"Seaweed Baby Book" To Be Featured at Stone Soup, November 30

Though the title changed a while ago.



Here's the tentative cover, still under construction design-wise, though the illustration is final.

I'll be reading with many others. There will be an official announcement as soon as I can draft it.

Update: I screwed up and put up the the insided title page. The right one is up now.

IT IS ACCOMPLISHED!

I sent it to Michael Quigg, and he agreed. This is the illustration we'll be using.



Onward.

Thank you James.

Hey, There's A Baby In The Weed, Maaan!

I got off the phone with the saintly James Conant today, and we've confirmed that he will be sending me a final draft of the cover for the "Seaweed Baby" anthology later this week, before his upcoming double knee surgery. In passing, he asked if I had gotten his "Weed Baby" illustration, and I hadn't. He swore he had sent it to me!





I wonder what made it slip his mind? I'd hate to theorize anything he'd get a ticket over.

Hmmm...

James sent another draft for the anthology. And, um...



To be frank, I have no idea which poem this illustration is referring to, if any. But what the hell.

James Is Back With More

I was originally going to publish both of James' drawings from last week in one post, but these really deserve room to shine.

Then again, I just might be partial to James' homage to my "Bull-Headed Baby" poem.



Click the labels below for more info on the Seaweed Baby anthology.

I Was Wrong

I think THIS new Seaweed Baby cover draft is my favorite.

Perfect For A Rainy Day

Another one from James in the Seaweed Baby vein. This one might be my new favorite.

Closer And Closer

Apologies to James for just getting this up a week after he sent it to me. It's still the latest one I have, but I know we are getting very near the end.

Seaweed Babies: The Landlubbers

As promised, James came through with some non-drowning Seaweed Babies.









I dunno. For some reason, I find the zombie baby less creepy than the first one.

Babies In Seaweed Forever

Behold, the latest "Seaweed Baby" anthology cover draft.





James has informed me that he will be drawing some babies on land. I will post those and encourage people to vote on whether the baby should be safe on land or drowning. Then we'll tally those votes and Michael Quigg will probably just decide on what he wants regardless of the outcome. But hey, like the last election, you can pretend your vote matters for at least a little while.

In all seriousness, James and I do welcome any thoughts you might have. And if you're new to the whole "Seaweed Baby" anthology thing, click here for the scoop.

The Struggle Continues

James Continues drowning infants in his ongoing drafts for the "Seaweed Baby" anthology.





I want James to start doing some drawings of the baby on land, then maybe we can leave it to a vote as to whether the baby lives or drowns.

Seaweed Baby Goes Landscape

A larger pic this time, with James working with some suggestions I sent to him yesterday. James is not optimistic about the fate of Seaweed Baby, is he?

Zombie Baby Rises

Today, we see James tackling the sub-genre within a sub-genre with the Zombie Baby.

James assured me that the drawings will continue for quite a bit. I am thrilled.

Behold: Robot Baby

James continues his sketch work on the "Seaweed Baby" anthology. This time, moving on to another variation: The Robot Baby.





I want to email him with suggestions that have come up, but I like just seeing him just take off with his sketchbook like this, so I may wait another day.

Hot Off The Drawing Board

James is still working on the Seaweed Baby illustration. Now he's moved to color!





I hope this can go on for a while.

Taking Life

James sent me this during lunch. The cover for the "Seaweed Baby" project is officially underway. More to come.

Babies, Seaweed, Zombies, Robots

It started about a year ago (I think) when Steve Subrizi wrote a poem about a baby caught in Seaweed. This led to other variations. Some by the author, many more by other poets. I even wrote a few myself. The end result is the upcoming "Seaweed Baby" anthology, currently being put together by poet, artist and blog radio host Michael Quigg. I bring special attention to this because my friend James Conant is currently creating the book's cover art. The art above is from one of James' many sketchbooks, and it's part of what I sent to Michael to show that this was a job right up James' alley. I'll post more news (and hopefully a sketch or two) as the cover comes together.