Brotique

Flight

2011-01-10T07:08:00.000-08:00

I'm not normally a winter-hater , but lately I've really been craving some warm weather. Since that's not likely to happen any time soon, I decided to paint something warmer. (plus it was a chance to paint my girls)

Kids doing stuff

2010-10-19T14:58:00.000-07:00

So I'm in "agent search" mode and am trying to get some more kid infused content for my portfolio. These are two different styles I've been playing with. Does one seem more appealing than another, or do you think it would be okay to show both?

Creative Kid Central Is Go!

2010-09-27T20:38:00.000-07:00

If you frequent this blog then you've probably noticed my recent fascination with making creative writing prompts for kids. Since I now have a small collection of prompts I figured I should make a place on the interwebs where they can be easily stored, sorted and downloaded. So over the weekend I put together a little website that I call "Creative Kid Central." Trust me, it's gonna be big (at least in my own mind.)

So yeah, I made a website. Click HERE to check it out. And stay tuned to this blog for announcements and updates on new C.K.C. content.

(PS: I built the C.K.C. using Google Sites. It's a nice little system. Pretty easy. And nice looking to boot. I'd recommend it to anybody looking to build a free website.)

Creative Writing Prompt For Kids

2010-09-14T20:26:00.000-07:00

So, Tiff (my wife) is teaching 5th grade this year and she loves it. She's used a couple of my old writing prompts already with her class this year and they love them. So I've decided to do some more. Here is the latest:

PS: When I get about a dozen of these together I'm going to collect them on a website so that teachers all over the world can use them (I can dream can't I?) So, if you're a teacher feel free to use this, and anything else I've posted on this blog, in your classroom.

PPS: If you're a creative type (author/illustrator) and you want to make one of these creative writing prompts for the website just let me know in the comments. I'll gladly take volunteer work.

2010-08-30T15:33:00.000-07:00

2010-08-27T12:48:00.001-07:00

Brotique Week Activities

2010-08-27T08:40:00.001-07:00

2010-08-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

PART ONE

2010-08-17T15:04:00.000-07:00

I have a new blog for just comics with some new material. I'll be posting parts two and three of this story there. It's called COMICSOLOGY.

Happy VIking Day

2010-08-14T22:54:00.000-07:00

Every year on Viking Day, Old Sven Fish-beard sets sail on his longboat, to deliver sacks of lutefisk to the sleeping children of the North Sea. Forget the "naughty list" and the "nice list". Only the ruthless kids get anything.

From One Bro to Another

2010-08-14T14:20:00.000-07:00

Stuffed Monsters

2010-08-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

So, I sew. I taught myself. I make plush monsters. See more here at my blog.

I challenge you to a duel!

2010-08-10T07:39:00.000-07:00

Will keeps telling me to post something, so here it is. My latest banjo pig. See more at the Banjopigs blog.

Free Coloring Pages

2010-08-04T12:50:00.000-07:00

Come and get 'em. I posted a bunch of coloring pages here on my blog. Here are a few samples.

A Try-Out Piece for Work

2010-08-02T06:59:00.000-07:00

I'm still a nobody in the illustration world, so I have to audition for every job I get. No big deal, though - all that auditioning keeps me on my toes. Here's one such piece I did this week.

Jed

I have been making a movie.

2010-07-30T00:08:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures to prove it.

Alternative style

2010-07-29T13:10:00.000-07:00

I really had a great time at the writing/illustrating conference last month. After talking with Kevin in the workshops he encouraged me to try this style I've been playing with a bit more, and see what happened. So I've been spending the last month working on some new page layouts for my book along with these other ideas. I'm curious to here any ones thoughts as to weather or not this style is worth pursuing (be honest I can take it)

Circus Peanuts

Dogs in Purses

Leave of Absence

2010-07-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

I took 2 weeks off to sketch.

Drawing and Storytelling

2010-07-27T09:33:00.000-07:00

I just found this great video of one of my favorite artists, Pascal Campion. In the video Pascal talks about drawing as a way to tell stories. To him drawing is really just a means to an end. The real power of drawing comes not in the perfection of the drawing but in the ability to communicate a story with that drawing.

Inspirational Artists: Pascal Campion from Onyx Cinema, Inc. on Vimeo.

