I will be teaching 2 classes at the Paint Box School of Art in Fernwood Village.

March 8th – 12th – Ages 6-10, 9-12 pm
Mike will teach students the basics of drawing people, animals and landscape using fun exercise and games! The students will then develop a short comic strip with an original story and characters. There will also be time for outside play and snacks!

March 8th – 12th – Ages 11-16, 1-4 pm
Students will expand on their drawing knowledge and learn new techniques to create depth, perspective, and expressive characters. They will also design an original colour comic book cover with a short comic inside!

The latest Graphic guide adventure, coming out in Spring 2010.
“While Devin and Nadia spend summer vacation at a university camp for little kids—Nadia as a counselor and Devin as an unwilling participant—their mother’s research project is vandalized and her motives are questioned. Devin, Nadia and Simon stumble upon shady characters, corporate conspiracy and a plot to take over the nation’s food supply with genetically modified fertilizer.
Mixing action and suspense with information on the agricultural system and the intricacies of the food supply, Food Fight is another gripping installment in the Graphic Guide Adventure series.”

In Liam O’Donnell’s words:

“Ok, so in Media Meltdown there’s a scene where a piece of media the kids create gets posted and shared on BoingBoing.net. So, you’ll understand my glee when I opened my browser yesterday to find this fantastic review of Media Meltdown on boingboing.net.

Full circle, very cool, and a very welcome endorsement from a website and group that I’ve admired for several years now. Watching the review get tweeted, re-tweeted and shared around the web is equally cool. Particularly as this spreading via social media is a key part to the kids’ success in the story.

Check out the review on BoingBoing.net to read the review and feel free to tweet and share the news (you can also just pick up the phone and tell your friends too, like we did in the olde days before the interweb.)”

I will be participating in CWILL’s book bash this Saturday…

When: Saturday, November 28, 2009
Time: 1:30 – 4:00 PM
Where: Fairfield Community Centre, 1330 Fairfield Rd, Victoria
Admission and refreshments: FREE!

What has 58 legs and has written more than 200 books? The 29 children’s authors who will be meeting and greeting kids at the Kids’ Book Bash on November 28, 2009.

The Bash is a first-ever Victoria event and a chance for children and adults to meet their favourite B.C. authors and illustrators, win prizes, make bookmarks, buy books and have them signed just in time for Christmas.

Kids of all ages, school groups, teachers, librarians and parents are all welcome — and it’s free.

Authors displaying their newest works are: Dan Bar-el, Fiona Bayrock, Dianna Bonder, Della Burford, Bev Cooke, Mike Deas, Penny Draper, Sarah Harvey, Laura Langston, Julie Lawson, Adrienne Mason, Rachel Muller, Sylvia Olsen, Pamela Porter, Sheri Radford, Jeff Rud, Margriet Ruurs, Diane Silvey, Andrea Spalding, Robin Stevenson, Nikki Tate, Laura Trunkey, John Wilson, Valerie Wyatt and Beryl Young. Also attending are authors Constance Horne, Sheryl McFarlane, Kit Pearson and Eric Wilson.

Cadboro Bay Book Company will be selling books. The Paint Box School of Art will help kids make personalized bookmarks. And emcee Nikki Tate will be conducting prize draws all through the afternoon.

Kids’ Book Bash is sponsored by Orca Book Publishers, CWILL-BC, the Greater Victoria Public Library, Cadboro Bay Book Company, The Market Stores and The Paint Box School of Art.

In Liam O’Donnell’s words:
I’m totally excited to announce that on October 1st Media Meltdown will not only be landing in bookstores across Canada but also available as a free download to anyone who wants it.

We’re not talking just a few chapters or a sample of rough work, it’s a FULL free download of the final printed edition for you to enjoy, keep and share. You’ll have to wait until October 1st to download your free copy, but for now you can preview the full graphic novel and get started on the adventure. If you like what you read and want your own papery copy, then head over to Orca Books and fill up your cart.

At the heart of Media Meltdown is a battle for control of the messages we all see and hear every day. It’s a struggle between young upstarts who want to get the truth out and the power holders who like things just the way they are.

I think it’s a fun story (I wrote it, so I am a bit biased), but it’s also a very important message that is crucial to the ongoing struggle for control the media that we all own. To help this message reach the most eyes and ears, myself , Mike Deas and the great folks at Orca decided to release Media Meltdown into the mediascape for free to see where it goes and who finds it and in hopes that it inspires other media makers to jump in and take part in the meltdown.

Enjoy!

Photos Leslie from Orca took of the launch for Liam O’Donnell and myselfs latest book, Media Meltdown, on Saturday. Thanks Leslie! Also thanks to Tall Tales Books in Victoria for doing a brilliant job of hosting! Tall Tales Books is located at 795 Fort Street. Visit Tall Tales Books website!