I made some kid-size Viking costumes for my talk at the Perth Writers’ Festival. Here’s how.
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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 .
Making a mural at the Perth Writers Festival
The Perth Writers Festival is over for another year. The weekend goes by so quick! I was very happy to be back this year as a presenter on the schools’ day and family day, and this year I also got to work on something a bit different – a massive mural.
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How to survive as an illustrator: advice for a student
Once or twice a year I get an email from an illustration student. They usually have an assignment to write, which requires them to ask a professional illustrator about their work. I got one of these emails last week, asking me for advice on how I got started, how I survive in the industry and how I self-promote. This is my reply.
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The Little Girl Giant and her giant picture book
If you live in Perth in Western Australia, you couldn’t have missed the buzz about The Giants back in February. For three days, giant marionettes walked the streets of the city with over a million people turning up to welcome them. I was excited just to see the Giants, but even more excited for the Little Girl Giant to finally receive the enormous picture book I helped out with.
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Perth Writers’ Festival sessions, and advice from Andy Griffiths
I first presented at the Perth Writers’ Festival in 2013. I sat on a signing table next to Andy Griffiths. And this year I’m back for more sessions about my latest book, The Last Viking Returns.
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How to make a book for a Giant
This year’s Perth International Arts Festival will see a 6 metre-tall girl walking down St George’s Terrace. She’s called ‘the Little Girl Giant’, and as part of her visit she’ll receive an enormous book from the children of the City of Perth. I helped schoolkids produce some art for the book. More details on the Giants and the book below.
Evolution of a scene: the final version of ‘Big Trouble’
Last week I posted the roughs for this scene from The Last Viking Returns. This post will show how I got from my almost-final rough to my final illustration.
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Evolution of a scene: the rough sketches for ‘Big Trouble’
There’s a scene in The Last Viking Returns called ‘Big Trouble’ where Fafnir the dragon is finally revealed in all his terrible glory. The scene went through a lot of changes during development, so I thought I’d share them here.
It’s a lot of pics though so I’ll share them in two parts. This post will show you the roughs, and next week’s post will show how the final illustration was put together.
(And if you haven’t read the book yet, there’s a few SPOILERS below.)
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How I make comics
Late 2013 and all of 2014 was a hectic time for me work-wise, and I didn’t get to post as many pieces as I would have liked. So here’s a post on a great freelance job I had back in 2013-4; I got to make some comics. Here’s how I made them.
What the heck happened to 2014?
Happy New Year! I hope you’re well-fed and rested after the holidays, and are feeling ready to tackle another year.
I’ve just had a two-week holiday at home, my first big break in a while. I read a pile of books, watched a stack of movies and played a heap of video games. It was heaven. I’m back at the desk now, but I wanted to take stock of 2014 before getting stuck into new jobs. It’s mostly for my benefit, but if you’re at all interested in how a full-time children’s illustrator spends his time, here’s a month-by-month summary of my 2014.
James Foley 