Hello dear Readers,

I’m back. I know I haven’t written much lately about the progress of illustrating my children’s book.

Life has a way of throwing me off course, (like a new dog!)

but here I am writing to you again. It’s good to be back at the drawing table.

I actually made some progress! After many sketches, painting attempts, and helpful tips from my weekly art group, I just finished my third picture. Yes!

Last night I put the three pictures I’ve completed into my “book dummy” (a layout of pages, words and pictures) to see how it flows.

I smiled.

It feels more real now, like this dream is going to happen and is happening. As I looked at what I’ve painted in the past 3 months, I was amazed. I feel like a beginner stumbling along an unfamiliar trail, but my pictures say I’m further along than I think.

When I allow it, something greater than myself flows onto the page. I’m beginning to see that an artist of any type is really a channel for something beyond their understanding. Yes, there are skills to learn, but the greater challenge is to get my ego, my fears, my perfectionism out of the way so creativity can flow. I believe this creative flow is inside each one of us, we just may not be aware of it in our busy lives.

There are so many little steps to create something, it’s easy to wonder if it will ever happen.

Then one day, it all comes together. I look at all the books on my shelf and how much effort went into creating each book, long before AI generated books.

How did they do it?

I assume the authors & artists would tell me it wasn’t easy, and to keep trying, keep allowing that inner creativity to flow, and most important,

keep coming back.