Then I added some glow and blur through the program. So even though I was painting with green, it came out a bright yellow. But Photoshop allows you to tell the program how to mix the layers. Oddly enough, one of those layers is green. I think each fire image has around 15 layers. Then I painted layer after layer in Photoshop using these brushes. I created brushes from photographs of flame and shapes of smoke and sparks. The fire, on the other hand, was made completely in Photoshop. Then I scanned in textured, colored papers and electronically cut them to fit behind the line work. I chose the best oil line work and scanned that in. By doing many quick "tracings" with the sketches as a guide, I hoped to capture the vibrancy and life that sketches always seem to have. These scans I printed multiple times on textured paper, then "traced" quickly over them, again and again, with an oil pastel. Then scanned those sketches and changed the line work to blue in Photoshop.
For OH NO, LITTLE DRAGON! I sketched out the general body gestures and expressions I wanted. The illustration style is made up of bold shapes and strong lines - except for the fire, which looks rather complicated. Then I was in China and my guide's name, in Chinese, was "Little Dragon" and I thought, "that sounds like a nice destructive little character." Then I thought about what a little dragon might treasure most- his flame, of course. I'd been wanting to do a story about a boy - a rambunctious, destructive boy - that showed that underneath it all, boys really do have deep emotions and a need for love. I think like with most stories, a few things were brewing in my brain and they came together in an "aha!" moment. It's so sweet and seemingly simple, how did the idea come to you?Ī.
Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Jim Averbeck, author of the Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book, IN A BLUE ROOM (Harcourt, 2008), about his latest picture book, OH NO, LITTLE DRAGON! He's kindly offered to give away TWO signed/dedicated copies of OH NO, LITTLE DRAGON - so read on!
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