Geeky Girl is Getting a New Teddy Bear!

There has been SO much happening, I admit I have been really overwhelmed!

There's been some really bad stuff with medical and mental issues and words like "cancer testing", "inflammation", "... indicators", and "more extensive testing..." And the Depression and Anxiety have gotten so bad... well, there are a whole bunch of new Inner Demon characters in the works. (Yeah?)

Ok, got that out of the way, on to the GOOD STUFF! I'll break it up into separate posts. Puppies first.

If you've been following my Service Dog Saga, it's been a few years since Theo had to retire because he had osteochondrosis in his shoulder and developed intense anxiety from the pain. He was adopted by my friend Mark and is enjoying retirement on the seacoast.

I had started the process from scratch, with a different company, and made it through a few rounds before they decided it would take 3-5 years just to find me the right dog. So I researched until I found the right kind of dog and the breeder, here in New Hampshire - Monadnock Labradoodles. They only raise Australian Labradoodles - a mix of Labrador, Poodle, and Cocker Spaniel. They are allergy friendly with the temperament of a service dog.

I've been on the waiting list for a year and just got the news that I'd be getting one of Georgia's new litter (born on Feb 9th). 

 "Her wonderful laid-back temperament gets her noticed everywhere she goes!"

This is the dad, Moose - "Moose comes from therapy lines and it shows! He is friendly, calm, sweet, goofy and happy-go-lucky."

That's a great combo of personalities, and each parent is 25lbs - I am so excited to get my puppy! 

I won't know which one will be mine for another four weeks. They'll temperament test them to find the one best suited to being my service puppy. My puppy will have a week of puppy training at the breeders, then some more board and train with All Dogs Go To Helen. I am really grateful to have resources and support. I am very aware that I lack puppy skills... and will take full advantage of any help I can find!

There will be ongoing puppy training, then service dog training, socialization, and introduction to different situations and experiences, as well as desensitization. Honestly, much of the training is the same for the dog as for me! I think the puppy, even without training, has better social skills than I do... so much to hope for.

I've been redoing my website and working on setting up an online store. I was encouraged to include a "Buy Me a Coffee" button. If you aren't familiar with that, it's just a way that people who read your blog, or want to encourage your artistic endeavors, can contribute a few bucks easily. 

I took it a step farther, with a "Buy My Dog a Bone" Button! So anyone can contribute towards Teddy Bear's training. You can click on the links to see - they're both really cute! Don't worry, you can look without actually being charged. And if you have time, go click around the new website: www.SandyBartholomew.com and be sure to let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions. 

GOrillas! on the Move!

Today I had the perfect kind of social interaction day!
Sue Matott, the children's librarian at the Pillsbury Free Library - (our local library here in Warner, NH) - chose my book, Ready, Set, GOrilla! for Storytime!

      [Book Info: "Ready, Set, GOrilla!" - written by Melissa Stoller, 
                         and illustrated by Sandy Steen Bartholomew
                         Spork (Clear Fork) Publishing
                         Released - November 13, 2018]
And she didn't make me read - I got to do the craft project with the kids (the fun part). I had tattoos and coloring pages for them to take home and, in the library, I let them be illustrators and make really cool buttons with their art.

Because this was a group of two to four year olds, I drew simplified characters from the book, in circular frames and pre-punched the circles. Part of the image gets folded around the metal button, so I wanted to make sure none of the important image was lost. I chose the characters with larger areas to color (ie: panda and penguin... B&W - not so interesting).

 Once they'd finished coloring (and their grown-ups were finished with their art pieces too) -

- each kid brought their art over to the button machine and pressed their own pin. Even the shy kids got really into it and helped me pull the heavy lever.

Everyone was really excited by the finished pieces!

Even the scribblier attempts looked like masterpieces once they were mounted and pressed. I loved watching the kids' awed expressions after they loaded up the press, pulled the lever, and then saw the shiny button emerge! SO much FUN!!

