BOOK SIGNING COMING UP!

Mark your calendars, San Francisco! believe it or not, i am finally dragging myself out for an official book signing! well, maybe more unofficial -- i'm tagging along with the great PHIL BILDNER to sign books at Books Passage in Corte Madera, next friday evening (march 21st) at 6 pm.

http://bookpassage.com/event/phil-bildner-soccer-fence

phil and i worked on a book together a long time ago called "twenty-one elephants". one of the first books i ever did, and believe it or not, this was one of the fastest books i ever did. from start (getting the contract and starting the sketches) to finish (turning in final art), it took me three months total. that included a research trip to new york, and some very very very detailed sketches. i think it also secured me in the industry is one of the quickest, and craziest, artists out there.

also in attendance is phil's partner, and my editor extraordinaire, and amazing writer in his right, kevin lewis!

please come, say hi, and bring books to sign!

Paul Erdos!

PAUL ERDOS!!!

okay, today i'm posting about a book that's near and dear to my heart. this is a book called "the boy who loved math", written by the most excellent deborah heiligman. it's about a real mathematician named paul erdos, who was probably the most prolific mathematician of all time. he never lived in one place -- instead he traveled around the world, lecturing, discussing, and living math. he died a while back, but i was able to attend his centennial celebration in budapest last year, and got to meet many of the amazing mathematicians i illustrated in the book. the book came out last year, and has gotten some great critical notice. plus it's won an award or two to boot. but this book is crammed with math! i shoved as many mathematical concepts, diagrams, and equations as i could find into every image, and included massive detailed notes about it all in the back.

so please please please go pick up a copy of this one! deborah's writing is phenomenal, and so child friendly without being condescending (which i love). here are some images to hopefully entice you...

This one is an image of Paul as young child in Budapest with his mother.  The numbers you see in the background are examples of prime numbers.

This is an image of Paul at the black board.  It's a pretty iconic image.

this is a full illustration of the "erdos number", a number that all mathematicians covet. if you wrote a paper with paul erdos, you have an erdos number of 1. if you wrote a paper with someone who wrote a paper with erdos, you have an erdos number 2, and so on. sound familiar? yup, the six degrees of kevin bacon was inspired by this concept. and me? i have an HONORARY erdos number of 1.5! since the book is a published work, and i collected the advice of many mathematicians with erdos number 1 on it, and i guess erdos himself is included in absentia, then i was given this number. totally love it. so if you want an erdos number of 2.5, you've got to publish a book with me.

Lunar New Year Post # 8

okay, so i missed a couple postings! i made it, alive, to the camellia parade, and just got back!  loved it, hometowns are the best at welcoming back their wanderers.  loved every second of it!  i'm not keen on posting photos on this site, but here's one of me where you barely see me, but can see my crew (husband alex puvilland, artist extraordinaire, and leo and adrien puvilland, miniature humans extraordinaire!

and here's a link to the star news article on the event:
http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/lifestyle/20140221/temple-city-to-celebrate-70th-annual-camellia-festival-and-parade-this-weekend

and finally, another image from something i'm working on...

Lunar New Year Post # 7

i wanted to post something else tonight, but you'll have to forgive me, as the antibiotics i'm on is really wiping me out.  i just do not do well with medication, seriously.  so instead, i thought i'd freak you guys all out by showing you the covers of all the books i've done in the past ten years.  the really really sad part is, i think i'm still missing a few.  for any of you whom i've worked with, if i am missing an image, let me know and i'll yell at myself tomorrow.  how sad am i?

Lunar New Year Post #6

Guess who's going to be the Grand Marshall of her hometown's Camellia Parade? This girl! So for any of you interested in seeing me and my boys and possibly my husband if i can convince him, ride by in a car and wave like an idiot, come to the parade in Southern California! It's followed by a good old fashioned carnival, all benefitting my lovely old Temple City and its many businesses and schools.

A total side night, it turns out I have pneumonia. i THINK i'll be alright come parade time next Saturday, but if I'm looking wan and pale at all, you insiders will know why...

