Well, it feels really good to be back in the saddle. :)
Page 8R is finally drawn (minus the text, which I'll add later today.)
Since you good folks can't see the text yet, allow me to explain that there are Two different scenes depicted (top and bottom) on this page, as will be the case with most of the pages in this book, because of the sheer number of lines in this story.
For that reason, (along with what I shared in my last post) it takes MUCH longer than previous books, (DOUBLE the Illustrations = DOUBLE the WORK.)
That's OK.
The TOP pic was completed just before we left to help our good friend.
Yesterday, I hammered away, creating the BOTTOM pic, but at the end of yesterday I still wasn't happy yet with what I had:
I was trying to get back into "my groove," the lines drawn weren't clean enough, I had to adjust the "Form" on the Beaver for consistency, and there were Many sketch lines I still needed to erase.
It's important to me to produce my BEST work, regardless of self-imposed time constraints.
SUB-Standard just DOESN'T cut it, and, even after those corrections, it was clear to me that there was still much DETAIL work missing, that I'm able to visualize "in my mind's eye," things like the hairlines on the Beaver, cast shadows, or the branch, texture and colour contrasts in the beaver dam. The list goes on.
You can go "overboard" with Art, and knowing when to STOP is an Art in itself.
Still, until the image on the page adequately matches what I see "in my head" I won't quit "touching up."
Could I go faster, by skipping that Detail work, and really simplifying the drawings overall? SURE!
I've reviewed Many examples of other current Children's Book Illustrators doing exactly that.
BUT...
I want MY fans to know they got the BEST work I was capable of, with No Shortcuts, EVER!
I will be very excited when I can offer this Completed book to you all.
Meantime, Thank you so much for your ongoing support and encouragement.😍
Humbly, your grateful friend,
Dave AKA "Captain CHOO💖 "
