I'll Try To Be Brief(ish...)

The Tiniest Giant Board Book and Set of Four Seasonal Puzzles; Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall

Closeup Detail from Summer Puzzle

Sorry for not posting in awhile, it's been a busy year. Remember 2020? Most of us are still trying to forget it. The good thing that happened that year was my book release of The Tiny Giant, written by Barb Ciletti and published with Schiffer Kids. It was acquired from the slush pile! (That's a publishing term for when an unsolicited manuscript/book dummy gets chosen by the publisher). Since kids, families, and schools really enjoy this book, we decided to develop it into a board book and seasonal puzzle set and titled it The Tiniest Giant. Look for both to be released October 28, 2025. You can purchase them separately or as a package.

Close up of an interior spread from The Tiniest Giant's ARC (Advanced Reading Copy)

Schiffer Kids is wonderful to work with. They even include a nice bottle of wine when they send out illustrator copies encouraging us to celebrate our newest book release! It's a lot of work after all.

I needed to complete the revised art for both the book and puzzle while meeting another big deadline last May: an artist workshop and retreat in Tuscany taught by Christina Wald and organized by Lisa Statkus of Lisa's Gryphon Art & Travel. My husband, Andy Brown, who is also an artist, came along. This was our second international urban sketcher/plein air painting trip since traveling to Romania with Christina's Sketching Obsession tour three years ago. I can't recommend all her incredible artist workshops highly enough! Below is her YouTube video announcing our most recent trip.

Back door view from our historic farm house in Montalla, leading to gardens, swimming pool and the village

Chef Eufemia, Lisa Statkus and Christina Wald at her computer in the background. We're a lot of work!

One of Christina's workshops introducing gouache. Gouache (pronounced "gwash") is a water based paint known for its vibrant colors, opaque finish and fast drying time. I had never used it before and  might prefer it to acrylic and watercolor! Who knew?

I believe this is from Montepulciano where we sketched, enjoyed a wine tasting and lunch.

Finding wonderful locations to sketch was never a problem. Preferably we'd be close to a Gelato shop.

Throw Down Sketch Book Challenge from our time in Sienna

Cortona: Under the Tuscan Sun was filmed here

While traveling we lived in a historic 600 year old scenic farmhouse in Montalla. We had our own private chef, Eufemia, who took wonderful care of all of us. One day towards the end of our trip, Eufemia gave us all a cooking lesson where we made tiramisu, ragu, and pasta. If anybody wants any of the recipes, let me know and I'll send them your way.

Every day we would go to different locations to sketch and enjoy whatever was happening. We toured vineyards, soaked in a thermal hot spring, explored historic town squares, saw amazing vistas, cathedrals and castles. The only thing better than the scenery were the friendships we made along the way.

Back to reality...

In September Lissa Loves Bugs, by Tracy Blom, published by Paw Prints Publishing was released. It's been getting good reviews. Here's a nice one from School Library Journal. Also I've been doing some local book signings. One of my favorite signings was with a group of book creators at Gardens on Spring Creek, the Botanical Gardens in Fort Collins.

Lissa Loves Bugs, Book 1 in the Wonder Lens Friends Series: Join a group of tweenaged friends ― each with their own scientific obsession! ― on a series of adventures spurred by a found magical magnifying glass!

 

Detail from our book signing, reading, and crafts at Gardens on Spring Creek. We made Cootie Catchers, had fun with Nature Inspired Temporary Tattoos, and Seeded Paper Giveaways. Good times!

 

 

 

 Books were sold through Rene Becher's pop-up bookshop, The Crowded Bookshelf.

Currently we're working on Book 2 in the Wonder Lens Friends Series, Luna Loves Space, coming in 2026. Think about vanishing stars and dark skies for the next adventure. Below are some illustrations for the chapter book interior. It's all a work in progress.

I have much more to show and tell you about, but I'm still attempting to keep it brief, remember?

Thank you so much for checking out my blog. You can click on the highlighted links for further information.

More will be coming soon(ish)!

Cathy

Not to bug you, but here's the latest bzzz!

