Start Of A New

I know I have already shown this illustration of Gracie but now I feel confident enough to explain her story. She will be the main character for my next book and it has been an idea I have had for some time now. This story has been put off for years due to my own lack of confidence in my ability to tell it. I feel like my design and illustrative skills are at an all new high and ive never been so confident.

So...what is the story? Well, I think one of the many important things a teacher once told me was to write what I know. So this story is one of my own stories. When I was younger I was diagnosed with VanWillabrand Disease. Most people will live out there lives without ever knowing so it can be considered the most common form of hemophiliac. I played a lot of sports and always got bruised and bloody. So I had to get a medical bracelet. The problem was I didn't want anyone knowing. It made me feel even weirder then what I already was. To keep it a secret and stay with what was in style I decided to make it into a charm bracelet. It worked all the way till college. Thats all I can tell you for now. I promise it has an adorable ending that was inspired by a RI Critique group of illustrators.

Today you'll see the book cover and what my thinking process was with coming up with the layouts and story line. For someone who can write pretty terribly I write a lot. Next week i'll post a bunch of collages while I work on this further.