Latest submission to the New Yorker: A Poem

2010-07-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

Pretty Flowers that My Chipmunk Friend Devours on My Cedar Deck as I Sip My Coffee and Ponder Mortality

by Neil Hughes

Pretty Flowers

gone

again.

Thanks Chipmunk.

Thanks a lot.

Pigs and Banjos

2010-07-16T15:11:00.000-07:00

I got bored at work and started looking at Guy's pigs and banjos sight, and was inspired to started doodling.

It started out as a pig angel playing a banjo instead of a harp, then I added the BBQ just to add that element of "you're not sure if you understand the statement that the artist is trying to make but you don't want to ask for fear of looking ignorant" you know the way that fine artist do. Forgive the high quality image, (I took it on my phone and used paint to crop it)

Will Strong Has an Art Show

2010-07-15T11:28:00.000-07:00

That's right folks, I'm having an art show. To become an official graduate of the BYU Illustration Program I need to have a BFA Final Art Show to demonstrate how far I've come in the program and just how much I've learned (hopefully very far and very much.)

The show will be held in main floor gallery of the Harris Fine Arts Center (HFAC) on BYU Campus from July 17 through July 30. A reception (big art party) will be held in the same location on Tuesday, July 20 from 6:00-8:00 pm.

The show is called "Monsters Make Me Happy" and it will be full of children's illustrations and plush toys all of my own creation. So bring the kids (it's really for them after all.)

If you're in the Provo, Utah area and want to attend then come on down. You'll see lots of stuff like this:

My "fantasy" that doodles lead to illustrations

2010-07-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

This is another drawing I performed during a class that I should have been listening for relevant information. Two-dimensional drawings are as complex as my drawings get. I tried hard to make these sketches look three-dimensonal, but my drawings seem to be missing something. I fanatasize of my fellow "bros" illustration abilities.

Documentary on Kid Lit

2010-07-08T16:35:00.000-07:00

As a documentary junky I'm fairly excited for this one coming up. As an author/illustrator, I'm REALLY excited for this upcoming documentary. Check out the trailer at the website: www.libraryoftheearlymind.com

Fan Fiction Lost in Translation

2010-07-07T16:01:00.000-07:00

I'm all for fan fiction, it's fun and therapeutic (on occassion.) But this guy seems to have taken just a few too many liberties with the story of Batman.

Why do I feel like this comes from China?

You can't spell "fantasy" without n-a-s-t-y.

2010-07-06T23:30:00.000-07:00

Hey! So the other day, an editor friend emailed me asking me to try out for an upcoming Asian fantasy novel. With only those two words: "Asia" and "fantasy", I toyed with a bunch of different ideas. Can you identify my favorite reoccurring themes? (Babes with swords, and monsters)

Oops, gotta get back to my D&D game - the guys are starting to argue about Druid Lore.

From the Archives: Pianoforte

2010-04-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

I couldn't find anything from the archives that I felt like posting, so I decided to post this poem which I wrote in high school.

PIANOFORTE

Thy prelude so soft, so gallant, secretes death with light.
Thy harmonious keys dance beneath this silver moon,
And your melodic voice through crisp and jaded nights,
And the bittersweet libretto is freed from your womb.

Thy music enticing unto all heaven’s gateways,
Your euphoric echo flows with ease into my soul.
And remnants of the past leave me with feelings of sate,
And I smile when I think of these stories you told.

Through your bosom you sing our lust for everlasting glee.
I cry not for the time we spent, but for our lost creed.
And as I walk down this trodden path of deity,
I am glad just to be part of nature’s symphony.

Running the Show: an organically grown picture book. (read the comments to follow the rest of the story)

2010-04-05T09:13:00.000-07:00

In the happiest valley in the happiest town everyone was happy except Junior, the mayor's son.

Adam Rex is Hilarious

2010-04-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

I just ran across this great promotional video for Adam Rex's book, "The True Meaning of Smekday."

Funny stuff. Now I've got one more book for the "must read" pile. Check out more about Smekday here.

New Topic: Brothers

2010-04-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

This topic seemed especially appropriate for Brotique. Go Bros.

Introducing How Rain Is Formed

2010-03-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the rudimentary sketch, but it has been a long time since I have been able to make a post. I sketched this during a really boring class. This is how rain is formed.

