Best American Non-Required Reading 2010

I am thrilled to my core to have my Missed Connections illustrations included in this year's Best American Non-Required Reading. Edited by Dave Eggers, with an introduction by David Sedaris and a cover by Maurice Sendak, I'm brushing pages with heroes. (If you know what I mean.) I have to go and lie down now.

Illustrators' Festival Saturday, October 16th

See that big empty space above in front of the Brooklyn Public Library? Tomorrow it's going to be teeming with illustrators and authors and children and their guardians. There will be reading and drawing and balloon manipulation. There will be signing and singing and a suggestions box. I'm not 100% sure on the suggestions box, but I'm optimistic. I love a good suggestion.
Part of the ongoing Drawn in Brooklyn, tomorrow's event is a family festival to be held in front of the library from 10:30am until 3pm. There are events all day, and Aileen Leiften is doing a drawing demonstration, and Sergio Ruzzier is reading but I will be playing Mr. Squiggle, as promised, from 2:15pm until 3pm. You will provide me with a squiggle and I will do my best to turn it into something vaguely recognizable.
Here is an example.

Sometimes it helps to turn it upside down....

and see if it resembles anything.... there seem to be mathematical symbols in this one...

But I'm going to ignore them...

I'm just reminding you, in red, where the squiggle has gone....

TaDa!

I'm expecting some good squiggles. And I might share my pen if the children agree
not to show me up with their superior drawing skills.
Can't wait.

Subway Poster

A poster for Drawn in Brooklyn with the cover image from Big Red Lollipop is on my local subway platform. For some reason I am enormously excited about this. I may not be in The New Yorker, but I'm on the subway!! I am also quite certain it is only a matter of time before the poster is defaced... I can't wait. I think fangs and a moustache would work nicely. Also, a few feet along was this companion piece. Note the recurring lollipop motif?