GO TC RAMS!

Lunar New Year Post #5

Well, here's a project I've been working on that has it's own Facebook page -- all based on the adorable "Vampirina Ballerina"! Written by the lovely Countess Anne Marie Pace, this is a "how-to" manual for any fledgling vampire on how to succeed in the world of dance. To see more than just these offerings, please go check out the "Vampirina Ballerina" page in Facebook. 
https://www.facebook.com/VampirinaBallerina

Close observers will notice a similarity between the main "undead" heroine, and a certain little Vietnamese wannabe who wanted to dance as a little girl... Enjoy!

Lunar New Year Post # 4

so for all of you out there wondering how i can do all this art with two little ones underfoot, let me tell you that i can't.  tonight's post might as well be called "Why a home studio needs to have a lock on it."  so here is the evolution of a piece from a sketch, to a finish, to a ruin.  it's a piece from my book "12 days of christmas", coming out later this year.  i had just finished this painting, left it on my drawing board, and went to use the restroom.  when i came back, my little three year old (well, two and a half at the time) had snuck in and put his own brilliant swashes all over it.  it was the only time in my life i ever screamed at my son, and then broke down into tears.  even now, i can't look at it without a strong pain in my heart...  but c'est la vie!  my kid is still adorable to me, but MAN i've discovered the way that i must lock my studio door from now on, even just going to the bathroom...

here's the sketch

the finish

the ruin!

Lunar New Year Post #3

Sorry all, I missed yesterday! Here's my early day entry, I'll post again later tonight. This one is all about "Bo of Ballard Creek", written by Kirkpatrick Hill, illustrated by yours truly, and winner of the 2014 Scott O'Dell Award for Fiction!!! Very awesome for this amazing writer and this lovely book. Here's a review of the book:
http://www.hbook.com/2013/06/choosing-books/review-of-the-week/review-of-bo-at-ballard-creek/#_
and here are a few images from it. Pat has written a sequel, which is the third project on my desk I'm working! Hopefully to come out next year. When I got more polished images, I'll post those too.

Lunar New Year Post # 2

Here's the other book I'm currently working non-stop on.  This one is written by the great Jerry Spinelli, and it's called "Mama Seeton's Whistle".  The story is about a young mother who uses a two-note whistle to call her children home.  It's very sweet, and very very nostalgic.  I kept the palette almost black and white for that reason, with small punches of color to represent the whistle.  Here's a spread, let me know what you think...

Here's a sketch of the cover too.  Not finalized yet, but you get the rough idea...

Tomorrow night, I'll post from the book "Bo of Ballard Creek", which as the winner of the 2014 Scott O'Dell Book for Fiction award (yay!).

OFFICIAL ENTRY NUMBER ONE CELEBRATING LUNAR NEW YEAR 2014!

So here's what on my desk right this moment -- well, half my desk, I've got two other projects on the docket too. Those are coming tomorrow night! This one is from a book that I wrote ages ago, but am just not finally bringing to finish, called "There's No Such Thing As Little". It's a book that suggests that things are never ever ever as they seem. And it's a real kid power book. I won't show the whole thing, of course, but I'll give you a sneak at one of my favorite spreads. This will be my THIRD SELF-WRITTEN STORY !!!! Enjoy!

Where have I been all this time?!?

Valentine's Cards for Save the Children

so i'm a month early on this one, but i thought i'd put it out there! some of you many know that i'm the illustrator of freckleface strawberry, a series written by the great actor julianne moore. she is also just the coolest chick and devoted mom. julie does an enormous amount for the group "Save the Children", and this year she had a few of us children's book artist illustrate some valentine's cards as a way of raising funds. so, for all you out there who've got valentine boxes to fill, please consider picking up a set of these cards! i'm honored to be in league with these other names: Mo Willems, Kevin Henkes, Brian Selznick, and Ian Falconer.

