Very happy to announce my newest book from Pajama Press written by the talented author, Jennifer Maruno. I've worked with many writers over the years and find half the pleasure of doing a book is aligning myself with their humour or outlook. With Jennifer her sensibility and humour were aligned with mine from the start. Then working with Pajama Press I was allowed a lot of freedom to follow what I wanted to do which is always wonderful.  It's coming out Aug. 27/24. From the reaction I've been getting (and preorders) there's a lot of excitement. 

I got an invitation from these folks 

https://shepherd.com/best-books/the-first-peoples-of-the-west-coast-for-children

to talk about 'P'eska and the First Salmon Ceremony' published by #groundwoodbooks I was able to link 5 of my favourite books that relate in terms of theme or topic. As a Canadian creator I'm always reminded how lucky I am to be in such great company. #pajamapress #harbourpublishing #tundrabooks

 I'm excited to have a new book with the wonderful Pajama Press coming out October 10 2023. Zander Stays was so much fun to illustrate thanks to the clever and funny writing of Maureen Fergus. 

Zander the goos is trying something new this winter. He's not going to go south. Zander is going to stay!

 CBC Interview

Well here's something I haven't tried before so we'll see if it works. I had a nice interview with Sheryl MacKay on CBC's North by Northwest for my new book Tug. I'm proud of this book so I'm very happy for it to be getting some attention. https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-43/clip/15902371  My segment starts at 16:00 minutes. 

Hope you enjoy!

 Everybody loves tugboats so I'm very happy to see Tug! A Log Boom's Journey released this month. Thank you Groundwood Books and Rick Smith for your wealth of information. Rick was invaluable in getting the details right because he was a logger and a tugboat operator.  The story is about the journey a log boom takes, from start to finish - all under the watchful eye of a little boy who learns there are dangers, and adventure when you're towing tons of logs through open water. 

I was also asked to curate a list of books that all, in some way, relate to the beautiful Pacific Northwest coast. https://49thshelf.com/Lists/Members/2022-09/Scot-Ritchie-Pacific-West-Coast

Stanley Park, Coyote Town

In Vancouver we have the world's longest uninterrupted waterfront path or as we call it when we're in a hurry, the Seawall. https://vancouver.ca/parks-recreation-culture/seawall.aspx I live right next door so I get out quite a bit. Yesterday I went for a ride. About halfway around I look up and see a coyote. I'm just registering “Oh, coyote.' when suddenly he's chasing me. I pick up speed and he's running alongside on the upper path. I guess he doesn't like the seawall so he's staying up there, or I think he is anyway. Within seconds the trees cut him off from view. I'm peddling fast now and soon realize that he's given up – hopefully thinking a squirrel will be easier to get. There's been more than 35 coyote attacks in Stanley Park this year, so it makes you a bit jumpy. Guess I'll bring my whistle tomorrow.*

*Artist rendering due to not being able to get off my bike and take a pic.

 Who knew tea towels would be a sideline business but here we go with a new design. People liked the bird's eye view I did of Vancouver's West End so thought I'd follow it up with Stanley Park. I thought I was just going to be drawing trees and raccoons but there's a surprising amount of things going on there. And an incredible history. I wanted to be sure to acknowledge the ancestral lands that Stanley Park sits on. X̱wáýx̱way (in English it sounds a bit like Whoiwhoi) was a First Nations village site.  Before Europeans arrived there were many inhabitants including the Squamish, Musqueam and Tseil-waututh. It's history now but great to see the awareness growing. 

Here's the first image that got me started. 

Depending on the reaction I get I'm thinking of either Yaletown or Kitsilano next. 

On the Line

Nothing like receiving a copy of your new book on hockey, on the hottest day of the year! I was very happy to receive On the Line (Pajama Press) written by my good friend Kari-Lynn Winters.  It reminded me of university days where I had a brief period on the hockey team. This story is really about teamwork, stewardship and learning our own way to play. 

Summer has started and publishing often slows over this time. This last year has been a challenge for all of us but there are definite signs we're returning to some kind of normal. 

I'm hoping to get traveling again. After a year and a half of not going anywhere I'm ready and rarin' to go. 

So happy summer and happy trails to all.

 

 Interesting times indeed! Spring is just around the corner and everybody is still masked and secluded. But soon patios will open. 

My author/illustrator career has slowed down as publishers learn to navigate their new situations. I am happy to be working with the wonderful Pajama Press in Toronto on two books. I want to thank Kari-Lynn Winters for putting my name forward to illustrate her clever and funny story. It's a special gift to be able to work with such a good friend.

Speaking of people I care about I'm sad and happy to be finishing my book with Groundwood. But all things come to an end and soon the book will be out. I hope to be able to show off the cover art soon. 

Finally to my new second career as a purveyor of t-shirts, tea towels and cards. Who knew this would happen but it definitely falls in the category of 'where might you go in a pandemic'. I've had good reactions to images I put out there so I decided to follow through and suddenly I have a second business. Many years ago I co-owned a greeting card company so I'm aware how time consuming that can be when you do it all yourself. Even with a business partner who worked just as hard, I wrote and drew all the cards as well as shipped and ran the warehouse.  So suddenly, in my west end apartment, I have a mini warehouse. Still not sure how happy I am about that but there you go. Here's the latest image, (for people not in Canada, this is my take on 'Rosie the Riveter' as Dr. Bonnie Henry - our Provincial Health Officer/Hero)  yet to be decided where it will work best - t-shirt, tea towel, greeting card or all the above? 

