Posted on No Comments on The Double Page Spread

The Double Page Spread

After already producing several pages for my children’s book I realised that keeping the aesthetic consistent could be difficult; especially if the two opposite pages were drastically different in colour tones. I have been developing pages as I go along, but I have realised that by creating them in double page spreads (even if the pages are two separate ones and not a continuous design) it will allow the aesthetic to flow and hopefully create a more professional outcome.

By having it in this style I think that it will be more engaging for the child audience as their eyes would flick across both pages while reading the story. In order for this to be successful I will make sure that the narrative is interesting and rhymes for the two adjoining pages, as well as making the illustrations as interesting as possible so that they want to look at them. This could be done by including detail, colour, or simple juxtapositions so that it follows the conventions of a children’s book while having its own style that is distinctive and appropriate for the duality of audiences.

Posted on No Comments on The Book Format

The Book Format

For the children’s book I wanted to look at existing books which are already out there, which I have already done, and the format which I am producing mine. This is because I thought it was important to look at the book format so that everything would be right when it came to the time of printing, and so that I wouldn’t have to alter any of the designs which would take more time.

Importantly, it was up to us to choose what the size of our book was; so I chose a square format. This was because I love square formats and I think that they are nice to work on for the type of illustrations that I am producing. The square format is typically 8 by 8 inches, so with this in mind, I will make my canvas this size so that it is correct for publication.

As it was also a children’s book I looked into the typical conventions within these. I found out that the recommended word length for the book is between 400 and 900 words, as the children are typically entering the ’emergent reader’ stage and ‘early reader’ stage. This is because their attention spans are longer and they can read a slightly longer book that is also visually interesting.

For the print format all of the visuals should be in CMYK because this is the printing colours which the publishers use. However, in order for me to upload them onto my blog I need to also export them into RGB for the web format. My aim is to make this book as professional as possible, as well as producing a full 24 page book that tackles the contentious subject to exceed the expectations of the brief. This research will allow me to manage my time more efficiently and provides me with some top tips when it comes to illustrating the book; both for publication and the audience.

Posted on No Comments on The Narrative

The Narrative

In the lecture I learned that children’s books are normally made up of multiples of eight, mainly being either 24 or 32 pages. Therefore, as I had already got a narrative in mind I decided to write up a first version of my story so that I could see how it was going to build and how to plan out my story so that it flowed. I know that I am going to change some of the sentences so that it reads better, but to have this is really helpful and, hopefully, it will allow me to be more efficient when it comes to producing the illustrations.

  1. This here is Nessie. Her life in the ocean is very stressy.
  2. Nessie likes to hide and run from everything.
  3. She is different, and nobody seems to like different. Sometimes she wishes that she wasn’t here
  4. Her daily routine involves going out into the big, wide ocean; where sometimes she tries to make friends. But she never makes any.
  5. They all laugh and point. They all stare and judge. And most hurtfully, some cower away when they see her coming, and that upsets Nessie more than anything.
  6. She is a monster to them. And monsters don’t have friends.
  7. Inside her home she is safe from them. There are no peeking eyes or monster spies.
  8. All she has ever wanted was to make friends, …
  9. … to go on adventures with them, …
  10. … and to swim through the ocean with someone by her side.
  11. But that has never come true, so the only company she has is her own.
  12. Nessie knows her own company isn’t the most exciting or fun. But she’s never really alone.
  13. Sometimes Nessie sees shadows around corners, as if somebody is following her.
  14. When she swims through the open waters she can hear whispers calling her name.
  15. They grow and grow and grow. They become louder and closer, and Nessie can never ignore them.
  16. She tries not to let them get to her. Nessie tries to smile and forget the monsters.
  17. But the monsters chase her and surround her.
  18. They chase and chase and chase Nessie. There is no where for her to hide.
  19. The worst monster is big and dark. He doesn’t let her swim away so easily. Those are Nessie’s worst days.
  20. But one day somebody chased those monsters away. She swam out from behind the rocks to say hello…
  21. … and Nessie couldn’t help but smile at the fish who saved her.
  22. That day Nessie made her first friend, and she realised something …
  23. She is one of a kind and she is special. Maybe she is a monster to some people, but she also knows that some people are different. And different is good.
  24. Without her own monsters taunting her, Nessie is the happiest she’s ever been. She can swim the ocean with her new friend, going on adventures to keep the monsters at bay.