And to make it even BETTER! - "Ready, Set, GOrilla!" is the featured book on the StoryWalk this month! So if you are in the area, start at the lower level of the library and then follow the RiverWalk (RailTrail) path to read the whole book. It's a beautiful walk - and a really fun book - but bundle up because it's crazy cold out there!

If you'd like to get your own copy of the book, you can order it from my Etsy shop, Bumblebat or from Amazon. There are really good reviews on Amazon - it's a great book to talk with little kids about bullying and playing fair - and wonderful illustrations! (of course!)

Here are easy links:

Ready, Set, GOrilla! Book on AMAZON (price varies, used copies available too)

Ready, Set, GOrilla! Book on Etsy (Bumblebat.com) - ($25) - comes with an original sketch in the book, lots of tattoos, and I'll send you a file of the coloring sheets you can print out - remind me! Oh, I also will send some cute little pins I made.

GOrilla! and Friends Removable Tattoos on Etsy ($10) - 2 each of five designs. They can also be used on paper.

Ready, Set, GOrilla! Coloring Sheets on Etsy ($3) - a PDF with 5 different pages that you can print out as many times as you like.

Nudge, nudge... this makes a great Holiday Gift!!

Let's Try This...

I've been venturing out of the house, a bit farther afield - first to Massachusetts, now I'm in Maine. When I get back home, I'll be working on the Studio space - electrician ("Let there be light!"), removing the piano, clearing out the toys, and setting up the work space.

Setting up new spaces, healing, taking risks and Begin(ning) Again - seem well timed for Springtime!

So, in that spirit, I'm revamping my Patreon and would love it if you would consider becoming a Patron!

Right now, most of my Posts are Public, so feel free to take a look and see what's been going on. You can click on tags - like Comic or Sketchnote or Lilah Bean! Soon, those posts will be visible only to Patrons.

I've decided to make new posts private so that I can post without worrying about getting into trouble and so I can post content that I don't want finding its way onto social media... such as downloadable PDFs and printables.

Also, I created new tiers so that you can decide what you want to see --- Comics, Sketch-Notes, or Zentangle? Or all three! You can choose what you want to pledge and you can cancel at any time.

I'd like to do more comics about life, mental health, parenting, and joint projects with my kid. I want to post Zentangle ideas I'm working on and tangles from the past, sketches and material from my books too. And I plan to do more sketch-notes! I'll post the scanned, cleaned up versions of the sketch-notes so you can print them out. Also, I can post sketch-notes from classes and conferences that I've completed in the past. Other printables too - coloring pages or other material from books I'm working on!

This is an experiment! I had made all the comics and other material on Patreon available to the Public... and I lost almost all my Patrons.
OK. That was a dumb idea.
Begin Again.
I work really hard on these drawings and sketch-notes, etc. so I'm testing out the idea that people might not mind paying to have first crack at new material or the privilege to see behind-the-scenes and influence a project or even, get exclusive material!

If you've never heard of Patreon, or don't know how it works --- it's a lot like a "subscription" for creative material (artists, writers, musicians). You "pledge" an amount each month and you get content (like comics, essays, printables, video, etc.) Your pledge is charged to your credit card at the beginning of each month and that unlocks the posts. You can cancel your pledge at any time.

You can also "Follow" Creators that you like. In this case, you only see public posts that they make. It's possible to leave Comments on the posts and that creates a sense of community. I really need to build/rebuild my Art Tribe, so that feedback and acknowledgement would be incredibly valuable for me. I often feel like I'm working, alone, in my Belfry with only my Demons, the Lilah Beans, and Minou (the cat) to talk to!

I need feedback and encouragement. Cheerleaders, Art-Tribers, fellow cartoonists, Tanglers, and folks who love reading comics and sketch-notes!

And, lastly, if you need more incentive - you know me - I always overdeliver! ("Anything worth doing, is worth OVERdoing!")

If you'd like to become a Patron, click here: https://www.patreon.com/join/SandyBee?

