A few weeks ago I had the honor of reading a book written and illustrated by S.D. Smith’s seven-year-old son Josiah.  It’s called The Goblin and the Goblet, and it is funny and pleasing to read.  This past weekend I decided to do him a cover illustration.

It’s Giant Week over at Story Warren.

The Pleasing Meanness of Giants ‹ Story Warren
Jack the Giant-Hugger ‹ Story Warren
King Arthur and the Giant of Mont Saint Michel ‹ Story Warren

Feel free to drop by and check it out.

Drawing in my sketchbook for an upcoming Storwarren post.

I’ve been doodling at the table in our dining nook lately.  I find it’s a little more fun than drawing in the office because it reminds me of being a kid.  Also, I like drawing while Alissa cooks.  These are  exploratory drawings for a project later in the year.  I’m trying to find a comfortable style for rabbit anatomy that expresses personality and dynamism, but that doesn’t look like a rabbit head dropped on a human body.

Here’s a sneak peak at two photoshop roughs for upcoming pieces.

We interrupt this blog to bring you this special announcement!
For the rest of the month of December …

Click here to visit my Etsy Shop!

And while you’re at it, why not poke around at the Zach Franzen Illustration Facebook Page?

Part of a larger drawing I did several years ago.  I might turn it into a painting.  We’ll see.  I liked this part of it though.  It seems emotional.

My wife and I are reading through Scott Nash’s fantastic book The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate.

We read a chapter a night.

This book seems completely uninformed by what I perceive to be conventional publishing wisdom.  It doesn’t feel all that contemporary.  It’s a mix between Treasure Island and Wind In the Willows.  It possesses a perfect mix of whimsy and seriousness.  You get the sense that Scott Nash is writing a book he wants to read.  He’s not trying to appeal to kids.  He’s trying to appeal to human beings and I can only imagine that kids appreciate being treated like human beings and not like narcissistic, self-interested, non-curious, rebellion-mongers.

Scott Nash’s illustrations are also a delight, and I am burning with admiration for Candlewick Press.  They steadily put out a stream of books that treasure Timelessness over Timeliness and I think that’s gutsy and profitable for children and adults alike.

I did an old-school take on a Blue Jay Brigand in admiration for this charming book.  My wife and I are only half-way through (she forbids me to read ahead, though I have glanced ahead at the pictures), still if the second half is anything like the first, this book deserves the widest possible readership.