bad beans, a reading and book signing extravagnaza it will be!

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How Martha Had a Book Signing in St. Paul, Minnesota.

I’m happy to report that I will be appearing, along with author David LaRochelle, at Red Balloon Books in St. Paul, Minnesota for a super-duper, book kick-off extravaganza! Officially it’s being called a Publication Party for How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans. And green beans are invited too. But they better behave.

It’s not that often that an illustrator and author of a picture book get to sign together or are even seen together is this day of projects being divided out long distance. Especially not when separated by 1,800 miles or so. But of course I still consider myself a Minnesotan for life, so I had to make this one. It’s like a reverse Oregon Trail experience. I’m headed back east from the wild, wooly, muddy, pierced and tattooed frontier. But I’ll use an airplane. And I’ll have an iPad to entertain myself with. There will be much less to do with Ox’s this time around.

You can check out an early review of this picture book at Kirkus by clicking here AND clicking your heels together three times and saying, “There’s no place like Kirkus for a review…” Here’s a excerpt from the review that examines the illustrations, I mean, come on. Of course I’ll going to excerpt that part!

“Dramatically comic illustrations rely on bold colors as well as exaggerated gestures and facial expressions to heighten the absurd. With their silly black hats, boots, mustaches and eyes, the spindly green beans actually do look menacing enough to steal the show.”

See you on April 21st, in St. Paul Minnesota at Red Balloon Books!

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Look! A book! A real book!

I got my advance copy of How Martha Saved her Parents from Green Beans in the mail last week. And yes, if you frequently read the blogs of authors and illustrators, or are one yourself, you know that getting that first copy of an actual book is a wonderful moment.

Out in April. You better order now!

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Green Bean Proofs. Say that fast 10 times…

More proofs arrived awhile ago for Martha. This will be out in April from Dial Books written by David LaRochelle. He’s been so busy I can’t keep track of how many books he has being released in the next few years. But his latest, ‘It’s a Tiger’ is beautifully illustrated by Jeremy Tankard. Very cool book.

On this set of proofs for Martha they adjusted colors on the cover, it was printing too dark, and I revised a page or two of art for continuity reasons. I was quite concerned about the green on the green beans but they look terrific. I can scratch that worry off my list. What list you ask? My Worry List. It’s not often I can take stuff off. Usually it’s an additive only list. Look for How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans next year. I’m just guessing here but I bet it wins, Best Book About Green Beans in 2013.

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The green beans have gone bad…

I’m finishing up a new picture book by author David LaRochelle, as I mentioned in a post last week. It’s about bad green beans. Or is it green beans who are bad? They are definitely not the good, quiet green beans that grandma grows in her garden. Above is a quick sample of the kind of green beans to expect in the book. It’s almost like the cast from an AMC or FX show ala Breaking Bad or Sons of Anarchy. But not one of these beans has a heart of gold! They are ALL Bad Beans.

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Now this is research.

Green beans are generally of a good nature and rather slothful. I catch these green beans just waking up, before they’ve had their coffee.

I’m currently illustrating a very funny book. I won’t give too much away until it’s at the stage I like to call ‘done’.

But I have been doing a lot of research on green beans. For instance, did you know that green beans are found in two major groups? Bush beans and pole beans. Yup. But that’s not exactly the type of research I am doing.

I am drawing a lot of beans and a lot of very mean, green beans. And that sent me to several local produce stores where I could figure out exactly where on a green bean, if you were, say, going to draw a face, it should go. There is a right place, and I found it. That’s actually the kind of research I get to do. I’m pretty sure there’s no Master’s Degree in green-bean-faceology, but if there was…

Research into these kind of things is a wonderful side effect of having this job. It’s amazing how all these odd, little bits of knowledge can add up. And wandering the Spicer Brothers vegetable aisles with my camera was fun too – “Pardon me for just a minute. I would like to photograph the artichokes before they wake up.”

Don’t let the beautiful sunset red of these radishes fool you. They are an angry vegetable and have a peppery sense of humor. Always ready with a spicy barb. Turn your back on them and they’re likely to heave a helpless potato at you.

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