
Last weekend I visited Balingup for their annual Telling Tales Children’s Storytelling Festival.
Balingup is a beautiful town in the South-West Region surrounded by farms, bushland and pine forest. When the sun is out the scenery is stunning – it’s all green hills and winding valleys. But on cold winter mornings a mist descends upon the town, which creates an incredibly spooky atmosphere. It’s the perfect setting for a scary story …
Balingup mist
Balingup mist
Balingup mist
… so in my sessions I read my new book My Dead Bunny ! Then I gave some demonstrations for how to draw zombie animals:
Zombie bunny
zombie platypus
zombie penguin
… then the kids designed their own. Here’s a whole zombie zoo:
zombie ninja chicken
zombie unicorn
zombie glowworm
zombie dragon
zombie giraffe
zombie snail
zombie shark
zombie penguin
zombie rooster
zombie pig
zombutterfly
zombunny
zombie puppy
zombelephant
zombie cat
zombie cat (missing tail)
zombie wolf/alpaca
zombie zombie
The Telling Tales Festival also features a fancy dress parade of children’s characters, always a laugh. The Balingup locals really get involved.
the parade
Magpie, Gandalf and Mouse catching up for coffee
Mouse holds up traffic
Huge thanks to the Balingup ladies who organise the festival year after year – it’s always heaps of fun! Thank you for having me.
Author: James Foley
James Foley makes children’s books for children who read books. If you’re a child and you’re eating his books, you’re doing it wrong. His books include the Secret Agent Mole graphic novel series, the S.Tinker Inc graphic novel series, and the multi-award winning Stellarphant. James lives in Perth with his wife, 2 kids, and a labrador. He is a massive Marvel movie nerd and comes from a long line of queuing enthusiasts. Follow him on socials ( @jamesfoleybooks ) or at www.jamesfoley.com.au .
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love the zombie series
Cheers Belinda! It’s been fun to draw something different with kids.