GENRE: Humor, SEL, Fantasy
WORDS: 238
Query:
Dear Judges,
For this event, I am submitting a work entitled Summer Folk.
Summer Folk is a picture book that recounts the annual invasion of tourists to the little island of Bustagussette through the eyes of one of its jaded young locals. Amid beachfuls of offbeat, unusual characters, friendships are formed.
Even though I lack a Boston accent, my background living in coastal New England informs this story with a shore-loving flavor that is heavily seasoned with elements from my imagination.
I come to picture books through the art. I create imaginary and contemporary artworks using oil, acrylic, or watercolor. My parents were both artists, and I grew up around art and antiques. Though most of my art education comes from this, I have also studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston. I have been a graphic artist for more than 35 years, a profession that adds to the variety of techniques in my toolkit.
Comparable books to Summer Folk include Tuesday by David Weisner, Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan, and (in the classic category) The Doubtful Guest by Edward Gorey.
I have created a full dummy which is available digitally.
Thank you for your consideration.
Excerpt:
Most of the year the island is quiet, peaceful and serene…
just the sound of the waves.
Then BOOM!
The summer folk arrive,
Jamming up the streets and roads with their big, fat cars
and completely taking over Westermedshark Beach.
[Strange beings and monsters mix into the crowds.]
They look weird, talk funny, and wear strange perfumes.
They make all the beaches smell like sunscreen and hot dogs.
What inspired you to write this story & what do you have in common with it:
I’ve always felt like a bit of an outsider, yet I empathize with other outsiders’ outsiderness. When a friend of mine saw some of my sequential art she suggested a touristy kind of story that might fill the images out. This spark of an idea inspired me to express a narrative of outsiderness surrounded by familiarity. My longtime love of surrealist art only helped to construct and embellish the tale.
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