If you want to take a look at the current posts, click here: https://www.patreon.com/SandyBee/posts
You can Filter the posts according to Tags - on the left side of the page.

Kick-It! (#6!)

OK! I actually DID IT! I've been trying to get this Kickstarter project kicking since.... December!

This is my sixth Kickstarter so it shouldn't be so scary, but I think with all the medical stuff, I just haven't had the energy to spare - until now.

 
I plan to write more and tell you interesting things - tomorrow - right now, I am incredibly exhausted and need SLEEP! But I just wanted to let you know that there is an "Early Bird Special" on one of the Rewards. You can get both the Quo Vadis comics, the ArtGenda Sketchbook, and the prints - for $50 (save $15) -- but only through Monday night. Then the Special disappears!

Click on the image below, and then scroll down the Rewards list until you see this one:

Fun things I'm working on! (And you can Buy!)

It's NOT all about GOrillas you know! I've been working on a whole bunch of things this fall and I'd like to show you some of them now.

The Demons from We Will Never Leave You have been up to all kinds of things besides my Christmas Card. I've started thinking of ideas for a sequel as well. I made a tiny "zine" of the Demons and I'm looking into making a tiny Teachables class with it. I'm planning out Demons Trading Cards.
I made cool pins (buttons)...

and I just created this Introvert Demon Sweatshirt...

Introvert Demon Sweatshirt
by BumbleBat

And this is the back of the sweatshirt...

It's very soft and cozy - perfect for hiding out. I got an XL so I could disappear completely (they're available up to 3X). They sell for $50, but Zazzle often has excellent coupons that make it a no-brainer.

I created THIS t-shirt for my daughter so she wouldn't have to keep repeating herself...

"Go AWAY so I can READ" T-shirt
by BumbleBat

If she doesn't want to be that specific about WHY we should go away, she can cross her arms across her chest, like a teenager. Just, "Go Away."

And she created this design of Creature, the Cat, being Moody...

Creature Cat Baseball Tee
by BumbleBat

and this is the back...

Maybe you remember my daily comic collection, QUO VADIS? (That means "Where are you going?") I created that comic as part of my Thesis - I drew a cartoon or sketch every day for a year.

But the published edition (which sold out!) only included 7 months, since I had to publish what I had drawn so far for the thesis committee. BUT - I kept drawing cartoons every day until the end of July - one complete year! I'm working on revising and republishing QUO VADIS to include the entire year. I will probably do a Kickstarter to presell the comics. Stay tuned!

But the partner project to QUO VADIS is the ARTgenda - which is a "Planner - Sketchbook - Journal." The calendar comics are so-called since I drew them in a weekly formatted calendar. It worked well in that it kept me moving - don't miss a day! - but there were a number of things I did not like about it. The paper was really thin, Saturday and Sunday were smaller boxes, I had to start on the date the calendar started, etc.

So, just in time for the New Year... I redesigned it all and created my own... the ARTgenda. I printed them through BLURB (an on-demand printing company) and they look and feel really nice!

"The perfect planner, sketchbook, and journal for creative people. Can be used as a weekly calendar too. Perfect for doing a "drawing a day" challenges or keeping track of books read, Zentangle® patterns- anything! Features 4 intro pages with ideas and suggestions for use. 52 undated, weekly spreads - with 8 days each. Weekends are just as important as Weekdays!"

It has 120 - 8"x10"pages.

You can order them directly from BLURB - especially good if you want to get a quantity discount or use a BLURB promo code, or if you live outside the US.

If you are in the US, you can also order them (not with a discount) from my Etsy store, Bumblebat.
As always, I throw in some fun goodies. :-)

Lastly - if you'd like to see (most of) the calendar comics I drew, you can see them on my Patreon page.

My Interview on Melissa Stoller's Blog!

Take a look at my interview!

Click HERE to go to Melissa's Blog.

BOOK Birthday Party!

