I’m writing a children’s book in 30 days!

How to embrace creative challenges

I’m a full time artist and I haven’t taken an art class in 13 years. Ok, I’ve done a few evening workshops, Skillshare classes, and been a regular at Youtube University. But I haven’t sat in a classroom for any extended period of time since AP Art in high school.

Until last week!

I spent a week at the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont taking a course on how to make comics for young adults. My intention was to translate the skills from this course into making a children’s book.

I was nervous about taking the class because I had zero experience drawing comics, so I gave myself some “pre-course work.” I took out books on how to draw people, went to the library to read graphic novels, and took New Yorker style cartoon classes through Amy Kurzweil’s Patreon. It felt like I had already learned so much before I even stepped into class.

When I arrived in the tiny Vermont town it felt like the first day of school. I drew my first comic within the first 2 hours of class and immediately fell in love with this new medium. Each day it felt like I was pushing myself creatively, building an entirely new world in my imagination and bringing it to life on paper.

I made more art in 5 days than I had in 2 months. My teachers were fantastic and helped work with me through each comic and shared feedback on the children’s book ideas I had been noodling on.

This week reminded me of the power of creative immersion. I decided to give myself an even bigger challenge, using the format of a creativity sprint that has worked for me many times before.

So I’m going to write a children’s book in 30 days! I’ve been researching children’s book for months, practicing drawing covers of iconic books, and sharing ideas with friends. I feel like I’m ready to create my first draft and get the ball rolling.

What’s even more fun is that I’ll be doing it along with the September cohort of my Climate Art 101 course! It’s a totally new experiment for me to try a creative sprint for writing and I can’t wait to see how it unfolds. 

If you want to spend a month tapping into your creativity, I’d love to walk alongside this journey with you in Climate Art 101! The course starts on September 16 with a 30 day creativity challenge and I guide you through daily exercises to learn how to use art as a tool for climate communication. 

The early bird pricing is available until August 15. It’s 50% off the course, so it is $75 for lifetime access to the curriculum and the Slack community of creatives in climate. Learn more here.

Upcoming Events

• I’m hosting a free climate art workshop on how to make infographics about food waste on August 16 at 1pm. RSVP here.

• I’ll be at Climate Week in NYC! My week is booking up already. If you want me to host a climate art activity or speak at your event, shoot me a note

Offerings:

• Climate art workshops for teams. These have been magical to see groups explore their creativity.

• My shop- I’ve got all sorts of fun things in there for my fellow climate nerds!

• Custom art commissions. I help climate organizations transform their complicated work into simple, beautiful visuals.