Matt Loveridge "From the archives"

2010-03-23T13:03:00.000-07:00

I sketched this last summer while I was camping with my family. One morning at about 6:00 am this crow started squaking and wouldn't shut up. I remember thinking how horrible it would be to be married to that crow.

Will Strong, From the Archives

2010-03-18T18:12:00.001-07:00

I did this about a year ago for a writing challenge. No topic given so I just went for it. This is a fictional homework assignment written by a reluctant author.

Guest Bro Interview: Carol Lynch Williams

2010-03-18T16:13:00.000-07:00

Our first guest bro interview is up. You can get to it from here or follow the link on the Brotique Main Page.

Carol is great. If you don't know her work then you should really check it out, especially her latest novel: The Chosen One.

The Best Intentions

2010-03-13T11:21:00.000-08:00

Finally Finished!

Introductions

2010-03-07T06:23:00.000-08:00

When introducing oneself never underestimate the importance of a good first impression.

Do I get some sort of cookie or prize for posting on every subject :)

New Topic: Introductions

2010-03-01T17:38:00.000-08:00

An introduction to new people, an MC introducing a wrestler, introducing a radioactive chemical into a mad science experiment. So many possibilities.

Have at it.

The Best Intentions

2010-03-01T10:19:00.000-08:00

He just wants to share his cupcakes. Why is everybody screaming and running away?

Sadly I haven't had time to get this one painted, but I figured that I should get it posted anyhow. I hope to get this one painted sometime this week. When that happens I'll do another post.

Society of Illustrators 2010

2010-02-14T20:11:00.000-08:00

Two of our very own Bros have been accepted into the Society of Illustrators 2010 Student Scholarship Competition.

Jake Wyatt got this piece accepted:

Will Strong got this piece accepted:

Congratulations to the Bros.

See all of the winners here: http://www.soicompetitions.org/

Our First Guest Bro!

2010-02-14T08:40:00.000-08:00

Acclaimed YA author Carol Lynch Williams met with the Bros this week. Her fresh perspective was just what the crusty old Bros needed.

Learn more about Carol in the "Interview With Guest Bros" section of Brotique.org.

"The Best Intentions"

2010-02-12T10:42:00.000-08:00

I thought I would try write and draw something for this one. I don't know why I keep trying to rhyme stuff, but oh well. If I get time I'll try to add color and re-post it.

New Topic: "The Best Intentions"

2010-02-04T13:46:00.000-08:00

So many opportunities for puns on idioms.

From the Archive: Clever Sayings File

2010-02-03T15:31:00.000-08:00

Things that might spark dialogue or a picture book.

Independently poor

Its not how you run the race that counts

Rebel without a clue
Martyr without a cause

Favorite Recent Quote: From a eulogy of my Uncle Reid.

I once asked my dad the question, "why are you always so friendly?" And he said, "I'm not stupid, I want people around me."

Kidlit.com Contest

2010-01-31T20:53:00.000-08:00

I'm entering a contest for my novel opening. Five hundred words. Deadline is tonight. Check it out if you have a novel you'd like looked at, well at least the beginning. Contest link.

From the Archives: Post-Apocalyptic Animal Superheroes

2010-01-29T13:11:00.000-08:00

These were some character designs from a ways back. The story was about post-apocalyptic animal superheroes
(say that 5 times fast)

I had a lot of fun with this one. Maybe if I can find some extra time, I'll start writing a graphic novel around this. You never know.

From the Archives: Moo

2010-01-28T22:53:00.000-08:00

A page out of a recent sketchbook:

Something tells me that Bessie has delusions of grandeur. I think she's planning on conquering Europe. She'd better be careful though; she might end up exiled on an island somewhere.

I thought it couldn't get any worse.

2010-01-21T06:13:00.001-08:00

Stuck for Eternity with Idiots. It couldn't get any worse...

