http://susannahill.blogspot.com/
http://www.susannahill.com/HOME.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/bio.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/books.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/teachers.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/links.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/contact.htmlhttp://susannahill.blogspot.com/http://www.susannahill.com/news.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/CRITIQUE_SERVICE.htmlhttp://www.susannahill.com/MAKING_PICTURE_BOOK_MAGIC.html
http://susannahill.blogspot.com/p/would-you-read-it.htmlhttp://susannahill.blogspot.com/p/summer-short-and-sweets.htmlhttp://susannahill.blogspot.com/p/oh-susanna.html

April 24, 2014

The First Ever Pretty Much World Famous Illustration Contest for Children's Illustrators!!!

Fasten your seat belts and prepare for take off!  It's finally here!

The First Ever Pretty-Much-World-Famous Illustration Contest!!!
the fact that this particular illustrator resembles a female
is in no way meant to deter any male illustrators! :)

The ContestDraw/Paint/Create a children's picture book cover illustration (no text required - art only) for one of the following stories (which you will recognize as the top finishers in the March Madness Fractured Fairy Tale Writing Contest - a little extra surprise for those authors :)):


 - The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff by Wendy Greenley
 - Goldilockup by Mike Allegra
 - Goldibawks And The Three Pairs by Dawn Young
 - The Sweetie Witch by Pen Avey
 - The Princess And The Stinky Cheese by Lauri Meyers
 - Mongoose's Holi Party by Darshana Khiani
 - The "Princess" And The Pete by Jennifer Caritas
 - The Jackrabbit Who Cried Gila Monster by Elliah Terry

Illustrations should be 8x10, horizontal or vertical, any medium, posted in jpg at least 72 px
All stories can be read on the March Madness Finalist Post HERE so you will know what to illustrate :)  Illustrators may enter more than one entry if they're feeling ambitious enough to illustrate more than one book title :)

Post:  Your entry should be posted on your blog between right now this very second and Monday April 28 at 9 PM EDT (contest deadline!), and your post-specific link should be added to the link list below.  This post with the link list will remain up through Tuesday April 29 so that people can come visit and enjoy your gorgeous artwork!  (For regular blog followers, there will be no PPBF on Friday April 25, no new post on Monday April 28, but there will be a brief interruption for WYRI on Wednesday April 30 because I forgot to leave it open for the contest :)).  If you don't have a blog but would like to enter, please copy and paste your entry into the comments below.  (If anyone has trouble commenting, which unfortunately happens, you may email me and I'll post your entry for you!  Also, since this is the first time we've done an illustration contest, I'm not sure if you actually CAN paste your entry into the comments.  If this turns out to be a problem, email them to me and I'll add them directly to this post.)

Judging:  entries will be judged by multi-talented, award-winning author/illustrators Iza Trapani, author and illustrator of over 20 gorgeous picture books, and Lisa Thiesing, author and illustrator of at least 16 beautiful and fun picture books and early readers!   Judging criteria to include:

 - is the picture readable to a young audience,
 - how well does it show the character(s) and
 - is the character(s) appealing (character development),
 - does it make you want to read the story,
 - originality
 - skill.

They will narrow down the entrants to 6 finalists (or possibly a couple more or less depending on the number of entries :)) which will be posted here on Thursday May 1 for you to vote on for a winner.  The vote will be closed at 5PM EST on Sunday May 4 and the winner will be announced on Monday May 5.  (No PPBF on Friday May 2.)

The Prizes!:  There will definitely be a 1st prize.  Whether we give prizes for 1st only, 1st-3rd, or 1st-6th will depend on how many entries we get.  We need at least 12 entries to place through 3rd, and at least 20 to place through 6th.

    First Prize is absolutely amazing!  A portfolio critique by celebrated author/illustrator Michael Garland, who has over 20 picture books to his credit!!!

