Mermaid of the Moment by Maureen Pelletier

This beautiful mermaid sculpture was created by artist Maureen Pelletier. It's fashioned from natural driftwood and wire. I love how it's constructed from found materials. The texture on the wood adds depth and color.

You can find more of Maureen's work at Walker Creek Furniture and Gallery in Essex, MA.

The Water Babies by Charles Kingsley and William Heath Robinson

The Water Babies by Reverend Charles Kingsley was first published in its entirety in 1863. This hardcover version (a gift from my coworker Doug and the serendipitous Rockport, MA transfer station) looks to be from 1915, published by the Houghton Mifflin Company.

This volume is in fairly good condition for being 99 years old. It's a little weathered around the edges and there's some water damage, some of the front pages are a little loose, but they're all present. It's too bad the front cover illustration is missing.

Here's an image I found of the front cover on Google. This illustration also appears later in the story.

 The content of the story is didactic in tone and tells of a young chimney sweep named Tom who falls into a river and drowns. He becomes a water baby and sets about having various moral adventures, which culminate in his quest to redeem his old master, Grimes. Grimes also drowns, and is given a chance at life if he can perform a final act of penance. 

Through the story Kingsley shares his concern for the English poor and questions the use of child labor. However, he also reveals several typical Victorian prejudices towards Americans, and the Irish Catholics in particular.

I confess I haven't read the story in its entirety yet. My main interest is with the illustrations by William Heath Robinson.

There are two different illustration styles represented in The Water Babies. First, a pen and ink, black and white style, like the illustration below.

I love the art nouveau, Mucha-like look of the lady and how her dress floats around her in a graceful swirl.

The second style, found in the color plates, is a dreamy watercolor style which is well suited to the numerous underwater scenes.

 William Heath Robinson lived from 1872 - 1944. He was best known for his "drawings of ridiculously complicated machines for achieving simple objectives." He also illustrated many classic fairy tales and stories including The Arabian Nights, and Tales from Shakespeare. Original drawings by Robinson are available for purchase in the UK.

I think I like his pen and ink style the best. The slightly cartoon-y quality of the pen and ink figures have a lot of personality and charm.

Mermaid of the Moment: Merbaby by W. Heath Robinson

This little guy is a teaser for a longer post I will be doing shortly about The Water Babies by Charles Kinglsey, illustrated by W. Heath Robinson, copyright 1915, from Houghton Mifflin.

Stay tuned for more water-babies!

Mermaid of the Moment by George Courage

This was a Christmas present my husband George created for me a few years ago. He used a plain basswood box, drew in pencil and then painted in acrylic. The mermaid design was inspired by a free Dover Publications download.

I love the organic, art nouveau feel of the design with the plants and leaf motif trailing off the edges.

The First Swim of Summer

Walden Pond State Reservation

What better day to take a dip than the first day of summer? And...I got to use the new beach towel my friend Kalila gave me for my birthday, adorned with four cute mermaids.

I love swimming.

It's not that I'm particularly good at it. I never swam competitively in high school or college. It's just that the feeling of weightlessness is so relaxing.

It feels like it's not just my body that's weightless, but my soul as well. I often feel bogged down by worries, cares, and fears, but in the water I'm nine years old again. The years are stripped away and it's just little me, playing in the wide pond, embraced by it's cool, enveloping touch. The water holds me and I am uplifted with it, buoyed by hope and a thousand more summer days.

Several years ago, I dreamed I was a mermaid. I remember swimming in shallow, greenish water, light filtering through in wavy, dappled rays. Smooth plants glanced my sides and tail, and rocks hunkered below me on the floor of the brackish inlet I traveled. Breathing underwater, I inhaled and felt the liquid enter my nostrils, and then down into my lungs without resistance.

There was no effort at all. It was all so easy.

My Writing Process - Pyewackett of Salem

Last week, children's writer Sophia Mallonee linked to The Daily Mermaid from her post on The Red Door Blog. This week I'm sharing my process and projects. 

