Publisher finds no ugly ducklings among college authors

By: Emily Green

Published: Friday, August 18, 2006

Three recent graduates, two from the Savannah College of Art and Design and one from the Atlanta College of Art, can add “successful author and illustrator” to their freshly penned résumés, thanks to new children’s book publisher Red Cygnet Press. ACA alumna Ami Blackford (B.F.A., illustration, 2006) and SCAD alumnae Audra George (B.F.A., illustration, 2005) and Erin Harris (B.F.A., illustration, 2006) were three of 12 students selected by Red Cygnet Press to have their children’s books published and promoted.

Red Cygnet president Bruce Glassman, who has worked in the children’s publishing industry for more than 20 years, founded Red Cygnet Press with vice president Josh Gravin.

“I had always wanted to create a company that could tap into something new —under-utilized resources, in this case, the talent pool of America’s best art schools,” Glassman said.

Glassman and Gravin contacted nearly 1,500 art school professors and administrators around the United States through an e-mail and letter campaign. When the submission deadline arrived, they had more than 120 book proposals to review and only 12 contracts to award, making for a difficult decision-making process.

“The submissions from ACA and SCAD really stood out,” Gravin said. “For a while it seemed that every time we found something we liked, it was from an ACA or SCAD student.”

He explained, “What initially caught our eye about the ACA/SCAD students was their high level of professionalism as far as presenting the work. What impressed us even more once we contracted with ACA/SCAD students was the excellent quality of their work, their strong work ethic and their knowledge about art techniques. They all had great instincts and needed very little in terms of art direction. Their training was evident not only in their work, but in their personal character as well.”

Harris wrote and illustrated “Elephant on My Roof,” a tale about a young boy who discovers an elephant perched on his roof and enlists his fellow townspeople’s help to get it down. A friend’s pictures from a recent trip to Thailand — more than 5,000 images — served as her main inspiration for the story.

“I drew from the reference photos for hours and eventually got comfortable enough to draw without reference,” she said. “The characters and story developed out of trial and error — I just kept drawing until I came up with something I was happy with.”

The e-mail blast arrived in illustration chair Allan Drummond’s inbox while Harris was taking his Children’s Book Illustration class during fall quarter 2005. Harris credited Drummond for encouraging her work.

“He was there through the entire process,” she said. “I’ve never been entirely confident about my work, so I was very thankful to have someone not only to encourage me, but give me an honest opinion as well.”

She isn’t working on any other books at the moment, while she focuses on securing full-time employment in Atlanta.

“I love doing children’s books,” she said. “I’m not sure if I’ll write any more, but I’d love to continue illustrating them.”

Blackford’s book, “Quest for the Dragon Stone — A Duncan Family Adventure,” is a magical, adventurous story about a brother and sister who set out to find their father after he disappears on a secret expedition. They encounter gryphons, dragons and other mythical creatures along the way.

On her Web site, www.amiblackford.com, Blackford lists Jim Henson, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien as sources of inspiration after she discovered a passion for storytelling at a young age. It was in a 100-level drawing class at Tallahassee Community College that she added illustration to her aspirations and decided to pursue becoming a children’s book author and illustrator.

Blackford entered the illustration program at ACA in 1998 with the support of her husband. After a three-year hiatus that included the birth of a daughter, she returned to finish her degree in 2006. According to the site, Blackford hopes this book “is her first milestone in a long and exciting career.”

George authored and illustrated “Vagabonding,” about a young girl who imagines traveling around the world to locations such as the Taj Mahal, the Eiffel Tower, a Buddhist monastery and other places on her own, before realizing the comforts of being at home with her family. Studying travel sketching for a quarter at SCAD-Lacoste strengthened George’s desire to include travel experiences alongside other doodles in sketchbooks.

Glassman said that Red Cygnet will continue to work with its published students beyond graduation.

“It is our hope and plan to create a new imprint that we can continue to publish our illustrators and authors under,” he said.

The name Red Cygnet Press was chosen because of the physical transformation that takes place in swans from birth to adulthood, reminiscent of “The Ugly Duckling” by Hans Christian Andersen.

“A cygnet is a baby swan that when first born, appears drab and unremarkable, like baby ducks,” explained Glassman. “After they are nurtured, however, they grow into sleek, beautiful and graceful creatures. Our mission is to find the cygnets of today and help to turn them into the swans of tomorrow.”

All three books cost under $20 and are available for purchase on Red Cygnet Press’ Web site, www.redcygnet.com.


Green is a publications editor.