March | 2015 | Paula B. Puckett

Monthly Archives: March 2015

March 19, 2015 · 5:11 pm

Seeds Are Planted and Watch Them Grow!

I’ve just returned from a wonderful conference for writers and illustrators, the SCBWI Southern Breeze Springmingle 2015. Our speakers included Neal Porter, Guiseppe Castellano, Meg Medina, Karen Grencik, Elise Howard, Bill Mayer–and included even more agents, editors and published writers and illustrators. My head is FILLED with many new ideas and I would like to thank all the volunteers and attendees who contributed.

Seeds have been planted. Figuratively AND literally.

Now that I’m home, and out here in my garden, I’ve built a tiny greenhouse. I can just barely see the new seeds begin to come forth. Do you see the tiny sprout in the center of the dark, brown earth? Look closely. It’s there. It will most likely take a while to turn into something able to thrive out on its own and much longer to produce vegetables. That’s okay. I can give it water, make sure it receives sunlight and I know it will grow.

Thank you to the panel of speakers and attendees who’ve helped plant seeds of creative ideas. I will nurture them, every day, and look forward to see what grows.

Happy Creating!

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March 4, 2015 · 1:36 pm

The Drawing Board

The weather out here on the farm has been challenging, to say the least. First there was freezing rain. Then ice. We had snow a few days later. Wonderful, white, fluffy snow which was fun to explore and beautiful to see for a short time.

Since my main studio space is out in the barn, I really couldn’t see spending long amounts of creative work time out there–I mean, seriously? It is COLD out there! I moved into the house in an enclosed office space which used to be a garage. It was a little bit warmer in that room as long as I turned on the electric heater and allowed it to warm up for an hour or so before I began to work. That was fine until the temps dropped REALLY low. Dressed in layers and covered in a blanket worked for a while, but ….Okay, so the office space isn’t as well insulated as it needs to be.

Working on sketches for a new project!

I moved my workspace again. This time, my laptop is on a rolling tray and attached to a digital drawing tablet. I will use this time to learn something new. I’ve been encouraged by other Illustrator Friends (hey, you know who you are) to try creating artworks digitally so I’m giving it my best shot. I’m making progress, I think. And I have created a few images that I’m excited about. Slowly–I’m taking “baby steps”– and I learn a little something new every day. Figuratively speaking, I’m probably one of the few people I know who can go from the twenty-first century back to the nineteenth century just by walking out of my house, through my back yard and out to the barn.

Is it a problem to like to do a great many creative things? Not for me. I make stories and poems. I spin yarn, weave, knit and crochet. I like to draw, paint and make collages from recycled papers. Photography is fun too. I can’t choose just ONE thing to do–and not at all sorry; I want to do it all! I call it “research” and move on. What a great opportunity to have those experience(s) which I KNOW will transfer into my writing and illustrating.

I’m happy creating. I hope you are, too!

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