Posts

shubh raatri dost on sunday!

I hope to see you this Sunday at Books Inc in Palo Alto! I’ll be reading my bilingual board book and signing.

finally found

Happy anniversary to my hubbahubba. I’m so very lucky I found you.

pashmina cover

pashminacover

I’m super excited to share the cover of my debut graphic novel, Pashmina, with you! It was shared with a host of other great covers on Entertainment Weekly.

Have a great weekend!

diwali cheer

diwali girl holding sparklers inktober drawing by nidhi chanani

All original inktober drawings are available for purchase – $45 (including shipping) if you’re the first to contact me! They measure 2.5×3.5 inches on bristol board made with a combination of brush pen, color markers, microns and a little dash of colerase pencils. I will update the post with sold if they’re gone ^_^

diya

woman holding diwali diya drawing by nidhi chanani

SOLD

They measure 2.5×3.5 inches on bristol board made with a combination of brush pen, color markers, microns and a little dash of colerase pencils. I will update the post with sold if they’re gone ^_^

elephant ride + remake

elephantride

I will be vending at the ReMake festival tomorrow in San Francisco. I hope to see you there – and happy weekend!

generations

generations

first second celebrates 10 years

firstsecondbooks

My publisher, First Second, is celebrating 10 years of making books. I first encountered them as an attendee at San Diego Comic-Con in 2009. I remember finding Gene Luen Yang’s American Born Chinese, and how deeply it impacted me. It shifted my ideas of what comics could be. I’ve picked up a few of First Second’s books every year since, as a fellow exhibitor in San Diego.

I created this comic to illustrate how I see myself in each of their titles – and it was hard to narrow it down! I didn’t get to include This One Summer, Three Shadows, Same Difference, Battling Boy, Sailor Twain, Sumo, The Undertaking of Lily Chen…agh! I love them all!

As I wrote my forthcoming graphic novel, Pashmina, I had First Second on my mind. Their titles are diverse and literary. When my agent asked me about pitching, I told her that if First Second bought my book, I would be ecstatic… and I still am!
Thank you and congrats, First Second, for 10 years of publishing wonderful books. I am so happy to be part of your family of authors!
#10yearsof01

good housekeeping

Screen shot 2016-01-22 at 9.50.03 AM

 

I am in this month’sGood Housekeeping magazine. In the almost 6 years I’ve been working as a full-time artist I’ve never been in print. I have been rejected countless times by blogs, magazines, stores, etc. At first it would really hurt. After awhile I got used to the rejection and took it as par for the course, because it is. My work isn’t the right fit for every store, every blog or every magazine. In fact my work has the funniest (to me) accusations of being: too colorful, too whimsical, too kid-friendly. I’ve worked hard to develop my own style (and I’m still learning every day) and I won’t change who I am or my work to fit into someone else’s idea of art.
After years creating original art (not fan art), learning how to make a living creating art that represents the underrepresented, failing, late night marketingemails, doubting myself CONSTANTLY, attending workshops, reading books on artistic process, approaching shops in person to carry my prints, being rejected, working, working working… yesterdayI walked into a bookstore and picked up a NATIONAL magazine with my work inside. I cannot put into words how this makes me feel. If you’re around a newsstand, please check it out ^_^
I hope you have a lovely weekend ^_^

pashmina helper

pashminahelp

we’ve been fighting the family cold, so progress on pashmina has been slow. but i had a cute helper while working on pages yesterday!