I got a stack of Ready, Set, GOrilla! books just in time for the Book Birthday Party this Saturday at the Velvet Moose in Warner.

I hope that you will join us! The party is from 11am til Noon and is part of the Warner Hometown Holidays Celebration. There is a lot going on around town so spend the day!

We will have coloring sheets, tattoos, and snacks, so bring your kids. We'll also have a limited number of signed/sketched books and lots of tattoos and pins for sale - great holiday gifts and stocking stuffers!

Come and celebrate - even if you don't have little ones - this is a -
"Yeah! I accomplished something! 
I'm proud of it and want you to be proud too!"
- kind of party.

If you can't make it to the party, but still want the book, Amazon has a promo that is good until Dec. 1st:

Use promo code NOVBOOK18 to save $5.00 when you spend $20.00 or more on Books offered by Amazon.com. (restrictions apply)

Amazon is saying the books take about a month to ship...?!

BOOK DEPOSITORY says they have free shipping anywhere in the world (nice!)

BARNES & NOBLE has free shipping and a 10% discount (with code GIFTING)

And if you want the book signed, or signed and with a sketch, and with TATTOOS! You can order it from me at my Etsy store, BUMBLEBAT.

If you get the book from a bookstore and want some free tattoos... send me a SASE (that means an envelope with your address and postage stamps!) and I'll mail you back some Tatts.

READY, SET, GORILLA! Book Preview

Kirkus Review! Book Review!

READY, SET, GORILLA!
​  by Melissa Stoller and
​   illustrated by Sandy Steen Bartholomew

"A gorilla learns a lesson about playing fairly with his friends in this preschool-perfect picture book by Stoller (Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush, 2018, etc.), with eye-catching illustrations by Bartholomew (Alphatangle, 2016, etc.).

Gorilla loves to race with his friends, but he’s willing to break the rules to make sure he wins. When he and Penguin have a sliding race, Gorilla trips Penguin at the last second. Gorilla pulls Llama’s tail to stay in the lead. Unsurprisingly, no one wants to play with Gorilla after that. When Gopher arrives, Gorilla finds a kindred spirit who’s also willing to cheat to win! Luckily, when Gorilla cheats, Gopher uses words to object; likewise, when Gopher cheats, Gorilla objects. The two argue, unable to settle on fair rules until they both face off against Cheetah (who gives herself an early start). Realizing that neither of them likes to play with cheaters, Gorilla and Gopher and all their playground friends come up with fair rules to enjoy racing together. Bartholomew’s clever, colorful cartoon illustrations, especially showcasing the final “race” as a playground merry-go-round spinning, are well-shaded to show texture and depth. Stoller’s conclusion, in which the friends work as a team to create the type of fun where everyone wins, will resonate, especially with the preschool crowd.

​With big pictures and few words on each page, a sure hit as a storytime read-aloud."
​-KIRKUS REVIEWS

Pub Date: Nov. 13th, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-946101-69-3
Page count: 38pp
Publisher: Spork
Program: Kirkus Indie
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8th, 2018

Purchase from Clear Fork Publishing
Purchase from Amazon

Graphic Medicine Sketch-notes

I finally got all my sketch-notes from the Graphic Medicine conference scanned and assembled into a pdf. Yah! I even put it onto my Bumblebat shop on Etsy - so go ahead and buy a copy (It's only $3.50).  Download it, print it out - and get some good ideas and inspiration.

If you'd like to see the pages I drew as well as some from the other sketch-noters, they are published on the Graphic Medicine page on the Center for Cartoon Studies website.

More about the Graphic Medicine Conference can be found HERE.

And my previous blog posts are:

Graphic Medicine Conference - Day 1

Graphic Medicine Conference - Day 2

Graphic Medicine Conference - Day 3
Sketch of a Sketch-note

If you'd like to hire me to sketch at your conference - I'd LOVE to help you out. I can also work from video or turn your TEDtalk into a lovely page of images and info.