2010-01-13T12:14:00.000-08:00

Bee the Butt

2010-01-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

“I thought it couldn’t get any worse. [Ugh.]”
“Well that really isn’t the point, is it.”
“What do you mean? [Urg.] Isn’t this clearly worse? [Humph.]”
“Yes and no.”
[Errgh.]
“If you desired something different than what the universe is giving you . . .”
[Humph.]
“Then yes it is worse.”
[Urg.]
“But if you can come to a place of acceptance.”
[Huff. Huff. Huff.]
“If you can simply be in the moment . . .”
[Errrrgh!]
“And not desire or want things to be different. . .”
[Huff. Huff. Huff.]
“Then no, it’s not worse. It just is.”
“Hah! Your full of [huff] it.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. [Huff] One hundred percent bull.”
“OK.”
“Now please, help me pull my antennae out from under this big fat human’s butt.”
“We’ll alright, but couldn’t you just try?”
“Try what?”
“To be one with the butt.”
“Arghh! You be the butt! Just sting ‘em already.”

Getting Verse

2010-01-02T16:41:00.000-08:00

Can it get any worse?

by Rick Walton

“Can it get any worse?”

said the man to his wife.

“Our neighbor’s been bugging us

all of our life.

He’s constantly preaching.

Won’t leave me alone!

And now he is building

A ship on his own.

He’s constantly pounding.

Inceccesantly sawing.

And what’s with the animals

Roaring and pawing?

That old man is crazy.

That old man’s insane.

Maybe he’ll stop,

Now It’s starting to rain.”

“Can it get any worse?”

said the man from his seat.

He leaned back and propped up

his extra large feet.

“The staging is awful.

The playwright’s no good.

The actors all seem like

they’re made out of wood.

I’ve a nation to run.

Yet I just sit here, bored.

What could be worse.

than a play at the Ford?”

“Can it get any worse?”

said the man to his wife.

“I have seen nothing like it

in all of my life

The food is substandard.

The music, mundane.

Our suite is a closet.

The décor is plain.

The rabble are wretched.

Their children are manic.

I expected much more

From this new ship Titanic.”

67% of all bath bubbles are made by humans.

2009-12-22T16:41:00.000-08:00

New Fortnightly Topic

2009-12-19T18:46:00.000-08:00

New Topic: I thought it couldn't get any worse.

Late, and only getting later.

2009-12-03T18:16:00.001-08:00

Silent Onlookers and Fellow Bros,

I'm maybe halfway through production for my bit on 67%. I apologize. It's all drawn and scanned, just waiting to have the color and text dropped on top of it.

Jus' want y'all to know that I'm working on it, even if I'm

Us 67%ers Don't Have Good Sheets

2009-12-01T18:13:00.000-08:00

“What’s this? A 67%? Isn’t that three points above an F?”

“No.” Here we go again.

“What do you mean, no. When I was in school 64% was an F. And that’s what I see here. You’re barely above being a failure.”

“Yeah but. It’s not three points. It’s seven at my school.”

“Who gives a damn how many points it is.”

You do, apparently.

“I mean F’s are almost better than a D. At least an F shows that you gave up completely. Hey, with an F maybe you could be an Einstein. With an F there’s still a chance that maybe you’re too smart for school, but with a D, you tried, you struggled, you made some attempts to succeed and now its clear you’re a failure.”

Takes one to know one.

“You think all those kids in India and China are pulling D’s? You think there is a chance you’ll ever compete on the world stage? That maybe you’ll make something of yourself, make your mark on the world. Hey I’m talking to you. Don’t roll your eyes at me. I’m serious.”

“Yeah I know.” As usual.

“Why can’t you be serious? Why can’t you just buckle down, pull yourself up by the bootstraps, and tow the line?”

Nice string of clichés Dad. “What-ever.”

“Did you just say what I think you just said? Do you just think this is all just a video game. You think you can just screw up and get a new life and start over? Is that how you think the world works? Well you’re wrong. You’ll make your bed and lie in it the rest of your life. Right now you’re pulling out the dirty poor sheets you’re gonna use the rest of your life. Don’t make the same mistakes I made. You’re better than that.

“Oh, umm.”

“Come look at these sheets she left us. She was like an expert in sheets and how many threads they have. Feel ‘em. So soft. So strong. This is an A+ sheet for an A+ guy. What I want is for you to sleep in good sheets the rest of your life. I want you to buy ‘em with money from a good job, and put them over a new mattress in a new big house. I want you to be, comfortable. Do you understand me?”

