My Creative Life By Nancy Miller

Hi Everyone, my special guest is Mark Crilley. Here is a bit about Mark. Mark Crilley is an American comic creator, artist and children's book author and illustrator. He is the creator of Lost in Taiwan published by Little Brown Ink. He produces instructional videos on drawing on YouTube in various styles, including manga-styles. MarkCrilley.com Mark's Twitter Mark Crilley Youtube Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone! My special guest today is Jennifer Smelker, artist and owner of Tandem for Two. Here is more about Jennifer's wholesale business Tandem for Two: Tandem For Two is all about celebrating the everyday activities of where we live, making memories with illustrated designs and giving unique gifts as we journey in life together! As we celebrate where we live and where life takes us, we give back to our communities as 10% of each purchase will give homeless kids a birthday party through The Birthday Party Project, a national non-profit organization we partner with.   In the spring of 2019, the company expanded to include art licensing and illustration. Now I collaborate with other companies for custom patterns, artwork, and product and package design. I've been fortunate to work with some fun companies on a variety of products like fabric, home decor and table top products, pet accessories, and apparel and gift products, continuing to help other create memories and give unique gifts. Wholesale

Hi Everyone! Today I spoke with my return guest Robin Martéa, illustrator and fine artist. Robin's had some exciting things going on, and I asked her to return and speak about it. She has an art show at the Municipal Art Gallery in Jackson, Mississippi. We chatted about how to spend more time deeply thinking about creating and making art. Avoid the pitfalls of spending too much time on social media. To see Robin's Art: https://robinmartea.com/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/marteadesignco/ Jackson Mississippi Comics: https://robinmartea.com/jackson-comics Buy a copy at: JacksonComics.com Thanks for listening!

Hi Everyone! I had the pleasure of interviewing Cleonique Hilsaca, children's book illustrator based out of Savannah, GA. Here is a more about Cleonique: CLEONIQUE HILSACA is an illustrator from Honduras based in Savannah, GA. Her professional work can be found in picture books, newspapers, magazines, board games and galleries. Though her work is primarily digital, she can be found painting watercolors in the wild. Visit her site: https://cleonique.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/cleonique IG: https://www.instagram.com/cleonique/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone! Today my special guest is Melquea Smith, a children's book illustrator based out of upstate New York. Here is more about Melquea: My name is Melquea Smith, (pronounced "Mehl-kwee-yah" ♥) my pronouns are she/her and I’m a Black, award-winning, published, children’s book illustrator based in New York. I am an active member of SCBWI, student of Chris Oatley’s The Oatley Academy, and an admin of #BlackCreatorsHeadquarters. Trello - https://trello.com/ Clip Studio Paint Pro - https://www.clipstudio.net/en/ PrettyKittyPaintings - https://www.prettykittypaintings.com/ IG - https://www.instagram.com/prettykittypaintings/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/PKPaintings Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, Myself and Tiffany Gordon, graphic novel writer/artist, attended the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Springmingle Southern Breeze Conference. We chatted about our experience and how we prepared for the event. Tiffany Gordon Website: https://www.tiffanygordonstudio.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tgordonstudio/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/tgordonstudio Nancy So Miller Website: https://www.nmillerillustration.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nmillerillustration/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/nmillerillo Thanks for listening!

Hi Everyone, my special guest today is Keely Parrack. She is the author of Young Adult thriller, DON'T LET IN THE COLD and picture book, MORNING, SUNSHINE! She currently lives in the San Francisco Bay area with her husband, and son. Her upcoming books are 10 Hours to Go out with Sourcebooks Fire out Winter 2023 and the next picture book is How Starling Got His Speckles - Barefoot Books - illustrated by Antonio Boffa - out Spring 2024. Antonio Boffa Site Keely Parrack's website Keely's Instagram Keely's Twitter Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, my special guest is, Deborah Miller a mixed-media reclaimed artist based in Savannah, GA. She is also the communications director at SLAM. Savannah Local Artist Market. See her work at: https://dsmillerart.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dsmillerart/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/dsmillerart Thanks for listening!

Hi Everyone, my guest is Lina Callisto, a surface designer based in Montreal, Canada. She creates artwork that straddles the line between soft and bold, bringing products and spaces to life. She also help clients turn their unique visions into reality through freelance work. ​ To see Lina's work visit: https://www.linacallisto.com/ Lina's Instragram: https://www.instagram.com/lina.callisto/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, my guest today is Carolyn Fraiser, children's book author of Moon Tree published by Reycraft Books. Moon Tree was chosen as a Junior Library Guild Gold’s Standard Selection. She is also the author of Our Solar System: Moons. She is represented by Tara Gonzalez of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency. To learn more about Carolyn visit: Website: https://carolynbfraiser.com/ Twitter: https://www.twitters.com/carolynbfraiser Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolynbfraiser/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, I had the opportunity to chat with Mikia Kopanski, Instructor of Graphic Design and Visual Storytelling. I met Mika in my motion media class and wanted to learn more about his thesis research and teaching higher education. To see more of Mika's work visit: https://www.instagram.com/mjericho82/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikakopanski/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, I got an insightful question during a school visit asking how I handle anxiety and creating art. I wanted to share my perspective on it. I hope my fellow artists know you are not alone. I provided some tips and ways I look at things to keep making art. Thanks for listening! To see my art visit: https://www.nmillerillustration.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/nmillerillo Instragram: https://www.instagram.com/nmillerillustration/

Hi Everyone, my guest today is Scott Boyd, video editor for Zealot Inc. Here is a bit about Scott. Scott Boyd Award-winning video editor working at Zealot Inc, creating trailers, TV spots, and digital content for high-profile clients, including Disney, Sony, Netflix, and HBO.  To see Scott's work visit: Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/scottandrewboyd Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scottandrewboyd/ Thanks for listening!