What am I working on now?

I’m working on several different picture book manuscripts right now. In particular this year, I’m focusing on a story called Pyewackett of Salem/Pyewackett Sets Sail. It’s the story of a ship’s cat on the merchant vessel, the Friendship of Salem, and a cabin boy named Thomas, taking their first voyage to sea together.

I wrote the story with my husband George Courage who is an illustrator and graphic designer. We put together a dummy of the book and two sample illustrations and submitted it to three publishers so far. We're getting ready to send it out to another publisher this week.

How does my work differ from others of the genre?

This story differs from other picture books because it’s based on a historical time period and therefore required a bit of research for both the story and illustrations. Having a ship's cat on a merchant vessel was a common practice during the late 1700's, early 1800's. While I couldn't confirm for sure that the Friendship had a ship's cat, it's fairly likely. So, in writing the story I wanted to imagine what it may have been like for a ship's cat and a cabin boy's first sea voyage. We wanted to make the story as historically accurate as possible while still making it fun and engaging for children.

Another thing that makes this story different is that people can visit the ship where the story takes place. A full-size replica of the Friendship of Salem is docked at Derby Wharf and is part of the nine acre National Maritime Historic Site in Salem's waterfront.

Since we live in Salem it’s been pretty easy to walk downtown to the Visitor’s Center to talk with the park rangers who give tours of the Friendship, visit the Peabody Essex Museum, and to find books and resources about Salem’s maritime history.

Why do I write what I do?

I write picture books because I love the form. I love how words and pictures blend together to create a magical experience for children. I also love picture books because they’re one form of writing that’s almost always read aloud, so there’s a certain aspect of performance to reading them. I have a background in theatre and oral interpretation, so I have a deep-held love for the spoken word. There’s a unique thing that happens between an audience and a performer, and I feel that reading picture books captures part of that.

I wrote this particular story to tell about an aspect of Salem’s history with which people might not be as familiar. Most people know about the Witch Trials of 1692, and what a tragic event that was, but there is more to Salem’s history. I chose to tell the story of a ship’s cat because I love cats, and it’s an interesting entry point into the history of this period.

How does your writing process work?

I keep a small journal in my purse and by my bed in order to record any ideas or interesting dreams I have.

Dreams are great for ideas or for brainstorming new stories. I sometimes feel like I’m the most creative when I’m asleep. Sometimes I get really funny, kooky ideas that would be great for picture books. Other times I have really scary, fearful dreams. Not that I would use those in a picture book per se, but it’s always interesting to analyze them, and they could become a motivation behind a picture book character.

I also like to visit and explore museums, gardens, reservations, and historic homes in and around the area where I live, and when I travel. The journal in my purse is perfect for visiting these kinds of places. Inspiration for a new story can happen anywhere.

As far as making time to write, I work full-time during the week, so I write mostly on the weekend. I’ll sit down on Saturdays in the late-morning or Sunday afternoon to hash out an idea I have, make revisions, or write a blog post.

Thanks for reading! Next I'll be passing the blog tour baton to illustrator Nancy Meyers.

Nancy Meyers, whose mother was a watercolor artist, grew up surrounded by paints, pastels, crayons, and colored pencils. She continued to study art throughout high school and college. After working more than 20 years as a designer and art director, she began writing and illustrating for children's publishing. She has illustrated over a dozen books for children, and her doodle books (Buster Books, London) have been translated into six languages. Nancy endures the world's most absurd weather extremes living in Minnesota with her husband, two daughters, and one not-so-well-behaved dog.

See more of Nancy’s work at nancydrewit.wordpress.com.

Mermaid of the Moment by Anna Chouinard

This mermaid doll was created by my friend Anna Chouinard, a talented artist who creates dolls, intricate bead-work jewelry, and sculpture.

The shelf siren was fashioned from fabric, wire and paint and was sold at Nightingale Arts. To see more of Anna's work visit Nightingale Arts of Salem at 124 Boston Street in Salem, MA or online.