I Know! I'll Illustrate Children's Books! by Patricia Keeler

www.patriciakeeler-author-illustrator.com

©patriciakeeler

Below is a picture of my mom with the family dog. Ordinary picture? Not exactly.

Mom is wearing a dress made with fibers she spun and wove from our dog! This picture was taken by a reporter for the local newspaper.

"And no, mom, I'm not not not wearing a skirt made of dog fur! What if it rains?"

And talking about smelly things--my childhood home smelled of boiled goldenrod (for fabric dye), rabbit glue (for making hats), and solder (for making jewelry). Mom was an artist--an experimental artist. So embarrassing.

©patriciakeeler

After getting married, Francis McCall and I moved to a big, old house in Virginia with a backyard studio. Actually, it was a two car garage but . . .

©patriciakeeler

I traded a giant painting of a peach to Peachtree Windows for a variety of remaindered windows. Every wall in my studio had windows in different sizes. My studio backed up to the woods. I did oil painting (header image), sculpture, and weaving.

My husband and his daughter would go to the library and bring home picture books. I thought, why not try writing and illustrating children's books? 

I sketched a story about a mouse returning a shard of sunlight to the sun,

©patriciakeeler

a story about snow animals coming to life,

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and a little girl who receives a magic gift.

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I put my illustrations and dummies in a portfolio, and took a bus to New York City. I mean, after seeing my mother's success at most every artistic chance she took, I thought becoming a children's book author/illustrator was an attainable goal. How hard could it be?

                                             My website is: www.patriciakeeler-author-illustrator.com

Facebook friend me at: PatriciaKeelerBooks        Follow me on Twitter: @patriciakeeler

represented by Liza Royce Agency www.lizaroyce.com