Fan Mail!

A friend of mine, Valerie Curtis, is the librarian at Springer Elementary School in Los Altos, California. As part of the reading program in the library, she read them "Labracadabra" which is the chapter book I illustrated last year about a dog with a magic tail. Yesterday she brought me a huge stack of letters from 3 classes of second graders with their comments. Such fun!

I got such a kick out of the letters. Wish I could post them all as each one is special. Looks like I may be making a school visit to thank all the kids for their wonderful, supportive letters. And yes, Suhrith, I think I will keep my great job!

Labracadabra Love: Celebration Week Continues

My first love for books (that I remember) came in the form of chapter books. There is something magical about reading something by yourself, and having just a few illustrations paint the picture, while your imagination fills in blanks. And speaking of magical, I was reminded of those qualities while reading Labracadabra.
I just love the composition Deb uses in the illustration above. Both Zach (the boy) and Larry (the dog) have the same tilt to their bodies. They are just getting to know each other. Deb captured that moment when boy meets dog so well throughout this book. Each illustration is meaningful, and charming. Just what young children need when venturing bravely into their reading world solo.
Be sure to enter the giveaway with a comment in any of this week's posts. It would be lovely to share this book with a new reader of your own (or keep all to yourself too!)

Labracadabra Celebration Week Continues!

When Deb told me she got this job I of course smiled form ear to ear, I was so ecstatic for her! But I wasn't surprised. I think the editor that chose her, knew very well what she was doing.

Not only Deb's style is perfect for this book, but Deb really knows and loves dogs. I am a dog lover as well and I know she really understands the bond between a dog and a human and is more than capable of bringing that into a book.

You don't have to be an illustrator to realize how hard it would be to come up with a dog that was part Labrador, Basset Hound, Dachshund, Terrier and Brittany? LOL.. I know!

But that wasn't a problem for Deb. She came up with the perfect pooch. Belive me, I know dogs. I used to volunteer in a shelter and I was the one who dictated the breed. Larry is part all those breeds, no doubt about that.

Deb really captured the essence of the story and I love how with the character poses she was able to say so much.

My two favorite illustrations in the book are:

and this one

Which are basically the two most important moments where boy meets the dog for the first time and then when he realizes how special this dog is and what a beautiful bond they have. But I didn't have to say all this in order for you to know it because that's why Deb is great at what she does. You already know this by looking at her illustrations.

Labracadabra is an adorable book. My daughter who is 10 loved it! I highly recommend it for boys or girls and of course

for your doggie too! :o)

Remember to comment to enter in the giveaway of a signed copy by Deb!

Labracadabra Celebration Week- Emily Fulcher Review

(Today we have a guest blogger, my daughter, Emily.

Be sure to leave a comment to be entered in the drawing for a signed copy of your very own!)

I love this book! I love the way the writing and the illustrations worked so well together. After seeing the cover, I was already tied in. From the beginning, it was a great book. I loved how the boy started off wanting a puppy so badly, but once he got him, he wasn’t what the boy was expecting at all. As the book went on, the boy found things about the puppy that absolutely amazed him. In the end, the boy and the puppy were the best of friends. The illustrations that Deborah Melmon did for the story were great! After seeing them, there was no way I could imagine the story illustrated by anyone else. The pictures complimented the story, and kept me hooked. Great job!

Labracadabra Celebration Week

©2010 Deborah Melmon

I know I've posted about Labracadabra before, the chapter book I did for Viking last year, but this week we are going to have a giveaway! It's an adorable book, beautifully printed with hardcover and a jacket, and written by the talented Jessie Nelson and Karen Leigh Hopkins. This week if you leave a comment on our posts, you will be entered into the drawing. The winner will be announced on Saturday and I will mail you your very own autographed copy!

It's funny how jobs come along. In this case, the art director at Viking had seen some of my recently mailed tear sheets (yes, old school...but it works!) that had some quirky, loose sketches of dogs. She emailed me and asked if I had any more art with dogs and boys. She had a story about a dog, with magic powers in it's tail, that she thought would be a good fit for me. "Of course!" I said, and madly set out creating a few more pieces.

©2010 Deborah Melmon

I created this piece and glad I kept it loose, because it turned out to be the exact style for the book. After a bit of back and forth, and weeks of waiting, she told me I had the job. And so I began creating "Larry" who is a mutt with about nine different breeds all mixed up together. I sketched and emailed, resketched and emailed, and resketched again. We finally came up with a version of Larry that everyone bought in to. I also had to create the human characters in the book and my favorite was cousin Seymour who is tormented by allergies, bee stings, sun burns and dogs....

© 2010 Deborah Melmon

I created the artwork with pen and ink and watercolor for the cover and then digitally enhanced it and created the "magic tail" in photoshop. The black and white interiors were done with line work which I scanned into the computer and digitally put in the half tone.

I will always remember the time I spent on this book as it was also the last months of my sweet little Airedale, Gracie, who passed away while I finished up the artwork. I dedicated the book to her.

Don't forget to leave a comment so you will be included in the giveaway!!

Get ready for a book celebration!

Start looking for you party hats because next week we'll be having a party here at the PBJ's!

We will be celebrating a pretty special book.. Labracadabra written by Jessie Nelson and Karen Leigh Hopkins, and illustrated by our very own Deb Melmon!

Make sure to visit us all week. We'll have reviews, pictures, behind the scenes, and of course a giveaway!! (we would love to give out candy and cake too but darn.. this is just a blog..) ;o)

See you all next week here, you won't want to miss this!

Labracadabra Release!

I just received my copies of a chapter book I illustrated last year for Viking. It is so fun to finally see the printed copies and what a fabulous job they did. It is hard bound with a jacket! Pretty special for a chapter book don't you think?

This funny and sweet story about a dog with magical powers was written by Jessie Nelson and Karen Leigh Hopkins who have spent most of their careers writing and producing movies for Hollywood. It's now available at bookstores and on Amazon and is also on Kindle!

Have a lovely Easter weekend from the Picture Book Junkies!

New Book Release Coming Soon

©2011 Deborah Melmon

Wednesday was a special day for me. I got a most gracious email from the authors of a book that I illustrated last Spring called Labracadabra. Published by Viking, it will be released on April 14th and is currently listed on Amazon. One of the hardest parts of being an illustrator is waiting, waiting, waiting to see your work in print! Now that I've seen the cover of the book online, and have connected with the authors, my excitement level is soaring.

Labracadabra is such a funny and creative story about a dog and a young boy who thinks that the mutt who was brought home by his parents from the dog pound, just might have some sort of magical powers. It's a story about love and trust and not always getting exactly what you want, but rather getting just what you need.

The authors, Jessie Nelson and Linda Leigh Hopkins, are extraordinary writers, with a long list of screenwriting, acting, directing and movie producing credits under their collective belts. Any of these movies ring a bell? Fred Claus, Because I Said So, I am Sam, The Story of Us, Stepmom, Corrina, Corrina.....well, I could go on and on.

I am so excited to have been a part of this project. Can't wait to finally have the finished book in my hands and on my bookshelf and share it with all you PBJ followers. A book giveaway is in order for sure!