DOODLE DAY MAY - Day 3

I am really glad that I invited you all to do this challenge with Erin and I. The doodles getting shared in the Facebook group page are so much fun. I can tell that you are enjoying the challenge and not letting themselves worry about the drawing. It is a doodle, after all.

When I do school presentations, I always talk to the groups about the first drafts or "sloppy copy" coming out terribly. The books in the library are fabulous because they have been revised and rewritten a over and over and over until they are final copies. I continue to explain that drawing the illustrations in a book is the same way. I even show on the giant screen that my drawings begin as doodles - pretty sloppy ones - before they get cleaned up. Kids love seeing my messy sketchbook images. I tell them that if you enjoy drawing - do it. I am telling you grown-ups the same thing. If you enjoy drawing, doodling, sketching, painting, carving, weaving, crafting, sculpting - do it. Nobody is out to judge you. Go read ISH by Peter H Reynolds and don't let anyone squish your ish.

THINK OUTSIDE THE CIRCLE

 

Now, today's prompt is about circles. Yes, the simple shape of a circle.

You have 2 choices:

1. Grab a circle template, a mug, a glass, a can of soda and trace a circle or two on your page. If you can draw a circle without a template - go for it. It doesn't have to be perfect. Now see what you can turn a circle into. 

 

You can think circular things like a basketball, a penny, a donut, pizza, etc... or you can think outside the box and turn them into things that are not typically circles - animal, chair, car, etc...

2. Finish this picture and turn it into a scene. Just try not to make the circle into a ball rolling. You can definitely come up with something more creative than that.

Look at the circle, what do you see. You probably did this type of exercise in Kindergarten - let's get back there - to pure rich creativity at its core. Go ahead and try something different but if you need to draw an apple or a donut, nobody will think any less of you. : )

Have fun and try to think outside the circle. What could it be?

NEW CHALLENGE! DOODLE DAY MAY!

Self Portrait created by my daughter - age 5

It is in the last page of her sketchbook - when I asked her why she jumped to the last page, she said because "authors and artists always have their photos on the last page." : )

 

DOODLE DAY MAY
I have been creating a Daily Doodle everyday for the past several weeks and off and on since last summer. In November 2012, I participated in SkADaMo - Sketch a Day Month and it was soo much fun. I didn't spend more than an hour from start to finish on any drawing and some of those sketches found their way into my portfolio for a SCBWI conference a few months ago and they were the ones that the art directors enjoyed the most! I could hardly believe it. They said that they were "light and fun." As a former professional Toy Designer - when drawing became a chore and no fun at all. I vowed after SkADaMo that 2013 was my year to make drawing fun again. I have been doodling a ton and posting many of them on my Facebook page - see HERE. You can also see more of my drawings on my website.



This morning, my 5 year old - who LOVES to draw in her sketchbook and paints every day - told me that she would like to do a "Doodle a Day", too, so together we came up with a NEW CHALLENGE for artists, writers, parents, teachers, children, friends, friends of friends and anybody else who is ready to let their creativity shine.

DOODLE DAY MAY! 

 

 

So here is it in a nutshell. From May 1 to May 31, create 1 or more Doodles everyday. These can take up to 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 mintutes or even an hour from start to finish but if you are spending more than an hour on a doodle, you are trying too hard. Don't overthink it. May 1-7 is also NaPiBoWriWee and this will coincide with that perfectly if you are also participating in that challenge. Come up with your story for Picture Book Writing Week, write it and create a doodle of a character, a scene, the title or any other element of the story concept. Easy. For those of you who tell everyone that you are "not an artist" or "can't draw", I say BUNK! It is a doodle! It can be a squiggle, a tree, a flower, a rainbow, a person, a pet, a pancake or anything else you can think of. No one is grading you. No one is judging you. I have created a FACEBOOK GROUP called DOODLE DAY MAY so join the challenge and the group.

 

 

Now, I know that all of you parents have a crazy hectic month starting - for my kids, school ends at the end of May and we have six zillion events happening between now and then and as an involved parent, I have volunteered for many of them. Don't let that make you think that you can't create a Doodle each day of the month of May. If you need the help, I will post a drawing prompt on the Facebook Group page for each day for those who need a little push. As an experienced art teacher, I remember those students who would stare at the paper during free draw time at the end of class and have this blank look with no clue what to put on the page. A brilliant author/illustrator Peter H Reynolds wrote a picture book about that exact problem - THE DOT. As the book says, "Make a dot and see where it takes you."

 

 

 

Parents, get your kids involved in this one. Doodle together. Take a picture with your camera or your phone and post the pic on the FACEBOOK GROUP PAGE that I will created. Leave a comment to let me know you are jumping in with me and join the Facebook Page. Know this - if you do not create a doodle every day, nobody is knocking on your door about it. NO STRESS is the key to this challenge. Write a word in funky lettering or create an abstract picture of shapes and squiggles if you can't think of something to draw. You can use pencil, pen, marker, crayon, paint, or anything else you like to draw with.

 

 

 

JOIN ME FOR DOODLE DAY MAY AND LET YOUR CREATIVITY SHINE!

 

 

 

LEAVE A COMMENT TO LET ME KNOW YOU ARE JOINING ME ON THIS DOODLING ADVENTURE!

 

IF YOU WANT TO POST YOUR DOODLES ON YOUR BLOG OR FACEBOOK PAGE, LEAVE A LINK WHEN YOU DO IT AND I WILL SHARE IT!