 - Second Prize - a $50 gift certificate to Dick Blick Art Materials (which is online)
 - Third, Fourth & Fifth Prize will be winner's choice of one of the following books:
      - Writing With Pictures by Uri Shulevitz
      - 2014 Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market by Chuck Sambuchino

 - Sixth Prize - a Canson sketch pad and a small set of Derwent or Faber Castell colored pencils

I'm so excited to see what everyone comes up with!  As a person whose artistic ability is limited to stick figures, scribbling and relatively easy coloring books, I am in awe of anyone who can draw/paint/cause anything recognizable to appear on paper/canvas/computer screen :)  I hope we'll get plenty of entries, and that there will be at least one attempt at every title!

Tweet: Enjoy the art! Enter yourself! Children's Book Cover Illustration Contest @SusannaLHill http://ctt.ec/58ZUb+ #kidart #illustration

Let the artistic fun begin!!!  :)

Don't miss Laura's entry for The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff in the comment section! (click HERE and be a little patient :))

And here's Katie's entry for Goldibawks And The Three Pairs! (click HERE and be a little patient :))

And here's Laura's entry for The Sweetie Witch! (click HERE and be a little patient :))

And here's Angela's entry for The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff! (click HERE and be a little patient :))

and here's Suzy's entry for The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff! (click HERE and be a little patient :))

Entry from Hilary Swann for The "Princess" And The Pete

Hilary Swann - The "Princess" And The Pete


131 comments:

  1. I am so looking forward to all the art. This should be lots of fun. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love this idea!!! But alas, I can't even draw an convincing stick man. More like a sick man. lol

    ReplyDelete
  3. Wish I were an artist! This is awesome and love the little illo at the top! I look forward to seeing the entries. Thank you, Susanna, for this initiative!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Looking forward to seeing all the entries!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yay! I love love love this idea, Susanna!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This is so much fun. Thank you for having this contest, Susanna!

    ReplyDelete
  7. So excited to see all the entries! What fun...

    ReplyDelete
  8. It is SO much fun, isn't it? It's especially fun to see different takes on the same story! I hope all the stories will end up being represented!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm so glad Ellen entered! Her illustration is fabulous! I'm having such fun looking at all the entries. I hope we'll get a lot more!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm glad you love it, Mike! I love it too :) I'm hoping we'll get lots of entries because it's so much fun to see how the different illustrators work with the subject!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I wish I was an artist too, Joanna, for so many reasons :) But it sure is fun to see what the artists are doing with the stories! I hope we'll get lots of entries!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I can't wait either! I hope there will be lots!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Yours is great, Cecilia! It's so fun to see the stories brought to life this way!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Me, too! Thank you for having this opportunity for her to take part. She might enter another picture. This is such fun. I'm loving all the fabulous entries!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh, yay! I hope she does! And I hope she picks a story that hasn't been done yet. I'm so hoping each of the authors will get at least one!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh, I do too! The one she's thinking of doing hasn't been done yet. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  17. YOWSA! Those are some talented artists!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Aren't they amazing? I'm glad I'm not judging this!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Thank you for this opportunity. I had lots of fun with my illustration piece. It's great to see other artists' works too! Creativity is overflowing here. :)


    If only I had the free time... would love to do another one for a different story.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Oh, goody, Julie!!! Looking forward to it! :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. This was so much fun Susanna!

    ReplyDelete
  22. I'm so glad, Telaina! I love your cover :)

    ReplyDelete
  23. hi Susanna :) I wouldn't let anything stop me from entering the first Illustrators contest! thank you for the opportunity! ..........working on my first ever watercolor entry :)

    ReplyDelete
  24. You did a beautiful job with that left hand, Nata!

    ReplyDelete
  25. If there's a stinkiest looking cheese prize, you are definitely in the running!

