Hard work starting to slowly pay off

Well, in the spirit of being an artist and all of the ups and downs that go with the territory, I can finally say that some of the hard work that I have been doing has been paid off this week. It has been hard not to blog about all that has happened, but will spill a little of the beans. It all started with a phone call a couple of weeks ago from a publisher that was looking to get into the children's book area and was really interested in what I was doing. After going back and forth for the last two weeks, we were able to come to terms and sign a contract and book publishing deal. So, as of today, I will be their main illustrator for projects coming in and already have my first project in hand. I promise that as soon as some of the loose ends and the information is up on their website, I will divulge more, but I know that this is a great opportunity to really expand my capabilities and further my development into the childrens book market. And if that wasn't enough, I was pleasantly surprised to find out today that I was one of the few artists chosen to be apart of the Art on Grand event in St. Paul coming up in November. The event is a one evening extravaganza where they turn the historic grand ave in St. Paul into a gallery walk. Each business that participates sponsors one artist and that artist gets the whole store to showcase their work. It is an event that is very well recieved and attended and can't wait to find out who my sponsor is. But, now the realization of all that has to happen is also starting to hit home a little. The shear amount of work that must be done will be crazy, but with the excitement of all that's going on, I think I can get it done on time.