An Illustrator's Observations and Lessons Learned at the 2012 NESCBWI Conference

Draw the environment before adding the character.

If you're modeling for a drawing class, the Angry Hulk pose and Tebowing are crowd pleasers.

Surround yourself with talent and you'll eventually win a door prize.

My drawings need texture.

If Brian Lies is speaking, I'm listening.

I dare anyone not to blush when a group of attractive lit agents and writers shout your name from a balcony.

All of the illustrators I met were extremely cool people.

But not all extremely cool people can be illustrators of course.

And then there’s Hazel Mitchell…

Honored to have sketched in the Octo-Puss in Boots book.

BTW, Casey Girard is cool as hell.

Love and care about each character and the rest will be easier.

You don't have to know how to play the banjo to play the banjo.

Speaking of banjos, Russ Cox deserves every accolade thrown in his direction.

Harry Bliss is a comedic genius.

Meeting my Facebook and Twitter illo pals was even cooler than I had imagined. Huge shout out to my #kidlitart peeps - D, Nina, Christina, Gaia and Court.

Not that I imagined it a whole lot, because that would be creepy.

I've never seen anyone draw with as much ease as Andy Smith.

Your illustrations don't have to explain EVERYTHING.

I’m pretty sure Ernie D’Elia was present for every hilarious moment.

If anyone can draw, teach AND bake cookies as well as Kelly Light can, I haven't met them yet.

Not sure if anyone else heard this, but no parties in your hotel room.

You can actually get away with wearing a Yankee t-shirt in a New England hotel bar even when New York comes back from a 9-0 deficit to beat the Sox.

I think Slap is a better nickname than Snap, but both are certainly fitting.

I don't regret my victory lap for one damned minute.

If there's a poster conference, enter it. The exposure is fantastic.

Always, always, always work on making your portfolio better.

Kevin Barry will illustrate a lot of books in the very near future.

Table 16 rules.

Symbolism is a dance, not an equation.

Leeza Hernandez drew a monkey that looked just like me before she even met me. How cool is that?


Draw the action, not the anatomy.


They were all amazing, but my son Jake loved Dan Moynihan's promo post card over all the others.

Kate Messner can captivate a ballroom of 500+ people with ease.

I know where the balloons are...