“Yeah Dad. You want it to be better for me.”

“Exactly. A 67% just wont get you there.”

A Peace Offering

2009-11-30T09:55:00.000-08:00

My submission for 67% is still forthcoming, but in the meantime:

This guy has articulated a number of things I've been trying to figure out for years now. I'm inclined to agree with pretty much everything he says (at least until I hear a better counterargument.) What do you bros think about what he says?

67%

2009-11-25T23:34:00.000-08:00

I once met a man from Kalamazoo
A strange lil’ fellow who lived in a zoo
He had three turtles but gave away two
He gave them away for six bright blue shoes

I once saw a man run pass this seashore
A strange lil’ fellow who slept on my floor
He had six blue shoes but gave away four
He gave them away for nine new screen doors

I once knew a man who wore white tunics
A strange lil’ fellow who juggled toothpicks
He had nine screen doors but gave away six
He gave them away for twelve candle sticks

I once heard a man who was my roommate
A strange lil’ fellow who always sang late
He had twelve candles but gave away eight
He gave them away for fifteen ice skates

I once watched a man who played in pigpens
A strange lil’ fellow who laughed like a hen
He had fifteen skates but gave away ten
He gave them away for eighteen small wrens

I once knew a man from Kalamazoo
A strange lil’ fellow who left one turtle,
Two blue shoes, three screen doors, four candle sticks,
Five ice skates, and eighteen wrens in my room.

Now where this fellow went nobody knows,
But when I find out I’ll bloody his nose.

67%

2009-11-22T13:40:00.001-08:00

67% Body Fat

2009-11-21T11:05:00.001-08:00

"I know it's time to hibernate, but I still think 67% is a little high!"

This hits a little to close to home concerning my own physical state. I don't normally do gouache, but I thought this would be a good forum for experimenting.

Words Rule!

2009-11-14T18:22:00.000-08:00

Words make all the difference.

I googled "67%".

Okay, so that was a mistake. You see, Google is smarter than me. It knows that I really didn't want that % symbol included in the search, so it ignored the symbol and brought back every reference to the numeral 67. All 778 million of them. (Google, of course, for my convenience, since it knows what I want, eliminates the duplicates, leaving... 42 hits--31 of them Amazon.com and eBay ads.)

So, being the savvy Googler that I am, I searched for "67 percent".

Much better. 1,310,000 hits. All of them actually containing the phrase I asked for.

And then, having paid attention in third-grade math, on a whim, I googled the phrase "two-thirds".

17,500,000 hits.

I have a masters degree in English.

I can find meaning in anything. Whether it's really there are not.

The meaning I found in my dabbling with Google and 67%?

First, we don't like symbols. Google knows that. It knows we hate symbols so much that it doesn't even recognize they exist. Just to make sure, I googled the symbol %.

Zero hits.

There are apparently no uses of % on the Internet.

Or, for that matter, ~, `, !, @, #, $, ^, or any other symbols on the keyboard, except for...

_ (1.3 billion hits), and
& (7.9 billion hits).

Apparently & has a special arrangement with Google. I won't speculate, but I think it should be looked into. Or maybe we're better off not knowing.

Anyway, apparently nobody cares. Because we don't like symbols.

Second, we like words more than numerals. This statement is not backed up by comparing "67 percent" (1,310,000 hits) with "sixty-seven percent" (871,000 hits). But I will provide conclusive evidence in a minute.

Third, we like simple. 67 percent is roughly equivalent to two-thirds. 67 percent is 67 out of a hundred. 100 is a lot. Some of us can't even count that high. But two-thirds--we could have suffered an unfortunate table saw accident and still have enough fingers on one hand to count two out of three.

Google "two-thirds"--17,500,000 hits.

Okay, I thought, but people have to prefer the numerals, if for no other reason than that they require less writing. Google hits for "2/3rds"?

4,980,000. People would rather take the time to spell out the term than use the number.

And that is why I write picture books for children. Because people hate symbols, aren't fond of numerals,

and they love simple words and concepts.

And so do I.

At least sixty-seven percent of the time.

Fort-Nightly Topic, New Topic

2009-11-12T13:38:00.000-08:00

Our very first topic. Awwww. Makes me cry a happy tear.

So, the topic: 67%

Go for it.