There will be art . . .
. . . and it will be from fans, eventually.
I had imagined what Lucy would look like years and years ago, then found a stock photo I liked, re-colored the hair, made the eyes green, added freckles, and changed her shirt. I wanted her hair even redder, and I wanted her freckles a lot more noticeable, but when I tried to that myself, it didn’t look good. So I gave up. But this is kind of what Lucy looks like in my mind.
But like I said, this was years ago, and I was just playing around, so I didn’t keep track of where I found the image. That means I have no idea who this model is or who took the photo. (If anyone out there ever recognizes this girl, please let me know so I can either give proper credit or take the photo down if she is offended by what I did to her.) That also means I can never officially use this photo in any way.
Then I wondered how readers would view Lucy, and decided to create a what-does-Lucy-look-like-to-you page on my website.
It would be embarrassing to have a “fan art” page if I didn’t have anything to put on it, though, so I thought I’d kind of kind of get things started by hiring someone on a “talent” website to make some fan art for me. But I went with the least expensive artist I could find. Aaand it turns out she couldn’t read my description of Lucy–she could only go by a photo. So I sent her the above image, explaining that Lucy’s hair was very red and she had lots of freckles all over her face.
This is what I got.
I was disappointed.
Now please understand, I mean absolutely no disrespect to the artist. I wouldn’t know how to create this image at all. The problem (as I realized later) was that the artist couldn’t read English at a high enough proficiency to simply go by my descriptions of Lucy from the excerpts I sent her. Furthermore, based on my experience as a teacher of English as a second language, I surmised that the artist comes from a population that doesn’t have a lot of naturally red hair or a lot of freckles. The fault was mine in the foolish and, frankly, ethnocentric assumptions I made. I am ashamed of myself, not of the artist.
THEN, when I was sitting in church one day, I looked over and saw the lady next to me doodling! I asked her if she would be willing to doodle a picture of Lucy for my website. She said she’d love to, but it would have to be that week because she was about to have a baby. I looked down, and yes, she was pregnant.
I emailed a few scenes to her as soon as I got home, and this is what she sent me. And I love it!!!
The artist is Sara R., and her Instagram is @sweetpea.draws.
Anyway . . . here is where I would genuinely like to invite you to:
Show me what Lucy looks like to you.
Don’t go by the above photos; go by the images you see in your mind when you read the book. (I don’t even care how red her hair is or how many freckles she has.) Without giving too much away, I’d LOVE to see her on the swings, at school, holding the doorknob in her house, dancing, playing a video game, or any other scenario you like after you read about her in
FLOATING: The Story of a Girl Who Can Almost Fly.
- Send your artwork to me at:
- JTV.YouCreate@gmail.com
- Include your first name, last initial, city, and state/country.
