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Me
my life, my art, my philosophy
(you might want to grab a snack; it's lengthy)

<- me now

<-- Me as a kid,
but also this is a kid in one my picturebook projects.

Like anyone, I've been drawing since I was small.
The first artistic challenge I can recall was getting my haircolor onto paper;
it was reddish-blondish-brown; Crayola still doesn't make a crayon for that.
My favorite colors were magenta, cyan and yellow. I hated purple.
(But now I love it)
I grew up in a large family.
Big families are good in some ways.
There's always an ally, but always an enemy.
Resources are more scarce -- which makes everyone more creative, I think.
And there's a sort of chaos that becomes normal.
You learn to seek out the eye of the hurricane, and move with it.
When I was a kid, my favorite artist was Norman Rockwell;
I liked his mix of cartoony subject with stylized realism.
In high school I loved Albrecht Durer's finely detailed work
I tried to apply their results to my ideas, but I believed copying was anti-artistic.
In retrospect, if I'd copied closely, I might have learned faster.
Some people profess unshakable confidence in me.
I'm lucky and grateful to have their support.
                           
I excel at sketchy cartoony stuff.
These illos flow from my pen easily.
I like working fast, because life around me is very active, because...

I have four kids, a bunch of pets  
and a grandson. Life is very busy.                                      
When not drawing, painting or writing, I read, make toys,
hang out with the kids, research stuff, brainstorm or play my harmonica.
I'm a Lifetime Girl Scout and was a leader for 8 years. 
I bring a sketchbook with me, most places. I have many dozens --
one from almost every trip I've ever taken since high school, including Mexico at age 15.
I don't take many photos. I sketch life instead.
In high school I won the Detroit News Scholastic Writing Awards twice (a dictionary
with my name in gold! Twice! And two gold keys) with my sketchbook journals.
A few years ago I created some little books and entered - and won -
a string of national essay contests:
Kudos Working Mother of the Year ($35,000),
Suave Family Manager of the Year ($10,000),
Land O' Lakes (computer and equipment worth $3,250),
Stouffer's America's Most Harried Home Cook (a year of frozen dinners),
American Library Association/Suave How I Use the Library (two computers plus $20,000),
Robitussin 's Dr. Mom ($500) (state award, first place; all the others were grand prizes).

I also won other cool contests, including the 2004 Smartwriters.com W.I.N. contest.
I won third place in the children's picturebook illustrations category.
http://www.smartwriters.com/index.2ts?page=swjapril2004
What a huge and happy surprise for me -- this was my first acrylic painting
and my first professional contest entered.
  
I worked for many years in advertising design and illustration.
It was fun, but I like creating kids' books more.
Every day I write and illustrate. And half the night, too. It's my favorite work.

POST SCRIPT: October 2005: My first book has sold to Bloomsbury.
Following my own path has paid off, after three intense years of study.
"Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong.
There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right.

To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires... courage."
                                        --- Ralph Waldo Emerson  1803-1882, Poet and Essayist



>><>o<><<

That's my youngest kid, above, at age 4.
And this is me. Hmm, some resemblance there...


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email me: ruthexpress@aol.com