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As far back as I can remember, I have always been interested in drawing and illustrating. I remember many days of coloring with my crayons, writing stories, illustrating and creating books. I recall wining poster contests in grade school and actually getting in trouble for focusing on “only the art”. So it was only natural that I went to college for a B.F.A. in Graphic Design and also picked up a B.A. in Communications. I always knew that art, drawing and design was my passion. After college, I pursued my career working at many ad agencies, design firms, owning my own businesses and always dabbled in my enterpenurial spirit whether I was working full-time for myself or for a company. As my children grew older and didn’t need as much “parental attention” (code phrase for wanting to hang out with their friends more than their parents), I fulfilled my extra time with illustrating and creating art.
[Image]I learned about Etsy in early 2009 and thought this would be a great way to showcase my work and make some extra money is the process. I opened my shop (Kim Siebold Studios) in November 2009 and within a few weeks, I had been contacted by a wonderful woman who is now my literary agent. She was inspired by one polar bear drawing on my Etsy shop. Shortly thereafter, I was offerred a book deal based on this illustration. Over the course of 2010, I learned about the exciting world of publishing and worked on finalizing the illustration for Starry Night, Hold Me Tight. The final book was release in October of 2011. It is so exciting to see my book in stores such as Barnes and Noble and Pottery Barn Kids, as well as many of the .com shops such as Amazon and Target.
[Image]Starry Night, Hold Me Tight is a book written for ages 4 and up. Gather your little cubs and snuggle up for bedtime with Starry Night, Hold Me Tight. It is a story full of humor, love, and motherly wisdom, intermixed with wintry activities such as sledding and making snow angels. In this charming picture book, Baby Bear learns how to share with friends, put away his toys, and that throwing snowballs at Momma Bear is not polite! With warm, lovable verse and simplistic, adorable illustrations, this book will turn nighttime routines into treasured time together.
You can read more about this book and download colorsheets and activies at starrynightbook.com! Follow me as well on Facebook.
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So my Etsy success story didn’t just end with one book, but two books! My personalized alphabet animal illustrations resulted in a second book offer. ABC Now You See Me will be release in March/April 2012. ABC, Now You See Me is a padded-cover introduction to the alphabet features a sequence of endearing animals that peek out from beneath interactive flaps and correspond to the letters they accompany, including an Alligator, a Bunny and more. I cannot wait to see the final product! It is available at this time for pre-ordering on many .coms such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble. As it comes closer to the release date, I will find out which stores will carry it. You can follow this book for the latest information on Facebook. Wouldn't a personalized print and a copy of this book make the best present ever?
[Image]I welcome you to check out my website and see how Etsy has inspired my work, and my successes. You can also follow me on Twitter and Facebook. I am now working as a freelancer in the design community while focusing on my illustrations. I have several projects in the works and am open for more opportunities to come my way. Thanks Etsy!


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