Moss Whispers

I almost got twilight colors like I wanted them just on the horizon starting at the left. But then I muddied them when I tried to make a background that would work for the text! It would be so much easier if I had some training in this! But I guess ‘doing it’ is one way to train myself! Added the little British Soldiers when I appealed for ideas from Facebook friends. My cousin Susie suggested British Soldiers. And how I DO love those little lichens, the British Soldiers! Only thing is that they are lichens and not moss like Big Twig says. So hopefully, the green stuff in his mouth counts as moss, and since these lichens are often around other mosses and lichens, I think it’ll work okay. I’m trying the little soldiers as the Twig Guys ‘sidekicks’…. since I may need them down the road to help express a few things in the text. We’ll see how they do.

Still working on ‘twilight lighting’ possibilities. And also want to come back to this page’s text…hard to have his knees shaking and and have his ‘stickily limbs’ also be frozen! I’m thrilled to post before midnight! Yay!

Spent a lot of time today studying about twilight. Still experimenting with how to paint it. What a wonderful time of day…between sunset and dark! The time when there is an illumination on the earth!

Already I’m finding myself changing the text. This will need revising, but for now, this is what I have. I think it’ll become more clear to me which way to go (with the text), not to mention ‘which way for these two little twigs to go! Twilight is supposedly getting darker, yet I’m still working on how to ‘see’ characters, their actions, and their environment in the dark. Speaking of dark, I need to get to bed or it’ll be dawn before I know it! For the record, what took so long tonight was trying to figure out how to post the illustration and the text together. WordPress doesn’t seem to want to let me upload it as a photo, so I have to stretch beyond my technical know how (which is very small) and export, and then take a screen shot to sort of ‘trick’ the computer to let me upload it as media?!!!

Lacy Leaf is a character in this first story of Twigs at Twilight.As Big Twig and Little Twig leap down from their branches in their large old oak family tree, they are headed on a search for their good friend, Lacy Leaf who has blown down from the tree before the day is done, before the magical time of twilight when adventurers are free to leave their daytime posts at the end of their branch. Even though, at this point, she is not supposed to show up in the story…I feel it is important to give her a shape in my mind. After all, it is because of her that this adventurous search begins.

This is my first attempt at painting the beginning of twilight, the time between daylight and dark. I want it to get darker as we move further into Big and Little Twigs adventure, and as the night moves on…yet I don’t want it to get so dark that we can’t even see the characters, where they are and what’s going on. Illustrating my writing is such a great exercise for me! It really helps me also shape the text. I’m so looking forward to seeing what happens with this story! I have been ‘sitting on this one for years…worked on it off and on, but not yet been happy with something about the flow of the story.

Last night was one of those ‘untimely’ ones! Up past 2 am dealing with technology tempests! I guess I need to give myself a little slack on learning how to navigate the subtle nuances of a new website vs. a blog! I was trying to post a painting and embed the text. I need to learn how to ‘draw and paint’ with not only the ‘content’ of the text in mind, but also merging the ‘text and painting layout’ .  I actually don’t even know how to ‘language’ that much less ‘execute’ it! Agghh! And now that I’ve mentioned the word, execute, I didn’t at ALL intend to create a painting that looks like two little guys being ‘executed’ in a tree! NOT a good way to begin my next innocent children’s book!!!! I definitely need to adjust this illustration to reflect what is really beautiful in my mind’s eye! More work to be done!

As for the poem…I was digging through all my notes on Twigs at Twilight, (and this story has been in the making for years!) I came upon my initial poem that I wrote and have been tediously tampering with off and on ever since!… I’m courageously stepping through fear to tackle this one!  And to get one step ahead of staying up til dawn each night, I’m posting this poem again TODAY!  and the first page of the ‘story’ will come up TOMORROW!!! To write about ‘dawn’ I need to switch my inner clock!  

TWIGS at TWILIGHT (initial poem)

Two tiny twigs become best friends
Perched on branches at different ends
By day they watch as the world moves by,
When twilight comes, they sprout wings to fly!

As evening shadows step out to play,
This moonlit night, twigs begin their day.
Through their limbs blow nightly breezes,
With winded breaths, each locked joint eases.

Knees once stiffened, wiggle and knob,
Eyes exchange winks, heads gently bob.
Linking elbows, they take their stance.
Two tiny twigs begin to prance!

They loosen their joints and raise their knees,
Dancing a circle that no one sees.
Off on adventure upon the lawn,
Until the untimely sun cries, Dawn!