[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-christopher-walken":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"Today's morning sketch: actor Christopher Walken. I got the proportions a bit wrong so I messed around a bit with the photo on my computer. (Original sketch \u003Ca href=\"http://web.stagram.com/p/680900080424566519_11263950\">here on Instagram\u003C/a>.) ...Actually, I'm not sure which one I like better now.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/christopher_walken_mcintyre_zps28cb0531-10ccaff019.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAnd I picked Christopher Walken because I saw this fabulous video, beautifully edited by \u003Ca href=\"http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ben-craw/\">Ben Craw\u003C/a> from 50 of Walken's films, turning clips into one great dance routine. I'd never really thought of the guy as a dancer, but guys, he's got the MOVES.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2596\"/>\\r\n\\r\nGosh, I wish I knew how to dance. When you're trying to make people know about your books, it helps to have a few extra things you can do. And I don't have any, really, I mostly just draw. But I've already learned two songs on the ukulele and I've gotten over being embarrassed that I can't sing very well. \u003Ca href=\"http://philipreeve.blogspot.co.uk/\">Philip Reeve\u003C/a> and I wrote a Sea Monkey sea shanty, and we applied the principle that the kids aren't there to see us, but to be seen. When we give them a very active part to play in the song, they go completely nuts. So last weekend I tried out my new Shark song. It was a bit ropey, but I'm getting better at it. Reeve wrote me the lyrics while he was out walking his dog, and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.visitingauthor.com/Home.html\">John Dougherty\u003C/a> was game for helping me figure out some chords and a tune while we were in Leicester for Author Week. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/sarah_john_shark_song_zpsf1e4320e-0329e0e5e9.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThank so much, guys! (And to illustrator \u003Ca href=\"http://www.jobyattchildrensillustrator.co.uk/\">Jo Byatt\u003C/a> for posting the photo on my \u003Ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/illustratrix\">new Facebook page\u003C/a>.) Shark in the Bath, coming to a stage near YOU. Still wish I could dance like Christopher Walken, but I'll have to leave that for another day.\\r\n\\r\nOh! And I see that Philip Reeve has blogged about our desert adventure, with a video of us singing the Sea Monkey song. Ha ha! \u003Ca href=\"http://girlsheartbooks.com/2014/03/20/reeve-mcintyre-of-arabia/\">Go see if over on the Girls Heart Books blog\u003C/a>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://girlsheartbooks.com/2014/03/20/reeve-mcintyre-of-arabia/\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/reeve_girlsheartbooks_zps287b5670-17077324c3.gif\">\u003C/a>\\r\n\\r\nOne more thing: Leicester-based comics artist \u003Ca href=\"http://rachaelsmithillustration.blogspot.co.uk/\">Rachael Smith\u003C/a> is making a comic book called \u003Ci>House Party\u003C/i> with \u003Ca href=\"http://www.greatbeastcomics.com/\">Great Beast\u003C/a> (a new publishing house set up by comics artists \u003Ca href=\"http://www.marcellerby.com/\">Marc Ellerby\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.adamcadwell.com/\">Adam Cadwell\u003C/a>). They need some dosh to get it printed. \u003Ca href=\"https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/flimsykitten/house-party-a-graphic-novel\">Click over to her Kickstarter page\u003C/a> and help her out if you can! Even just a few pounds makes a difference. These guys are so inspiring; they don't wait around to be picked up by a publisher, they just do it themselves. \u003Cb>And do it well!\u003C/b> \\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/flimsykitten/house-party-a-graphic-novel\">\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/rachael_kickstarter_zps745d93a0-9f3276414f.jpg\">\u003C/a>","2014-03-21T08:52:00.000Z","christopher-walken",[],"christopher walken",1776628726240]