I am happy with the narrative because it follows the key three act structure which most books, plays and films follow. By having a beginning, middle and end the child audience will easily be able to understand the narrative while it still be interesting and exciting for them. I wanted to have a resolution for the ending, but continuing to leave it slightly open, so that it would end on a good note; because all, if not most, end in a nice way.

Posted on No Comments on Contentious Theme: Depression

Contentious Theme: Depression

Due to the theme being a difficult one to tackle, and wanting to make it come across as clearly as possible I decided to research into the theme so that I could make it appeal to children in the best possible way. I knew that the story wasn’t going to be the happiest of ones because of the dark theme, but if I could connote the reality of depression through this format I think that it would be successful, while making the visuals creative and exciting for the child to explore further.

When researching into this problem I discovered that is it a larger problem than I thought. I discovered that up to 80,000 children and young people in thw UK suffer from depression, whether it being mild or severe. The key factors when realising depression amongst children are symptoms that revolve around sadness, a feeling of hopelessness, and mood changes. Signs and symptoms of depression in children include irritability, anger, continuous feelings of sadness and hopelessness.

Other key problems are:

  • Social withdrawal
  • Increased sensitivity to rejection
  • Changes in appetite — either increased or decreased
  • Changes in sleep- sleeplessness or excessive sleep
  • Vocal outbursts or crying
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Fatigue and low energy
  • Physical complaints (such as stomachaches, headaches) that don’t respond to treatment
  • Reduced ability to function during events and activities at home or with friends, in school, extracurricular activities, and in other hobbies or interests
  • Feelings of worthlessness or guilt
  • Impaired thinking or concentration

This research has given me ideas for my narrative so that I can show the problem more accurately, without being too serious, as well as subtle illustration ideas that I could use to show these symptoms. Also, because it is a large problem, I think that it would be good to do the book on this problem and raise awareness because of the duality of the audience who are exposed to these books.

Referenced from: http://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/depression-children, www.youngminds.org.uk/training_services/…/mental_health_statistics

Posted on No Comments on Character: Initial Ideas

Character: Initial Ideas

For my contentious subject I have chosen Depression and they way that I am going to show it is through the character. My initial idea for a character is by using Nessie the Loch Ness Monster. I think that she will work for my story because of her appealing nature to children, as she is a thing of myth, and I can use her anonymity from the world to my advantage.

As in my previous post about the potential narrative, I could use Nessie as the focus by showing how she thinks that she’s the monster but throughout the story realising that she isn’t, and by making other friends it allows her to overcome her monsters; thus, being a physical representation of depression and how you can’t get away from your monsters. By displaying it in this way I think that children will understand it in an easy way without it being too complex for them to understand while keeping it interesting and engaging.

I will also use similar styles to the illustrators that I have researched into so that it looks professional and has a distinct style that is bold and eye-catching. One major element that I have taken from Haughton is the slight variation of shades within one colour to draw the landscape and characters around. For Nessie, I am going to use two or three shades of green to represent her, as green is a typical colour of a monster and I also think it is appropriate for her as a character.

Unlike the myth sketches where Nessie is large with a long neck, huge body, and fierce looking mouth, I am going to make her a lot smaller with little nimble characteristics. She will be small so that she comes across as innocent, and by using curvy features she will look more vulnerable (which she isn’t normally perceived as) and approachable; which contrasts against the narrative wherein nobody wants to go near her because they think that she is a monster.

Her eyes will also be big and her facial expressions will, hopefully, be quite expressive to represent her mood and be suitable for the page that she is on. I think that this style could work well when it comes to the book because it will express emotion and be appealing to the young audience, will keeping it into a simple illustration that can be altered and developed as I work on the book itself. Therefore, by having thought about these characteristics and ideas I am going to progress onto making it in Illustrator as a vector so that it can be used for any size and be adjusted easily for other pages, and it will also give me a good foundation to discover the rest of the style of the book.