    ReplyDelete
  26. This contest is teaching me a lot about publishing. The editor's choice of illustrator and then the approach the illustrator decides to take can change enhance a story, change a story or turn that little story right on its head! Really fascinating to see all the different takes.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I love these! Seeing the illustrations for Wiggly Worms has me especially all happy wiggly inside. Good luck to everyone. :)

    ReplyDelete
  28. Hi, Susanna :)

    Well, Erik posted this on his blog (http://tinyurl.com/ko8ctqb) so I
    scooted right on over to check it out! :D (His sister, Josie, did an adorable
    illustration for it, too: http://tinyurl.com/m3w8fxz)

    Oddly enough, I already have an illustration--two, actually--I did for
    something else that just HAPPEN to fit Mike Allegra's GOLDILOCKUP (which is
    hilarious, btw lol), soooooo...I figured I'd post them :) They're just
    "collecting dust" here in my computer and my portfolio, so I figured---why not?
    ;) (Btw, I framed them to make them 8x10 since they're actually square.)

    That being said, I'm not so sure mine would qualify for this contest. So IF I
    qualify at all, I really don't want to be in the running for 1st prize, AND I
    already own WRITING WITH PICTURES (fantastic book!), but I wouldn't mind any of the other wonderful prizes you may offer ;)

    So, here you go:



    (the image of Goldi leaves room for text which is why such a large area is blank)


    Thanks for running this, Susanna :) You do such wonderful stuff :)

    ReplyDelete
  29. Yay, posting the images actually worked! Mine appear as if they're connected though. They are actually two separate images :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. What fun this is, Susanna! Each entry is so unique!

    ReplyDelete
  31. I can't comment on Louis's blog, but just wanted to say that I adored his Three Wiggly Worms Bluff art!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Also can't comment on Colleen's Goldilockup post, so am commenting here. That is a perfect sad expression on Goldilocks! Nice cover mock-up too.

    ReplyDelete
  33. lol...I finally figured out where everyone was looking to view artwork! I am SUCH a dunce *sigh* Didn't realize those were links! Anyway, my blog's not launched, and I don't think I qualify anyway, but thought it would be fun to participate, so I pasted my entry ALL the way at the bottom of my "pre-launch" page.
    And I have to tell you, the artwork is really blowing me away! I'm hoping to see some come in for stories that haven't been done yet. Mine is there simply because I already had something pertaining to "Goldilocks." If I had the time, I'd make a new one, but...
    So much fun, Susanna :D

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hi Darshana,
    I've illustrated the cover for your story. Would you let me have your blog address so I can link back to your page. I can't find it, must be wearing Mor's goggles... :) Hope you like what I've done... :)

    ReplyDelete
  35. The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff

    ReplyDelete
  36. Love this Laura, especially love the birds quarrelling in the background. Nice touch :)

    ReplyDelete
  37. Thank you Catherine. I love it!!! my blog address is www.flowering-minds.com

    ReplyDelete
  38. So glad you like my illustration. I've got you linked now.
    Love your site, loads of great information. :)

    ReplyDelete
  39. This is great, Laura! Love the arguing birds :)

    ReplyDelete
  40. I'm so glad you entered, Donna! I can't wait to get over and see your cover! :)

    ReplyDelete
  41. Yeah, there are a couple of people who linked to sites where you can't comment :( Hopefully they'll check in here!

    ReplyDelete
  42. These are great, Donna! I especially love the bears! Thanks so much for joining in the fun!

    ReplyDelete
  43. You've gotten quite a few! I'm so pleased :) And they're all so different it's really fun!

    ReplyDelete
  44. It really is an education isn't it? When people talk about the marriage of text and art they're not kidding!

    ReplyDelete
  45. Very appropriate for the first ever illustration contest :)

    ReplyDelete
  46. Thanks, Susanna :) It IS fun :) I wasn't paying attention to the "cover" aspect of it! I really should make a version with the title and author if I don't want to feel even MORE bogus! lol

    ReplyDelete
  47. No, you don't have to worry about that, Donna! The judges were specific that that should not be part of the competition - that you should just focus on the art - because not everyone would necessarily be able to do the text.

    ReplyDelete
  48. OK, I know I didn't have to, but still I felt like I had to, just to be more legit, so I added the title, author and BARS! lol

    ReplyDelete
  49. It looks really good! I like it this way! :)

    ReplyDelete
  50. Thank you :) It was VERY basic stuff in Photoshop Elements since I only KNOW basics in PSE! lol

    ReplyDelete
  51. You're way ahead of me because I'm not even sure how to open PSE :)

    ReplyDelete
  52. thank you Lauri!