I'm so happy to be illustrating this exciting chapter book series written by Tracy Blom and published by Paw Prints Publishing.

Here's the overview: The Magic Tree House meets Zoey and Sassafras in this new beginner chapter book series for both fantasy and STEAM lovers! 

A self-professed bug lover, Lissa comes across a miraculous magical lens on her ninth birthday that allow her to communicate with bugs. Sounds fun, but the forest and the garden behind Lissa’s house is sick — poisoned—and all the bugs and flora are in danger. Thankfully, before long she’s summoned by a band of fireflies to help.

Things take an even stranger turn when the magical lens give Lissa’s friend, Wren, the supernatural ability to spit out scientific names, chemistry equations, and facts about bugs that she never knew before! Together, the two friends team up to investigate, all with the clock ticking. Will they save their community and discover what could be hurting their ecosystem?

Coming summer 2025!

 

Here's more books that came out earlier in 2024. 

 

This vital and simply told story of pollination offers lush visual effects that illuminate their ongoing work by day and by night.

Presented narratively, this title captivates young learners, emphasizing pollinators' vital role in our planet's survival. It conveys that even small creatures wield significant influence, illustrating pollinators' continuous journey for food.

The intricate dance between pollinators and flowers is nature's wisdom in action. As flowers beckon, pollinators respond, playing a pivotal role in life's cycle. This dynamic exchange narrates the story of pollination, where pollinators fertilize plants while obtaining sustenance.

Key Features:

• Engages young learners, emphasizing pollinators' life-giving role.
• Conveys that even small creatures make enormous Earth contributions.
• Educates about 24/7 global pollination value.
• Makes pollination understanding visual and accessible.
• Provides a closer look at pollination as a story.

Includes additional teaching materials that enrich learning with pollinator bios, flower diagrams, and pollinator garden flower suggestions. This story underscores the importance of caring for Earth, highlighting its reciprocal response to positive stewardship.

This is my second book with Schiffer Kids Publishing!

And last but not least, both of these picture books were my first venture into working with an independent publisher through Reedsy. It was a great experience and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. You can find more about these titles at https://abcadventures.kids/.

Here's photos from The Douglas County Librarian Kickoff for the new school year! It was a wonderful event brought together by Society of Children's Books Writers and Illustrators, The Bookies Bookstore and Douglas County Library Association. 

I feel fortunate to live in Colorado with so many talented and generous book creators. Plus our librarians get excited about buying books from local authors and illustrators instead of dealing with book bans!

Author and Illustrator Panel Discussion. That's Claudia Mills speaking in the foreground

My book table display

Douglas County School District Legacy Campus

Below are photos from Storytime at Fort Collins Nursery. This summer we brought it back as a three-part series. We gathered on the outdoor patio nestled along the banks of Dry Creek and the Cache la Poudre River surrounded by beautiful plants, trees and wildlife. These free events featured fun crafts and activities for our Colorado kids and their families. It was also a fundraiser for Children's Speech and Reading Center. Books were on sale by The Crowded Bookshelf. We are so fortunate to have such creative and community minded authors and illustrators! Click on the graphic to see the entire roster of presenters and their books.

Storytime Series at Fort Collins Nursery

Laura Resau working with kids on her mask craft for her book, Stand as Tall as the Trees: How an Amazonian Community Protected the Rain Forest

Beth Anderson presenting her book, Thomas Jefferson's Battle for Science: Bias, Truth, and a Mighty Moose.

You can go to my Instagram to see a lot more visuals from last summer's Storytime Series at Fort Collins Nursery!

Thanks for taking time to check out my blog! Click on images for a larger view and highlighted words for more information.

Cathy

 

A Year for the Books!

Journey to St. Thomas came out on Halloween Day 2023. I illustrated this unique chapter book for Fulcrum Publishing, one of the last remaining publishers in Colorado. This is my first illustrated book for adults and hopefully there will be more to come. 

