Thursday, July 06, 2006

My first published illustration

Ah...childhood memories. Once upon a time, when I was 11 years old,
I was a huge fan of the cartoon "Tale Spin" and an avid reader of Disney Adventures Magazine.
Because my philosophy has always been, even at a young age: "If you enjoy something, tell the people who created it how much they are appreciated," I wrote a letter to the editors of DA Magazine.
Along with the letter I drew a picture of the "Sea Duck" from the cartoon Tale Spin.
Fast forward a year later. I am an awkward 6th grader at Vernon Center Middle School. During lunch period, a lanky young man nervously approaches my lunch table and quietly remarks, " I really like your picture in the Disney Adventures Magazine."
"WHAT!!???" I shout, having no clue that it was to be published (especially since I sent that letter a year ago.) With out saying thank you for the compliment I rushed off to find some friends and ask them if they had a copy of the magazine. (The young man, did not btw.) No one I knew had it, and since I subscribed by mail, I had yet to receive mine. Three days I waited in agony to get my copy. Then finally on one rainy day it arrived-soggy but in one piece.
I flipped open the magazine to the gallery section and there it was....





Years later, while I was in college the magazine accidentally got thrown away. But I always remembered the issue it was in and swore that some day I would track it down. It's not the best piece of artwork, but hey...precious childhood memories here!
Thanks to the glory of eBAY I found a excellent copy of the issue, and now I will never let this baby hit the trash!


PS
That boy became my first boyfriend...a few years later he asked me out. However we only went on one date...but still!! (It was one of those, "We are dating but we don't hang out or talk to each other," kinda deal. Oh the glory that was Middle School...sigh.)

2 comments:

Nelson Diaz said...

Aw this is great. I love how you filled the page with color.

I wasn't a big fan of Talespin but of Darkwing Duck and I remember drawing an amazingly acurate (if i do say so myself,) rendition of him. Mua ha. LOL

HAHA- about middle school. I used to have a relationship with a girl just like that. Her name was Winnie and we didn't talk much throughout the day but we always kissed each other on the lips at the end of the last period in homeroom.

Yes Middleschool glory.

Bonnie Branson said...

haha...Winnie? That's so "The Wonder Years!!"
I also was a DW fan. Good times