A Quick Visit to the Graveyard

I promised her I'd come back to visit with my daughter...

We have always celebrated my Grandmother's Birthday in the graveyard, with chocolate cake, but this year I went alone. I brought cake. But it didn't taste as good. I felt so sad. For the first time.
I always feel sad and miss Gramma like crazy, but this was that disappearing kind of sad. I believe that, when someone's Story ceases to be told - they disappear.

I sat on her grave (it's a bench), licking chocolate frosting off my fingers, and realized that she was the only family I still had, in Warner, that I could visit. Maybe that's why I feel so "dis-appear-y" too?

Last year, I went sort-of-alone. The Fireman came with me at the last minute. But that made me start thinking about how I needed to write a story about my Gramma so she doesn't really disappear. I made notes... and one year later, I've done nothing. I can remember sitting at the drafting table in my new studio, at the Community Arts Center, writing and sketching - as if it were yesterday. And here I am ONE YEAR LATER.

To torture myself, I searched back through Facebook and this blog to find all the posts I'd written about our celebrations in the Graveyard - and they are mostly joyous occasions. And I also realized - it's been TEN YEARS of parties!

To make myself feel better and so she is not forgotten - at least - not this year - here is a retrospective of the past ten years. With links to the original posts. And with quotes. And my favorite pictures from that party...

2009 - Goodbye

My Grandma Magda died yesterday.

I am glad that I took her to California to visit my brother. I'm glad I took her to Arizona to visit her best friend. I wish I had forced her to go to Estonia to see her family again. It's so ironic - she was afraid she might die there and have to be shipped "home". That was ten years ago.

2010 - A Grave Situation

...I mean, she was buried in a tote bag for goodness sakes...

And on others [in the Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris], there were small piles of rocks. I suppose it is a way of saying, "I was here and I miss you."

My grandmother shares her headstone with her mother-in-law, Jenni, her husband, Johannes, and her baby daughter, Merike. Jenni and John are actually buried somewhere on Long Island and Merike had been in a mass grave in Germany. But she was... "removed"... when a large highway was built. It's nice to have them all together again in Warner, even if it is only in name.

2010 - Good Times in the Graveyard  - [How it began]

[The bear would] dream about a lady with lovely smooth, pink skin, mischievous blue eyes surrounded by laugh lines, and the heart of a bear. And for that minute, the bear would wonder 'Am I a woman dreaming of being a bear, or a bear dreaming that I am a woman?' And my Grandmother would look down from where she is watching and have a good laugh.

2011 - Graveyard Bash

On my Grandmother's Birthday, we marched off to the cemetery for a little visit and some cake. Of all the holidays and traditions that families can follow or create, this has become one of our favorites. So, welcome to our Second Annual Grandma Magda's Birthday Celebration.

My mom, sits on HER mom.

Lilah, sits on HER mom... me! 

2013 - Graveyards, Bugs and ... Whoopie Pies. 
[this one has MAGGOTS!]

And just to prove that I have perfectly normal kids... Alex teased Lilah about who-knows-what and she proceeded to pelt him with the bag of dirt. Alex enjoyed it immensely. Ok, maybe they aren't normal.
2014 - Happy 100!  [One of my favorites!]

But, alas, Alex is the Gramma... er... grammar... police in any language. Especially chocolate.

But he is also an excellent big brother. He spells correctly, but he let his sister have the last Kiss.

2015 - Happy 101th!

Gramma Magda was an amazing lady who once rescued her mother-in-law from a concentration camp. 

Show of hands... how many of us would do that? 

Exactly.
2017

Happy Birthday Gramma Magda. I miss you so much. The chocolate cake is very yummy, but celebrating your birthday alone this year made me miss ya so much more. 

But... I also started getting an idea for a graphic novel...

2018

Happy Birthday Gramma Magda. Vanaema. I miss you so much.

This is the first time I have celebrated her birthday completely on my own. 

I didn’t even have to share the chocolate cake. 

I would have preferred to share the cake.