And I have to say the folks at Fulcrum know how to celebrate a book! There was a fancy dinner with the Lakewood Literary Club at 240 Union Creative Grill in Denver, a signing and launch at New Terrain Brewery in Golden. Josiah and I signed 6 boxes of pre-sold books. There's been other events too. Here's a recent interview with Josiah for Westword Magazine. I very much enjoyed the entire experience from our first editorial meeting to brainstorming over margarita infused lunches to turning in the finished artwork and building friendships along the way.

 

Bryan's Alphabet Garden is one of two books I'm illustrating and designing for a new imprint, ABC Adventures. Working with self publishers has been a new experience and one that I'm enjoying. The author, Eleanor Patrick and I are working hard to wrap up this narrative nonfiction book along with There Once Was A Boy Who Swallowed the Alphabet. You'll be seeing more on that book soon! In the meantime I've included the cover and some of the interior spreads below. The book launch is scheduled for April 20, 2024. You can keep up with details on their website: ABC Adventures.

About the book - Bryan's Alphabet Garden is based on the true story of a young Eastern North Carolina native, Bryan, and his quest to grow a real alphabet garden. Discover the challenges Bryan faces to make his garden thrive. From arugula to zucchini, the garden brings setting goals, facing challenges and learning in nature's classroom to life.

 

Meet the Pollinators is my second illustrated picture book for Schiffer Publishing's children's imprint, Schiffer Kids. This is the book that almost didn't happen. Our publishing world shifted during Covid, then came the paper shortage, supply chain issues, book bans, I could go on. Many publishers have struggled to find what works in today's ever changing world of children's literature. Working with a wonderful new editor, this book now has real focus. Also a revised title, a beefed up story and some revised interior art. It will be coming out late summer of 2024. It's still in flux. Below is my illustrated cover concept, but we're waiting to see the final art from the publisher's design team. I feel it's a stronger book and look forward to finally getting it into the hands of little readers and their families.

Thanks as always for taking the time to check out my blog. There's more in the works, but not yet ready for show-and-tell. I'll be posting updates throughout the year.

All the best,

Cathy

Dog on a Blog (with a Storybook Ending!)

Everyone has a story to tell... sometimes you need to tell it yourself. However, if you only speak "dog" you need someone else to tell it for you. This is what PET TALES is: The stories of art studio pets living their best lives with their creative owners in the studio and on the road. 

Click the image box to get the full story in What Women Create Magazine's Pet Tales! Biscuit's story is from Summer 2023 edition.

And now for some work-in-progress! Here's illustrations from three books, all very different stories and in various stages of development. 

The image below is from "Bumblebee, Bumblebee." The author I'm working with unexpectedly lost a baby last year. She's developing this touching and hopeful story to help other families going through the same trauma. You can find more through the Share Program which provides information, education and resources for bereaved parents and siblings.

Nancy Oswald and I continue to tweak "Wilma's Worm". We've submitted to a few publishers and gotten feedback which we take to heart. Writing and illustrating a book, revising, submitting is a long process. As Wilma's character and story evolve we love her a little more through her journey.

Here is a super fun, new picture book that's very near and dear to my heart. It's in the beginning stages and as you might guess is about an Alphabet Garden. I'll tell you more as we get further into the project.

I'm excited to be a part of Fort Collins Nursery's first ever Storytime and Crafts event on July 15!  A wonderful group featuring seven local children's books authors and illustrators will be on-site to read their fabulous stories. We'll gather on the outdoor patio, nestled along the banks of Dry Creek and the Cache la Poudre River surrounded by beautiful plants, trees and wildlife. 

It's a FREE event that also features fun crafts, activities and door prizes for kids and their families. Signed books will be for sale by The Crowded Bookshelf.

Participants are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and well-behaved pets are welcome. You might even meet my pup, Biscuit there! That's the life of an art studio pet.

Click on the graphic for the full line up of presenters and details coming up for Storytime at Fort Collins Nursery.

Thanks so much for checking out my blog. I have more events coming this summer. Follow me on Instagram where I'll post about them. 

