Who am I?

Its (re)introduction time.

Hi and welcome to 2024!

I’m absolutely thrilled that you’re here, reading my newsletter- It’s hard to believe that I’ve been doing this for over 18 months now. I feel incredibly blessed to have such an amazing community of readers like you. Thank you for being a part of it!

To kick off the new year, I thought it would be a great idea to give you a little introduction, or perhaps a reintroduction, to who I am.

So here are 10 quick facts about me:

1. I grew up in Johannesburg and I have lived in New York City, Las Vegas and Sydney (15 years in total).

2. I live in Sydney with my husband, 3 kids and a fur baby.

3. I have lived in 18 places (I’m 42) so that’s a tonne of moving around, but I love having a chance to explore a new area and redecorate.

4. My favourite place is Bondi Beach. I go there at least once a week.

5. I worked in banking and finance for over a decade and hardly made any art.

6. I love drawing on procreate (no mess to clean up) and can fit it in anywhere, even in the car while waiting to pick up my kids.

7. I have 2 published children’s books ( Mia’s Glamma and Little Shark Lulu is Sleeping, one on the way and one of my illustrations to be published in an anthology Our Australian Heart.

8. I love to run - I run 3 to 4 times a week and I have run a few half marathons.

9. Coffee is my fuel. I start each day with a double shot flat white and need another one just 2 hours later.

10. I love to read- my top 3 fiction books are Bright Shiny Morning by James Frey, Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton and  Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin and my top 3 non-fiction books are the Girl with Seven Names (escape from North Korea), Catch an Kill by Roman Farrow, Educated by Tara Westover, Born a Crime by Trevor Noah and I’m currently reading Going Infinite by Michael Lewis (one of my favourite authors).

Here are 10 facts about my illustrations:

1. I love drawing anything related to the ocean, especially the beach and ocean creatures. The underwater world is filled with fascinating “aliens” and breathtaking beauty. I especially love ocean mammals and sharks.

2. Each illustration I create has a unique story behind it.

3. My goal is to create engaging and relatable characters with vibrant personalities - one of my favourites is Mia’s Glamma. I was thrilled when several kids dressed up as her during book week.

4. I focus on evoking emotions through my artwork.

5. I want my picture books to be fun and spark conversations and interactions.

6. Everyday moments inspire me, and I strive to capture their beauty in my illustrations.

7. I enjoy adding whimsical elements to my artwork, infusing each piece with a touch of magic.

8. I’m not a big fan of red and use it sparingly in my illustrations.

9. I love drawing portraits - I have been doing more this year for a few commissions (although I haven’t been able to share them on social media) and I plan to do many more in 2024… ones that I can share.

10. Ultimately, I hope my illustrations bring joy to those who view them.

Lastly, here are 10 things that I’m looking forward to in 2024:

1. Doing a mentoring program with Giuseppe Castellano from the Illustration Department

2. Doing ‘Character Bootcamp’ through MATS.

3. Attending the Bologna Childrens Book Fair in April- read about my 2023 experience here.

4. Regular meetings with the illoguild an international group of author/ illustrators, who all inspire me and I learn so much from each one of them. I also edit the monthly illoguild newsletter- please check it out.

5. Attending the KidLit VIC and CYA conferences.

6. Working with EK Books and Deb Frenkel (author) on our latest children’s book - launching in 2025.

7. Doing more book store readings, school visits and holiday workshops and for my books ‘Little Shark Lulu is Sleeping’ written by authors (Charlotte Birkmanis, Josie Montano and ‘Mia’s Glamma ’ written by Josie Montano. Both are published by IP Kids.

8. Going on holiday to Japan - looking forward to experiencing a totally different culture and family time.

9. Continuing to improve my drawing skills and drawing more of what I love - fun characters and more portraits - I have a list of people I plan on drawing.

10. Having one of my illustrations on a magazine cover - we are still working on the details… but it will be out early next year.

If you would like to see what I am working on, where I’ll be doing my next reading, or just stay connected follow me on instagram.

And if you would like to know more about me- please check out my website.

Thank you so much for being a part of this amazing community! Your support means the world to me. 😊

Each month I share something about my illustration journey that I think will be helpful to my readers. Please share with anyone who you think will enjoy reading it, whether they are an illustrator, a creator, someone interested in childrens books or a like-minded person.

Also, Please introduce yourself in the comments - I’d love to know more about you!

Tell me your name, what you do and where you live (and if you feel like, share a hope for 2024).

This month, the illoguild question is “Who are you?” - Let’s meet the illoguild.

Members of the illoguild (an international group of author/ illustrators) all answer the same question as each other every month. The answers are published in our monthly newsletter. Please have a read and also join us for our monthly live chat (link). This month we are discussing “How to Take an Illustration Brief from start to Finish” - and here is my newsletter on the topic.