FAB Club 2 – Friends Against Cyberbullying has just won bronze in the wishing shelf Book awards. FAB (Friends Against Bullying) Club was shortlisted for the award last year, so I’m delighted that the sequel was an even bigger hit with young readers.
The Book of Culls is Free on amazon on Thursdays-ish in November
Has someone annoyed you today - get cathartic release with Human Cull!
The ebook is free on Amazon on Thursdays in November (US Thursdays. Some of Friday here in NZ).
Search "Human Cull Hallatt" and have fun!
Heading to the Herne Bay Cartoon Festival
Taking the train down to the Kent coast today, Taking part in the Herne Bay cartoon festival. It should be a nice trip down memory lane as I used to live in Herne Bay when I was at Kent University in Canterbury.
I'll be running a cartooning workshop and swimming in a lot in the sea. England is actually having a hot summer for a change.
Comic Strip Cartooning Workshop for Kids at Lyttelton Library
I ran the second of my cartooning workshops for kids at the Lyttelton library last week. This one was about comic panels and strips. One of the exercises was to fit as many characters as possible into a panel. I made the rash decision to offer a signed copy of Fab Club to whoever could fit the most in, though this did result in some creative panels.
Some of the work the children did is below (my favourite is the plastic bag character) - thank you to Lindsey Melchers for taking the pictures (and helping out with the workshop).
(Note that the kids don't get to use rulers!)
It's a Good Day to Be Inside the Studio
Our conservatory is currently serving as my studio. It is a good place to watch the weather come in over the harbour, especially when it is blowing a cold southerly like today. Billie has one of his beds in here and likes to keep me company until it is time to light the log burner in the lounge.
I love listening to podcasts when I ink. Playing in the background is my current favourite, Fortunately..with Fi and Jane (thanks to my unrelated friend Jane who recommended it to me).
Cartooning Workshop for Older Kids
I ran a second cartooning workshop in Lyttelton this week. This time it was at the recreation centre, where there is a youth club. The age range of the kids skewed older and it was interesting how that (and having other kids and activities around) changed the group dynamic.
We started with about a dozen kids, but as they became more and more distracted the numbers dropped off. After an hour, there were four kids and they were all the younger ones. They were the only ones able to focus and produce a comic strip at the end of the workshop. I wonder if I would have stuck out a cartooning class at the age of 14. I think so.