you can purchase the cards here:
https://opensky.com/julianne-moore

or here:
http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.7918685/k.B7CD/Valentines_Day_2012.htm#viewCards

it's a great cause, and you know, the cards are kinda cute!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

I'm really bad at posting. I'm working like mad these days, but I've got nothing new to show yet... So I dug up this little baby. I made this ages and ages ago, but a snowflake project called "Robert's Snow". The project involved many many well known children's book artists creating snowflakes to raise money and awareness to a charity organization dealing with cancer. I felt a little out of my league at the time, among so many other artists, so i went above and beyond to make this little sculpture. I was actually sad to see it go. And of course the pictures i took are just crap. But oh well...

Anything else to report? I got interviewed by Nicki Richesin for the Children's Book Review recently. For anyone who might want to know more about me and read my witty banter, click on the link. http://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/weblog/2012/01/interview-with-bestselling-author-and-illustrator-leuyen-pham.html

That's it! Happy New Year Everyone!

SPLIT DECK for sale!

Okay, so I'm seriously one of the craziest people in the world when it comes to
the giving of gifts. Every year for the holidays, I go a little nutty and make these
ridiculously over-the-top little presents for people. Little home-made books, boxes of
personally decorated cookies, specialized mugs, chinese horoscope calendars. You
name it, I've tried to make it.

A couple years ago, I felt really masochistic and designed a whole set of playing cards.
For the bibliophile at heart, these were cards with famous literary characters that I'd always
wanted to illustrate: Alice in Wonderland, SHerlock Holmes, Peter Pan, Animal Farm.
Then I collected some very cool quotes for the number cards, and gave the whole thing
a theme. I called it the Split Deck, and each suite contains a literary theme.

Hearts: LOVE and HATE
Spades: WAR and PEACE
Diamonds: WEALTH and POVERTY
Clubs: GOOD and EVIL

I gave a set of cards away to friends and familiy, but they're pretty small -- 2"x3.5", and
I was told a few of them got lost in the mail. I re-printed them this year to send to
those who said they never got theirs, as well to new friends who weren't on the original
list. I've got a few extra that I've printed, not much. But I've had lots of requests over
the past couple years about people wanting to buy a set for themselves.

So here, now, today, for a limited time only, I'm offering on a first-come, first-serve,
while-supplies-last, get'em-while-they're-hot, the one and only

SPLIT DECK!

If you'd like to purchase a set,
please just send me an email or click here:

http://www.leuyenpham.com/playingcards.html

They're $20 USD, plus shipping. I know that's pricey for such small cards, but I'm not out to make money. It's really just to give out to people who'd like them.

Cheers all!

VAMPIRINA BALLERINA

So here's a sneak peek at one of my books coming out next year! It's about.... (drumroll here) a VAMPIRE BALLERINA!!! No, I'm not going the way of Twilight. Yet. This one's a really cute how-to manual for becoming a ballerina if you happen to be of the bloodsucking variety. I won't say too much here, other than this book was a blast to do! Here are a few sample pieces:


Oh yeah, and one last poster, too late for halloween...

In case you'd ever like me for a mentor...

... if you'd ever want a mental person for a mentor that is! Anyway, I've been invited to participate in an online mentorship program, available to anybody who might want to spend one-on-one time with me online. It's a ten-week course, in which i'd skype/email/telephone or whatever with a person, to give them guidance on their work, critiques on their pieces, whatever tickles their fancy. The program is called the Motivarti Mentorship Program, and information is below. I'm only taking on one mentee, and the session starts in the spring, so deadline for that session is December 18th. Here's the link:

http://motivarti.org/mentorship-program/

plus a link featuring me:

http://motivarti.org/2011/11/11/mentor-of-the-day-leuyen-pham/

I am apparently the only children's book illustrator on the list, everyone else is in animation. So, if any of you are interested in a career in animation, check out the others on the list too!

Another siting coming up...