 There's a couple of stores in Vancouver that I love. Well it might have to do with the fact that they're carrying my merchandise but I think they both have great products, definitely worth dropping by for a look around. Supporting local artists at times like these is worth celebrating too. They're both practically Vancouver landmarks. Kimprints (on Denman St. and in Gastown in Vancouver) have a whole range of products I've made, from t-shirts to tea towels plus tons of other cool stuff. Then a great store called Canadian Crafts on Robson St. has been kind enough to carry t-shirts, tea towels and more. https://www.cdncrafts.com/dr-bonnie-henry If you drop in, tell them I sent you!

 In case anybody thinks I'm not doing books - fear not! I have two coming out soon with Groundwood and, some wonderful people I've just started working with, Pajama Press.   In the meantime I've done another illustration with the idea of putting it on various products like cards and tea towels. This is my neighbourhood in Vancouver. In the summer it's pretty much a resort town. I grew up here and love to see the city growing and changing. I know a lot of people don't like that but I think Vancouver has the perfect balance - wilderness 10 minutes one way and a nice selection of cafes 5 minutes the other way. What more could you want. Of course right now we're still not open yet due to the pandemic but I'm pretty well convinced that's not going to last forever. 

 Suddenly tea towels are my new thing! It's one of things I'd never noticed before but then when you start doing them, they're everywhere. So for the art lovers, one of my all time favourite paintings - with a twist. Arnolfini Portrait. I've always been drawn to this portrait, the colours and detail and fun (with the artist showing himself in the reflection of the mirror behind the 'about to be married' couple). I just thought it would be fun to have a little update with them both doing their social media while being painted. 

 Dr. Bonnie is still going strong. Along with the t-shirt I now have a tea towel and greeting cards. 

There's a whole industry out there of Bonnie things. I guess it's one good thing to have come from all this. Hope everybody is managing ok now. We're just on the verge of another wave and people seem to be finally getting it - mask up, stay in and limit friends. I really don't get the people who don't want to put on a mask. Luckily they're in the minority so I'm sure we'll handle this soon. 

 Happy Halloween! It's going to be an interesting one. 

I actually like witches but you can see these are honest to goodness bad witches because they're not even covering their noses. 

 Thanks CBC! Here's a nice list to be on with my new book (Harbour Publishing, Lilliana and the Frogs).

 https://www.cbc.ca/books/52-canadian-picture-books-coming-out-in-fall-2020-1.5734265

If you're in Vancouver and want to get a copy, check out one of my favourite independent bookstores, https://kidsbooks.ca/ - and tell them I sent you! 

Tea Towels and Introverts

It's an interesting world we're in. After having some success putting one hero (Dr. Bonnie Henry) on a tee shirt I'm now putting other heroes on tea towels! Being a bit of an introvert myself I can relate to these guys. 

This was a nice interview I did recently with a really wonderful site - helping out B.C. creators and publishers! https://www.storytimestandouts.com/2020/08/27/beyond-the-dust-jacket-author-and-illustrator-interviews/we-are-thrilled-to-introduce-author-illustrator-scot-ritchie/

On a whole different topic I'm happy to report, she liked it! I sent Dr. Bonnie Henry her portrait on a tee and she liked it so much she asked, if I was so inclined, would I be interested in sending some to her team. It's quite a compliment considering how many things like this she gets (jewellery, clothing and shoes just to name a few). It's turned into a bit of a cottage industry here in B.C. I sent a bunch of shirts to the team and in return got this lovely pic of Dr. Henry herself holding up her likeness. Considering how busy she is with, ahem, rather more important work dealing with a pandemic, this was very kind of her. 

I guess this can happen when something like covid comes along. You venture into new areas to see where it might take you. All of a sudden I'm doing t-shirts! There's two designs, our local hero Dr. Bonnie... (this design is on the front).

Then my salute to Summer 2020 has been a big hit. Oddly enough it might be nice to have a momento of this very unusual summer. Design is on the back for those who are interested.

Listen to Dr. Bonnie - be kind, calm and safe!

I'm very happy to announce a new partnership with one of the best illustration agencies out there... the very satisfying sounding, Lemonade illustration agency. Lemonade primarily works out of the U.K. but they have offices in New York, Wakefield (!), and Sydney.

I did my homework when looking for an agent and am very happy Lemonade has agreed to work together. I've had the experience of partnering with an agent (in the 90's, I've been around awhile :) and I know how valuable it can be.
An agent can be a partner who opens doors I would never know about as well as providing a critical set of eyes when presenting  work.
Lemonade has been around almost as long as I have and I was very pleased to talk with Gary, the owner. So, to Gary and other Lemonade agents, thanks for taking me on board and I'm very excited to begin working together.

This was a nice surprise to see my new book (Lilliana and the Frogs) as the catalogue cover for Harbour Publishing. The whole experience has been great working with them and I look forward to seeing the book out there. 

Summer is in full swing and I keep jumping back and forth between taking part and staying indoors. They gym opened up again. I've always relied on it as a way to get out there and get fit. But now, for an older guy like me, it's maybe not such a good thing to do. So I keep booking a time then cancelling when I read some article or hear a news story. I bet there's a lot of people doing the same thing. Trying to get some normalcy while the ground is shifting. 

Then, add in living next door to the US where things seem out of control due to the train wreck known as Trump. I was already a fan of Trudeau (our Prime Minister) and he has been stellar in his handling of things. We're lucky here in Canada. Of course best to remain cautious since things can change so easily.  

So I don't end on too somber a note, here's some art I did for a possible new book. I haven't approached anybody yet and I'm still working on the text but I'm having fun with the art.