    ReplyDelete
  53. first and first~yes appropriate :)

    ReplyDelete
  54. Great job, Laura! I love the expressions on the worms and the birds bickering in the background. So fun!

    ReplyDelete
  55. Nice job, Hilary! What a fun picture! It portrays the story well.

    ReplyDelete
  56. There is on at the bottom of the actual post, and one in the comments. As far as I know :) The rest are in the link list.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Great! Thank you! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  58. Thank you, glad you like it. Sorry for posting it on my portfolio site (only registered users can leave comments). My second entry was posted on my Tumblr site though - it's powered by Disqus commenting system, so I hope I'm doing it right now. :)

    ReplyDelete
  59. The Sweetie Witch, computer generated.

    ReplyDelete
  60. I love Goldi! Thank you Nata for choosing her :)

    ReplyDelete
  61. Here is my entry for Goldibawks & the 3 Pairs.

    ReplyDelete
  62. Katie, this is brilliant, really eye catching :)

    ReplyDelete
  63. Fabulous job, Katie! So bold and bright! And who can resist a basketball-playing chicken?! :)

    ReplyDelete
  64. I love this, Laura! A cookie walkway, jelly bean steps, lollipop plants - YUM! :) And I love the kitty :)

    ReplyDelete
  65. This is such a fun cover!

    ReplyDelete
  66. Like the detail. Very cute.

    ReplyDelete
  67. Love the expressions on their faces. very nice!

    ReplyDelete
  68. I am last minute getting in but here is my entry for the Three Wiggly Worms Bluff

    ReplyDelete
  69. Aw! So cute, Angela! I love their little outfits :) Thanks so much for joining in the fun! :)

    ReplyDelete
  70. Sharing my creation for Wendy Greenley's delightful fractured fairy tale, The Three Wiggly Worms Bluff. I will connect a link to my Word Press, also. Thank you. ~Suzy Leopoldhttp://sleopoldblog.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=324&action=edit&message=6&postpost=v2

    ReplyDelete
  71. Yay! Arlene did the Mongoose story! I'm so glad someone did. I was too nervous to try it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  72. Cute! That bird better watch out for those worms...LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  73. Delightful, Suzy! I love their little hats :) And what a pretty tree... and a sneaky robin hiding behind it :) Thanks so much for joining in the contest fun!

    ReplyDelete
  74. Cookie path...mmmm! That cat is show-stealing!

    ReplyDelete
  75. I love the colors you chose for the tree. Lovely!

    ReplyDelete
  76. These worms made me laugh out loud. Great job.

    ReplyDelete
  77. So happy to see a vibrant illustration to go with this energetic story. Nicely done.

    ReplyDelete
  78. Oh, I love those birds arguing in the background while the worm family is safe and smiling!

    ReplyDelete
  79. Love your cat and that cookie path . . .I want one!!!

    ReplyDelete
  80. You did a very good job with the twisty worm bodies. Great!

    ReplyDelete
  81. Wait, what?! Seriously, Teresa, where do you see that? I only saw that Catherine did it!

    ReplyDelete
  82. Oh Susanna! And you were afraid no one would come to the party! It looks like you've drawn out the lurkers. This was so much fun. There were a lot of charming entries. I wish I'd had time to tackle all my ideas.


    Hilary Swann did a terrific cover! I didn't know where else to comment. . so I'm putting it here. I hope she sees this.


    Also, Darshana, I so much wanted to illustrate your story, put I'm not much of an animal illustrator. I am just dying to paint the elephant hosing down the guests, but it'll take a lot longer than three weeks. I'll let you know when.


    Thanks again, Susanna, for the inspiration. And thanks to all the writers for your wonderful stories!

    ReplyDelete
  83. I'm so thrilled, Joanne! I can't believe how many wonderfully talented artists came to the party! So many fantastic illustrations! And I think every story did get at least one, although The Princess And The Stinky Cheese seems to have done more that it's share of inspiring :) Thank you so much for entering - I love your illustration! - and if you do Darshana's let me know - I'd love to see it!

