Bill Wallace --Mark your calenders to attend the opening ceremony at Encyclo-Media on Oct. 7 because you're in for a special treat.Bill Wallace will be discussing two important 30th anniversaries-- Encyclo-Media's AND his novel, A Dog Called Kitty.Don't miss out!
Bill Wallace 30 years encyclomedia
Twenty Schools Will Win $500,000 in Nationwide Kohl's Contest
If your school could use an extra $500,000 cash, then why not take the chance on this nationwide contest? To win, you must write about what your school could do with the money, whether it's starting an art program or adding a computer lab, or etc. Be creative and think BIG! The $$ for this contest comes from the net profit from plush toys and books sold at Kohls. Good luck--and when you win, be sure to invite your favorite OKLAHOMA author or illustrator to your school! To enter, visit www.facebook.com/kohls. Hurry, deadline is Sept. 3rd, 2010.
KOHL'S CARES CONTEST: Vote for your school & share ideas for spending $500K here:
Our "Illustrator of the Month" for July 2010 is... Chris Nick Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Chris Nick Oklahoma City, OK
"I have been wanting to honor the generation of WWII for a very long time. A good friend of mine wrote the manuscript and I felt that he hit the subject perfectly. Thus the journey began."
Christopher Nick is a fabulous illustrator in Oklahoma City who spoke at last year's Oklahoma Showcase of Authors & Illustrators at Encyclo-Media. We're proud to feature him for our "Illustrator of July" and have great news to share--his Latest Picture Book D-Day is being released this July.
OCAI: So Chris, can you tell us how you got the idea for this book? Chris: I have been wanting to honor the generation of WWII for a very long time. A good friend of mine wrote the manuscript and I felt that he hit the subject perfectly. Thus the journey began.
OCAI:Please tell our viewers what goes into illustrating a book. We're sure there must be a lot of preparation and research that you must do before you begin illustrating.
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Chris: Yes tons !! Lets see...about 42 cans of Pringles, 163 pots of strong coffee, and let’s not forget the 73 boxes of donuts...the ones with sprinkles on top. On a serious note........lots of reading and researching props. History must be dealt with accurately, so you really have to do your homework.
OCAI:How is book illustration different from other types of art/illustration that you do?Are you working on something else right now, and any plans for your next book? Chris: You are telling a story with pictures all the same...however with a book there is so much more designing involved because of all the pages and they must all flow together. Yes some paintings that I have been wanting to paint for myself...seasonal stuff and some really fun things with animals. Yes, hopefully we will be doing more stories about character and WWII also.
OCAI:We want to thank you for sharing your life with us this summer and wish you the best of luck with your new book!Teachers:Chris is available for school visits. Be sure to check out his biography page for contact information. After hearing him speak at the last Encyclo-Media, we're sure your students will enjoy his visit.
Help OCAI celebrate our first year anniversary . . .
Drop us a "birthday greeting" and let us know how we're doing. Do you have any suggestions of what we can do to make this site more teacher/librarian friendly? More student friendly? Anything you think we should add that's not on the site? We'll be working on OCAI this summer and will have a whole new line up of interesting videos/ exclusive interviews this coming fall.
In the meantime, Chris Nick, will be our featured illustrator for July, so check back with us to see his video and exclusive interview about his new book, D-Day.
One Year Anniversary for OCAI!
Welcome to Oklahoma Children's Book Authors & Illustrators (OCAI).
Here you'll find information about some of the most talented people in Oklahoma. Each month we feature an "Author/Illustrator of the Month" video with an exclusive interview so you'll get to meet our OCAI authors and illustrators up-close and personal. Each video and interview is archived for easy reference. We also provide links to biography pages, contact information, "fun facts", brochures, lesson plans, updates, and to each author's and illustrator's own personal web site.
Need a grant? Check out our grant listing and be sure to send us grants that you know of. If we post it, we'll send you a free autographed book. We also have a "Question of the Month" which gives you another opportunity to win free autographed books. We have so much to offer, so please make yourself at home and take a look around. We'd love to hear from you and we hope you'll invite an Oklahoma author/illustrator to your next event!
Just find a 'Feedback Form' on our homepage and submit your answer. Be sure to include your email address so we can contact you for shipping information. If you're a student, be sure to tell us what grade you are in. If you're a teacher or library media specialist, be sure to include what grades you work with so we'll send you an age-appropriate book AND send us a photo so we can proudly show you off!
June/July's Question:
Which author read these things when he or she was growing up: cereal boxes, telephone books, and even encyclopedias?
June/July Updates from OCAI:
Richard Trout has been promoted to Associate Professor of Biology at Oklahoma Christian University, effective August of 2010. His responsibility will be zoology, botany, and anatomy and physiology I and II. He will also teach a marine biology course at Cozumel, Mexico on Palancar Reef in the Carribean for one week with students.Look at Richard Trout's new pictures on his Biography Page!
Darleen Bailey Beard's chapter book, Annie Glover is NOT a Tree Lover, which has been nominated for the Horned Toad Tales Book Award in Houston has also been chosen as a "100 Books to Read" by the Cypress, TX, school district. Way to go Annie!
Gwendolyn Hooksreports that she has FOUR new easy-to-read books coming out THIS July by Stone Arch Books. These four are the debut to her new Pet Club series. She has written FOUR more which will be coming out in 2011. Her first four titles are:
The Best Trick
Find the Cat!
Pets at the Party
The Noisy Night
Gwendolyn also reports that she has sold TWO more easy-reader books to Red Chair Press. She's stacking up book sales like pancakes. Pass the syrup!
"Raving Reviews" is your responses and viewpoints of the OCAI website.
"Meet the Authors/Illustrators" provides a photo montage, a one-page bio, and photos of each author's and illustrator's book covers (all photos can be enlarged for easy viewing). You'll also find a link to each author's and illustrator's personal website, as well as a printable brochure.
"Young Adult Authors" is basically the same as Meet the Authors/Illustrators page but its exclusively designed for those authors that specialize in books aimed toward the Young Adult readers.
"Upcoming Books" provides a quick reference of who has a new book coming out, the title (if known) and the release date.
"Available for Speaking" lists the authors and illustrators who would be happy to visit your school or special event.
"Tips for Planning a Visit" shares easy tips to help you plan, prepare, and promote an author/illustrator visit or event.
"Need Grants or Funding?" is a great place to find the funds you need for your next speaker visit.
"Post a Question" is a bulletin board for you to ask our authors and illustrators questions. We'll send them your questions and then post their answers.
"In the News" has the latest book news. "Book Technology News" is for the high-tech savy viewers.
"Website Links of Interest" provides a listing of publishers, bookstores, schools, and more.
"Teacher Zone" is a great resource for teachers and a fun area for interaction between teachers. "School Listing" is a list of schools in Oklahoma.
"Kid Zone" provides a starting point for kids and young adults who are writing reports on Oklahoma authors and illustrators. They can also find scavenger hunts, puzzles, and links to other places of interest. "Games" is a fun page for kids to learn more about reading, writing, Oklahoma authors and illustrators through fun games.
"Put Yourself on this Site" is a great way for you, your organization, or company to be represented here at Oklahoma Children's Authors and Illustrators. Simply follow the easy directions on this page.
"Contact Us" is where you can provide OCAI feedback on anything from how much you love our site to how much you'd love to improve our site. We really do appreciate all of your comments and suggestions!
Be our guest -- OCAI is a brand new resource for anyone wishing to find information about Oklahoma children's authors and illustrators. Because we are so new, we'd love to hear your thoughts, comments, and suggestions -- so please sign our guestbook!
Please provide us FEEDBACK with the form provided here
