The June Postcard Post: Elizabeth Rose Stanton

The Sub It Club is thrilled to feature the work of Elizabeth Rose Stanton this month. I first came across Elizabeth’s work on Facebook where she treats everyone to gorgeous daily sketches. I’m looking forward to seeing what Elizabeth has in store for us today so, take it away, Elizabeth!

Elizabeth Rose Stanton studied art history in college and went on to earn a graduate degree in architecture at Columbia University.  After working as an architect and designer, she stepped away from a professional career to raise her family.  Since then, she has worked as a portrait and fine artist, designer, and scientific illustrator.  She now devotes herself full time to writing and illustrating picture books for children. She lives in Seattle with her husband, two cats, and a one-eyed dog. 

Elizabeth is a member of SCBWI International and SCBWI Western Washington. She is represented by Joanna Volpe of New Leaf Literary & Media in New York. Her debut picture book, HENNY (Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books), will be released in January, 2014.

How do you choose the image(s) for a postcard?
I try and keep it simple. My stories are very character-driven, so I like to use a single character or a small group of characters.  I like clean, uncomplicated images.

Do you prefer text on the front of the postcard with the image or do you prefer all text on the back of the postcard?
I prefer to place most of the text on the back of the postcard. The larger image on the front “grabs” attention so that people will want to turn it over to find out more.  I also think it’s helpful to put smaller image on the back along with the contact info—just as another little “teaser.”*
*Consider me teased! I must see more.

Do you create illustrations specifically for your self-promotion pieces?
I haven’t so far. I usually just choose from what I am currently working on.

Some illustrators create a series of postcards and send them out over time. Do you a do series or stand-alone images?
I’ve only used independent images. But I am certainly open to doing a series in the future. I think both can be beneficial, depending on what you want to get across. Again, since my stories tend to focus on one particular character, I think the “stand alone” is more indicative of the kind of work I do. 

How often do you send out postcards?
Actually, up until now I have used postcards almost exclusively for conferences and as “business cards.”  Early in 2012 I was all set to do a postcard mailing when I was contacted by my now-agent, Joanna Volpe (she picked up my postcard 🙂 at the SCBWI NY 2012 conference portfolio show).* I signed on with her and, a short time later, got the contract for my book, HENNY—so I never got around to the mailing.  That said, Joanna  and I recently talked about sending out a batch.  Since I have been focusing on farm animals lately, and my book is about a chicken, she suggested using one of my more “quirky” images for this new card to show another “side” of my work, so to speak.
*Take note: postcards can do double-duty as business cards and great things can happen at SCBWI conferences.

Who do you target with your mailings?
For this upcoming mailing, I believe we will be targeting children’s editors and art directors.

Do you have any tips on the production process? Do you use any online services?
I usually use Adobe Illustrator for font and layout, then follow the file sizing guidelines for wherever it is I am getting them produced. I did use hand lettering for the set of postcards I did for my first NY conference, and I had them printed at Moo moo.com. Moo will print batches of multiple images, which is especially useful if you want to show more than one image or you just can’t make up your mind. This is the postcard that caught my agent’s eye at the conference:

What are your favorite places to get postcards printed?
For my most recent postcard (the one I used for the 2013 NY conference), I found a small local printer here in Seattle www.princetonpress.com. I liked using them because I could actually talk to someone about placement and color, and I got to pick the kind of paper stock and card size I wanted.  The turn-around time was short, too, which was very helpful at the time. It also felt good to be patronizing a local small business.*
*It is nice to talk to real people sometimes.

I am flattered to have been invited to share my postcards with you, Dana. I love the lively wealth of information and inspiration here on Sub It Club!  Thank you!
Thank you so much for stopping by, Elizabeth.  Your work is wonderful and you’ve shared a lot of very helpful information for illustrators.

Click on these links to see more of Elizabeth’s work. (Remember — daily sketches on Facebook– what are you waiting for?!)

Website: www.penspaperstudio.com
Blog: penspaperstudio.blogspot.com
Twitter: @penspaperstudio
Facebook: facebook.com/PenspaperStudio

And Elizabeth’s picture book, HENNY:
books.simonandschuster.com/Henny/Elizabeth-Rose-Stanton/9781442484368

If you’re joining us for the first time at the Monthly Postcard Post, you can catch up with a general article on postcard mailings for illustrators and previous featured illustrators in the archive (there’s a tab above too). See you next month.