Storytime and Crafts at The Bookies Bookstore in Denver, 10:30 on July 11

Storytime in the Dome at Fort Collins Museum of Discovery at 10am on July 19 where we'll read "The Prairie that Nature Built" by Marybeth Lorbiecki. Afterwards we'll head downstairs to the live black footed ferret exhibit with conservationist Kim Fraser. Did you know black footed ferrets were considered extinct until they were "rediscovered" in 1981? Kim will tell us about that and lots more. In the meantime check out The BFF website!

Storytime and Crafts in the Park at the Wandering Jellyfish in Niwot, 11am on July 22

Storytime and Crafts at Second Star to the Right Books in Denver, 10am on August 3

A second FCMoD Storytime in the Dome presentation on August 16th reading "If You Love Honey" by Martha Sullivan

And finally, looking forward to "A Journey To St. Thomas: Tales for Our Time" by Josiah Hatch book launch party at New Terrain Brewing on Nomember 8. Fulcrum Publishing is hosting the event and they know how to have a good time!

Happy Summer!

Cathy

Thinking in Pictures

My collaboration with Nancy Oswald is taking shape. We work back and forth as we revise and tweak the story and illustrations. It's exciting to watch it come together and take the form of an actual creative-nonfiction picture book.

Not only is Nancy a multiple award winning author, she also taught in one and two room schools for over twenty years. She now lives on a family ranch near Cotopaxi, CO. She is a soil enthusiast as well nature lover. I grew up in a family of farmers and ranchers, plus had my very own worm farm. What can I say, I was -a nerd- ahead of my time. As you might guess Wilma's story is close to both of our hearts. 

We plan to start submitting soon, so fingers crossed! Here's three fully colored page spreads from Wilma's Worm. If you're a publisher interested in seeing the full book dummy and manuscript, please email me at cathy@cathymorrison.com or Nancy at nancyos@centurylink.net.

 

Below are some new pitch decks created for Lynnette Novak, my literary agent with the Seymour Agency. I'm honored to be a part of Team Novak! Here's a recent interview, Agent Spotlight showcasing Lynnette. Her email is lynnette.theseymouragency@yahoo.com. We're always interested in new publishing projects.

 

And a huge "Thank You!" to Poudre Libraries for hosting Book Fest 2023, For the Love of Reading for the entire month of February (also National Library Lover's Month and I Love to Read Month). It might be a short month, but it packs a huge heart! This year's new format included children's books and their creators. You can find details about the fun event here: https://www.focobookfest.org/.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog. Click on highlighted links for more information and images to see a larger view.

Cathy

https://linktr.ee/CathyMorrisonIllustrates

Calling 2022 my Reboot Year

Much of this year I've been illustrating a fictional chapter book geared toward adults. This has been such a different project for me and so much fun to illustrate. I'd forgotten how much I love working in black and white. Without going into too much detail, it's a conglomeration of tall tales; running the gamut from funny, scary, poignant and just plain bizarre. It's a unique book, sort of a cross between a modern Canterbury Tales and The Twilight Zone. I'll have more to share next year closer to the book's release date.

Nancy Oswald and I are collaborating on a creative nonfiction picture book. The working title is "Wilma's Worm". I first became aware of Nancy when I illustrated the cover for her YA book "Hard Face Moon" with Filter Press, (one of the best books I've ever read!). Through the years we kept running into each other at various conferences and book events. Not only is she a talented, hardworking, award winning author, but she's a great person and a dream to work with! Please check out Nancy Oswald's Website.

Why am I calling 2022 my reboot year? Coming out of the closures of the last couple of years I'm very excited to get back to classroom, library, and bookstore visits again. I had two books come out in 2020, the thick of the virus. They really didn't get the attention they deserve. So lately I'm busy with some local school visits plus setting up engagements for 2023.

The above images are from three afternoon sessions at Red Feather Lakes Elementary. After our story time reading we talked about making picture books, writing and illustrating, etc. Next we created fall wreath crafts with the younger students. For the older kids we created handmade book dummies and the kids wrote and illustrated their own stories. Those kids can write! 

Thank you so much, Red Feather Lakes Elementary!

Please give a shout out if you'd like me to visit your school.

And thanks for taking a look at my blog. Click images for a larger view and links for more information.

Cathy

@CathyMorrisonIllustrates