Picture Book, You Big Dummy!

Excuse the title of this post. I was channeling my inner Fred Sanford...

I discovered #kitlitart on Twitter (@kidlitart) late last year. Here's what kidlitart is about in their own words:

"...#kidlitart, a live Twitter chat Thursdays at 9:00 pm Eastern, for children's book illustrators, picture book authors, author/illustrators and friends. Check back weekly to read transcripts, comment on previous chats and suggest topics for upcoming chats."

I've participated in a few #kidlitart Twitter chats and I've checked the transcripts from others. Good stuff. Educational and entertaining - all helping to foster a sense of community within the picture book community.

So I checked up on Tweets yesterday and found this awesome event listing:

Welcome to the Kidlitart Picture Book Dummy Challenge!

What is the Dummy Challenge?

A 25-week online group challenge to create and submit a picture book dummy.

Start date: January 6

End date: June 30

Who can join?
Anyone! Though geared primarily toward author/illustrators, writers who are not artists can benefit from portions of the dummy exercise, and illustrators without an original manuscript can use the process to create a dummy portfolio piece.

Are there any rules for the challenge?
Nope. The idea is to have a great time while accomplishing a goal. There are no formal sign-ups or check-ins required—but if you've ever participated in a similar challenge, you know the value of community: checking in regularly, encouraging others, allowing yourself to be held accountable to a schedule—all this will help you get the most from the experience.

Complete details can be found on the original kidlit blog post.

I was registered for a class on making a dummy picture book at a local art center last February. Turns out I was the only one interested, so class was dismissed before it even started. Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), I'm completely psyched for this challenge. #kidlitart is a great community for chats, so I'm figuring it will also be a great one in this capacity as well. I also appreciate the 25-week schedule. It may seem like a long period of time to some, but trust me - time flies when deadlines are involved.

Details for Week 1 will be posted later today, but the initial schedule on the blog shows:
Jan. 6-Jan. 13 (1 week): Pick your project

I have three story ideas in mind - a pirate story, a cat story and a bird story. Hopefully I'll have a better idea of which one to choose after the Week 1 details come out. And I'll post semi-daily/weekly updates here on the blog. Should be fun! Wish me luck!


Oh, and we all get to use this really boss "twibbon" (designed by illustrator, Diandra Mae) to place on our websites, blogs, profile pics, etc.



Perks and benefits already! Told you this was a great community.

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