Hi Everyone! I'm talking today about the Pros and Cons of getting an MFA. I tell people to research what fits best for their situation and interests. I finished my MFA about 8 months ago, and I noticed I got asked by others about getting their MFA.  Here are some other interviews that talk about it: MFA A Bad Idea https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O_BO3hf_bk John Hedrix Interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Itf2Y4muT7w Here are some of the online schools I tried: https://schoolism.com/ svslearn.com https://www.elizabethsilver.com/ https://www.domestika.org/en/courses/popular https://www.skillshare.com/en/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, I have my lovely return guest TeMika Grooms, Illustrator. She is the illustrator of "Put Your Shoes On and Get Ready!" by Raphael G. Warnock. TeMika shares the recent NYC SCBWI Conference Event and her process for creating her illustrations. To learn more about TeMika visit her website: http://www.temikatheartist.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TeMikaTheArtist Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/temikatheartist/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, today, my special guest is Dr. Sarah Park Dahlen. She is an associate professor at the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research addresses transracially adopted Koreans in children’s literature, Frank Carpenter and Frances Carpenter and their writings for children, and diversity in children’s literature and library education.  To learn more about her work: https://sarahpark.com/ Here is a link to the APALA Rubric to Evaluate Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth Literature: https://www.apalaweb.org/talkstorytogether/resources/apala-youth-literature-evaluation-rubric/ Thank you for listening!

Hi Everyone, my special guest today is Laura Lacámara, award-winning children's book author and illustrator. Here is more about Laura.  Cuban-born Laura Lacámara is the award-winning author and illustrator of Dalia’s Wondrous Hair / El cabello maravilloso de Dalia (Piñata Books), a bilingual picture book about a clever girl who transforms her unruly hair into a vibrant garden. Laura also wrote Floating on Mama’s Song / Flotando en la canción de mamá, a bilingual picture book inspired by her mother, who was an opera singer in Havana. Illustrated by Yuyi Morales and published by HarperCollins, Floating on Mama’s Song was a Junior Library Guild Selection for Fall 2010 and was a Tejas Star Book Award Finalist for 2011-2012. Laura illustrated the 2012 Tejas Star Book Award winner, The Runaway Piggy / El cochinito fugitivo (Piñata Books), as well as Alicia’s Fruity Drinks / Las aguas frescas de Alicia (Piñata Books). Laura recently illustrated Mamá the Alien / Mamá la extraterrestre (Lee and Low Books, 2016),

Hi Everyone!  I had the pleasure of speaking with Marsalis Eason, a Contemporary Film Photographer currently residing in Savannah, Georgia. He was kind enough to share his artistic journey and how he balances a full-time job and pushes the boundaries of storytelling through his photography. See his work at: https://www.delaselis.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/delaselis Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/delaselis/ Thank you for listening!

 Hi Everyone, my special guest is Shirley Ng-Benitez, award-winning children's book author and illustrator. She was kind to share her experience of going out on sub with her manuscript and then to get the call that it had been acquired! Yeah!! Here is more about Shirley and her wonderful cause Awetober! Shirley Ng-Benitez I love art and I’m so grateful to be able to connect through it with others. I’m always experimenting with traditional media: watercolor, gouache, pencil, dip pen & ink, and recently painted & cut-paper collage. I’ve worked as a Professional Lettering Artist for American Greetings, was an art director, print manager, and designer for various design firms in Arizona and California, and then started GabbyandCo.com, my design firm, creating logos, marketing materials, and product design for the health, technology, retail, food, toy, and publishing industries. In ’09, I followed my dream to illustrate books for children, and have since had the honor of illustrating over 30. Compass

Hi Everyone, today's guest is Lisa Low Stauffer, children's book author and co-regional advisor for the SCBWI Southern Breeze. This interview with Lisa was full of information on becoming a published children's book author. She read her lovely story Two by Two, and she talked about her path to publication. It was fantastic! Here is more about Lisa: Although I secretly longed to write fiction since childhood, first I wrote my way through journalism, marketing, consulting, travel writing, and poetry. My work has appeared in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Miami Herald, Literary Mama, Stories for Children, and numerous business websites, brochures, newsletters, press releases and magazine articles. Today, I write picture books for children. I live in Roswell, Georgia, which is near Atlanta, and I’m a volunteer (Co-Regional Advisor) with the Southern Breeze region of SCBWI. Travel is one of my family’s chief hobbies, so don’t be surprised if my blog post sometimes becomes a travel bloggi