Some pretty cool stuff to report!

I've been invited to be a speaker at the 21st Maryland Writer's Association Annual Conference on May 9th at Conference Center at the Maritime Institute of Technology in Linthicum Heights, MD.

Originally, the idea was for me to speak about my experiences as an illustrator, but then it kinda of expanded into a discussion about graphic novels and comics too (of which I am terribly excited about).

Here's the description of the discussion, which can also be found at the MWA's website:

Kevin Bolk: Pictures and Prose: The Colorful Worlds of Graphic Novels and Illustrated Fiction

It's a Conference Double Feature! In the first half, Kevin Bolk, freelance illustrator, web cartoonist, and proud "comic geek, " sheds some light on comics and graphic novels as a literary art form. SEE! The rise and fall (and rise again) of the American comic book. HEAR! The inside story of how sequential art is brought to life. DISCOVER! Your potential place in this reemerging medium. In the second half, Kevin will give you the lowdown on working with an illustrator. How do you choose the right artist? Do you get to choose at all? How do creative teams work? If you suspect your illustrator is a monkey, should you give him bananas? * A myriad of styles and genres will be discussed.

*Discussion may not actually include monkeys.

It's gonna be informative and a lot of fun. I'm really looking forward to talking with a whole new audience too. Though I must admit, I'm a little intimidated as this will be the first time I'd be doing a panel discussion with "adults". It should be an interesting experience nonetheless.

So, mark your calendars of May 9th, and visit the MWA conference registration page here. Good times and great info abounds!

Now, I gotta get my handouts done. YIKES!

Every so often I receive gift art from some very talented folks who dig my cartoons and I'm both honored and humbled by every one. I figured it was about time I give them some space here on kevinbolk.com, so I've set up a new section over in the gallery. There's a number of hilarious gold pants artworks inspired by this strip in there too (I guess they're catching on), so check 'em out!

And again, thanks to all you folks who made these for me. If you've created some of your own, please send them to me@kevinbolk.com and I'll proudly post them for all the world to see.

In other news, I've finally kicked this month-long head cold and am catching up on all of my projects. For you folks who emailed me about it, yes...I'm My Own Mascot is updating again. Thanks for your enthusiasm and encouragement on that. I'm also working with the folks over at Interrobang Studios on some some big changes to our website and comics. I'll update you guys when I have more details about that. All I can say for now is I'm really excited about the direction we're going in. I'll keep you all posted.

And on that note, it's back to the ol' drawing board (minus the hot tea and cough drops this time. Yay!).

I'm sure pretty much everyone reading this has read at least one Little Golden Book at some point during their childhood. I still have a warm fondness for the series and as I'm aspiring to get into children's book illustration, I find them an excellent source of inspiration as well.

So imagine my delight when I found out that the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore was running an exhibit featuring original art from some of the most popular Golden Books over the last 50+ years. Naturally, I paid a visit over the weekend. Poky Little Puppy, Doctor Dan, the Color Kittens; they were all here. I had a great time and came home feeling really fired-up creatively, which is good since I'm putting together and sending out portfolios this week.

The exhibit will be at the library until May 9th. So if you live in the MD/PA/DC area or plan to visit, you should totally check it out. More info can be found here: http://www.prattlibrary.org/calendar/series.aspx?folder=1666

Nothing much else to report. Preparing for the spring/summer con season and working on some new books and prints to sell. The warm weather always gets my energy up for art and cartooning.

Speaking of which, I should be getting back to work. New "I'm my own Mascot" cartoons should be back in about two weeks while I work on the convention stuff. Look forward to it!

Back to the ol' drawing board...!