    ReplyDelete
  84. Never mind - I see she's added to the link list at #27!

    ReplyDelete
  85. Just a little bit :) I'd been here so long making a list for the judges and tweeting all the new illustrations I forgot to refresh my browser :)

    ReplyDelete
  86. You are a masochist, Susanna! LOL! These contests are so much work for you. Wish I could pass along one of those chocolate cupcakes I made today as a reward. :)

    ReplyDelete
  87. I wish that too! I think I saw them on FB and they looked delicious!!!

    ReplyDelete
  88. It's the best cupcake recipe! And it makes 24 so even though I share with my crit group, we still have plenty left to eat. Mmmm!

    Good night! Get some rest!

    ReplyDelete
  89. Oh Susanna...I am so happy to see all of these wonderful illustrations! Looks like it is going to be a tough contest to judge. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  90. How lovely, Suzy! Great job...those worms look very determined...they are on a mission. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  91. Angela...what fun! Love their scarf/collar accessories...and is that the shadow of a worm-eating bird on the pavement? :)

    ReplyDelete
  92. Katie...bold vivid colors...go UCLUCK!

    ReplyDelete
  93. A cookie cobblestone path...that is perfect, Laura. :)

    ReplyDelete
  94. Okay, this has seriously been THE funnest thing EVER to see four unique illustrations from my picture book manuscript. They are all so wonderful in their own ways.

    ReplyDelete
  95. This is fun, love the shadow of the bird and the little worm looking down... :)

    ReplyDelete
  96. Beautiful, love the colour of the leaves and that little robin is cute... :)

    ReplyDelete
  97. Mike Allegra writerApril 29, 2014 at 10:59 AM

    And you thought this contest wasn't gonna be popular!

    ReplyDelete
  98. Cute! I like the two bickering birds in the background.

    ReplyDelete
  99. Worms with clothes, who would have thought? This is adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  100. This is a perfect illustration for the Goldibawks story! :)

    ReplyDelete
  101. Love the candy details! I think the candy cane shutters are my favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  102. I really wasn't sure, since it was the first one! But I'm thrilled with the turn out, and everyone's illustrations are so fantastic! Your story got a bunch of really good ones!

    ReplyDelete
  103. Isn't it amazing? And you got some seriously fantastic ones, I thought!

    ReplyDelete
  104. I'm so glad I don't have to judge it! I couldn't do it. I don't know enough about art techniques, and I like all the pictures :)

    ReplyDelete
  105. Very cute and such a clean style!

    ReplyDelete
  106. Very fresh style with lots of white space! Very nice!

    ReplyDelete
  107. So cute! Love the expressions and their "tube" shirts!

    ReplyDelete
  108. This is so cute! The lollipops in pots are just how I imagined them :)

    ReplyDelete
  109. One never knows, Teresa! ; ) Looks can be deceiving. Walk softly and carry a big beak! Thank you for your compliment.

    ReplyDelete
  110. You are too kind, Oh, Susanna. And I am delighted to be a part of The First Ever Pretty Much World Famous Illustrator Contest. Thank you for hosting.

    ReplyDelete
  111. Your compliments are appreciated, Joanne. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  112. Together, the three, as a team, should be able to avoid the wrath of the robin! Thank you for your kind words.

    ReplyDelete
  113. Catherine: Your thoughts warm my heart. Thank you for the kind words.

    ReplyDelete
  114. So many wonderful entries, Susanna. Wish I had the time. :-(

    ReplyDelete
  115. How lovely of you to share a few lovely lines, Loveable Lobo. Thank you for the compliment.

    ReplyDelete
  116. I wish you did too, Tracy! Maybe we'll do this again some time :)

    ReplyDelete
  117. Katie,
    I love Goldi! She is darling and plucky! Thank you for choosing her:) Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
  118. I'm going to enjoy sitting back and admiring the talented illustrators in this contest, Susanna!

    ReplyDelete

I love to hear from you and try to respond to every comment. Please share your thoughts!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...