Hey all! I've got another speaking event coming up at Book Passage in Corte Madera this Saturday from 4-5 pm. I'll be speaking with Kathryn Otoshi about how to break into picture books, and i'll be showing lots of original work. To sign up for the conference, check out this site:

http://bookpassage.com/childrens-writers-illustrators-conference

Come stop by to visit!

I'll also be speaking at Hicklebee's Books on July 12th, talking to kids about making graphic novels. Here's the site:

http://www.hicklebees.com/event/go-graphic-leuyen-pham

And one last thing, the cover image for my latest book, an adaptation of "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", with the blessings of Sir Paul McCartney! Coming out from Random House Books next year, keep an eye out...

from 12-1, i think. please come see me! It's my last event before i nosedive for the fall season and go back to drawing table...

And some more signings coming up...

MORE MYSTERIOUS LEUYEN PHAM SIGHTINGS COMING UP!
Well, it seems I can't stay hidden anymore. I've been summoned from my cave once again... So please please please come see me!

April 9th
CHARLES M. SCHULZ MUSEUM
Second Saturday Cartoonist Series
2301 Hardies Lane, San Rosa, CA 94503
707-579-4452
1-3 pm
I'll be the guest cartoonist that day, showing samples of my latest project (if you want a sneak peek, come see!). Hopefully it's a small affair, so I can do some drawings right there.

April 17th
Books Inc, Burlingame CA
1375 Burlingame Avenue
Burlingame, CA 94010
(650) 685-4911
Shoe-la-la Book Signing and Fashion Show!


Okay, young ladies, now's your chance to step up and show off your own fashion sense! We'll be having a shoe fashion show! Bring your own shoes, gussied up in your own special way, to sashay down the runway! We'll vote for the cutest pair of home-decorated shoes, and the winner will receive a special something from me!
Come prepared to prance!



MAY 7th
Books Inc, Chestnut Street Store
2251 Chestnut Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
(415) 931-3633
MAMAS DAY WITH THREE HOT MAMAS!
Yes, you heard right. It's a mother's day celebration, with me and two of my good gal pal/artists extraordinaire, Lisa Brown and Alexandra Boiger.
We're getting together to do a signing extravaganza, all in the name of Mother's Day! Who knows, if you come, you might be able to see all of our kids...

Things lately...

I know, I'm awful at this. It's seriously hard to get stuff going, I have such admiration for those bloggers who can do this regularly. Anyway, I thought I'd share some stuff I've done recently with you all.
sorry, had to pull this entry. copyright problems



Next up I did a special illustration for an oh-so-fabulous art show Pin-Up Exposition, run by the even more oh-so-fabulous illustrator Maly Siri. Here's my piece:

The other art from the show was amazing. I'm not a pin-up artist at all, but I did my best. Hopefully the comic will get a few giggles.

If you want to see more, you can view it all by clicking here.

THE MYSTERIOUS LEUYEN PHAM SIGHTINGS COMING UP!

Yes, yes, it's true, at long last I will coming out from hiding to do some signings this season. Can't stay in that cave forever, I suppose! Come find me at the following locations and dates, and get a book SPECIALLY signed for you!

NOVEMBER 30TH
Books Inc, Laurel Village in San Francisco 3515 California Street from 6 to 7 pm

DECEMBER 4TH
Books Inc, Marina in San Francisco OFFICIAL RELEASE PARTY FOR "ALL THE THINGS I LOVE ABOUT YOU"!
2251 Chestnut Street from 11am to 12 pm
Mamas and their kids, I'll do a special quick portrait of you both if you buy a book!

DECEMBER 12TH
All Saints Church "Children of God" Storybook Bible, by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, with some illustrations by yours truly.
132 N Euclid Avenue
Pasadena, CA from 10am to 11 am
This is a special event some of the artists were asked to attend. I'll be on hand to sign books afterwards.

DECEMBER 20TH
KIDLIT SALON with Lisa Brown
Book Passage in Marin
51 Tamal Vista Blvd, Corte Madera CA
Please come by to say hi, buy a book, eat a cookie, gossip... It's my chance to catch up at last with the world!