Tomie dePaola Contest

Once again I entered SCBWI's Tomie dePaola Contest. This year there were several changes from previous years. Because of the success of The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, and other black and white illustrated books, Tomie set the criteria that the illustrations must be in black and white instead of color, and the text must be included on one side of the spread. Also, instead of giving us a specific text to illustrate, Tomie let us choose the text from one of three books, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott; The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings; or The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. I chose to illustrate a scene from Tom Sawyer.  The text is part of a scene where Tom and Becky are exploring a cave and got separated from the rest of the group. Tom realizes that they are in serious trouble and must conserve their candles. When Tom blows out the candle, Becky loses hope.

Don't miss seeing the other entries on the Unofficial Gallery of the Tomie dePaola Award page! You'll be amazed at all of the talented illustrators!