Introducing Scribble My Story

Scribble My Story presented by Fingerprint Play

Happy new year!  We’d like to welcome the newest relative in the growing Scribble Press family of creativity products – the app for iPad Scribble My Story, available on the app store. We created Scribble My Story in partnership with Fingerprint Play, an innovative learning platform for kids 3-8.  

We were introduced last year to Fingerprint Play and really liked the way this platform helps parents and kids connect around digital learning and fun.  

Scribble My Story is similar to Scribble Press, with some key differences to support the younger creators: 

1) it has audio!  Pre-written stories are read aloud, and there is also the option to record your own voice as you write your own story. 

2) Scribble My Story takes advantage of the Fingerprint platform so parents can keep in touch with what their kids are learning and what books they are creating. 

3) There is a wealth of new artwork available, much of it based on the popular characters from Fingerprint Play’s Big Kid Life. 

Some features that are only available on Scribble Press for iPad – photo and web image import, support for classroom groups and public gallery publishing and print publishing.   For the more complex publishing projects you’ll still want to use Scribble Press, but there’s tons to do with Scribble My Story and it’s FREE to download!  

Check it out and let us know what you think!  

August Story Contest Winner: ‘The Adventure of Bob’ by Simon

CONGRATULATIONS to 10-year-old Simon, winner of this month’s Faber-Castell Scribble Your Story contest! Hidden treasure, far-away planets and a great escape were the topics of

Simon creating an award winning story and having fun doing so!

Simon’s creative and colorful comic book, “The Adventure of Bob.”

Our guest judge this month is Sherri Duskey Rinker, author of one of the best picture books of 2011, GOODNIGHT, GOODNIGHT, CONSTRUCTION SITE. Why we love Rinker:  Her book is filled with surprising rhymes and creative uses of words.  Also, she wrote Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site in her free time – while juggling multiple full time jobs as the head of her own graphic design firm and mom of two. What a great inspiration for all our aspiring young authors. Scribble Press was lucky to be able to host Rinker for a reading during her book tour, and we’re thrilled she’s joined us here to help choose the first of 12 winners of the Faber-Castell Scribble Your Story Contest! Simon received $100 of art supplies from Faber-Castell including a Young Artists Essentials Gift Set and a Comic Illustrations Set. Simon also received a gift certificate to make more books at Scribble Press.

Here’s what Sherri wrote about Simon’s book:

“I love the creativity shown in Simon’s book (dare I say “graphic novel?!”), The Adventure of Bob!
Simon shows great maturity in his illustration style and his ability to aptly divide up his pages into strong graphic vignettes that move the story along and keep the reader interested. Additionally, Simon’s plot twists are lively and his dialog nicely fits the illustrations (and sometimes elicits a laugh from the reader!). Simon’s’ combination of text and graphics make him a sure winner with a promising future ahead! (Nicely done, Simon. I can’t believe you’re only almost-11 years old!)”

Congrats again to Simon! We can’t wait to read all the stories you’ll write!

To read other great books written by kids, to learn how to enter the Faber-Castell Scribble Your Story contest, check out the Scribble Press eBookshelf.

Introducing: Inspiration Station

Hope everyone had a great summer! At Scribble Press, we’ve stayed busy working on some exciting things, including a brand spankin’ new INSPIRATION STATION! We created the Inspiration Station because we wanted to give kids more tools – fun pictures, drawings, words and other materials – to help spark their imaginations and creativity in an inviting setting. Hopefully all the things they see will aid in their own self-expression!

Here’s a little tour of what you’ll find at the Inspiration Station:

It's an elephant... in a dress!

Laminated photo cards – You’ll find hundreds of photos to help develop the who, what, where, when and why of a story, or just to help with illustrations. Elephant in a dress, anyone?

Story starters, twist ideas, and synonym cards – “And then, all of a sudden, I sprouted wings.”  Now you’ll never run out of interesting plot turns or get stuck thinking of the perfect word to describe something.

Inklings – These cards provide step by step drawing instructions for dozens of popular items, from spaceships to castles to dolphins.

Story stones – For the more tactile scribblers, each hand-painted stone contains a single word to help get those creative wheels turning!

What do you think of Inspiration Station? We’re always looking for new things to add, so please share your ideas!

Let your kids write on the walls

Want to create a space that will heighten your child’s creativity?

Sometimes, it really is about space. Not the size so much. Just a nook where you can read your favorite book, a favorite chair that slides up to the tabletop just right so you can write with ease, a special lamp that casts light just the right way on the page. The same way we like our “stuff” the way we like it, so too do kids need their space. Especially their creative space.

While having the luxury to gift your child a writer’s lounge or art studio in the home is unlikely, there are some simple things that parents can do create “space” for their young authors and artists.

First things first. You will likely need to embrace the concept of creative chaos – which means this space may not be neat to your typical standards. That does not mean there is no organization. Figure out the tools your child needs and then work together to place these things in an accessible way. Paint some coffee cans to hold the pencils. Put up a shelf or two for the various kinds of paper or art supplies. And then, get your child a tabletop or desk space that is his own. I would argue that a postage stamp-sized surface is better than half of the dining room table – which, let’s face it, either is piled with your own tower of unfinished projects or is cleaned regularly by someone who can’t stand piles at all. This is your child’s space. Let ‘em have it.

Then, let ‘em write on the walls.

Huh?!

Seriously. Get a white board or a large piece of poster-sized paper and put it on the wall. Encourage your child to outline and story bubble and sketch out ideas before sitting down to the creative task at hand. Give him a bulletin board to collect notes and ideas and funny pictures of things that may inspire.

There are so very many reasons to do this. First and foremost, it makes your child’s thinking visible. Even better, it introduces your child to the process of developing and reflecting on ideas before barreling ahead. Regardless of whether your child is a visual or verbal learner, the process helps creative minds purge the clutter. Okay, yes, that means they are purging onto your wall. Take a deep breath. It’s going to be okay. White boards can eventually be erased.

In time, if you pay attention, you might even start to notice some things—like how ideas in your child’s head are best sorted out. Does he use more pictures, shapes, charts, words? Or it a smorgasbord of all of them? When the time comes to help junior get organized with homework and writing assignments, knowing “how” his mind works things out and the tools that work for him will be invaluable.

Rest assured, in time the process will likely come down from the wall and become a bit more mobile (and aesthetically tolerable)—a box of index cards or a notebook to carry around. But for now, let creative chaos spill onto the walls of your child’s creative space. Unlike the art projects that go on the refrigerator door, these musings and pictures are for your child. Judge not. Ideas are supposed to be big and messy. Embrace the chaos.

And if you’re really daring…buy your own white board and see what happens.

Spread the creative love this Valentine’s Day

Showing people you love them is just important as saying, “I love you.”  This Valentine’s Day, creating unique and personal cards and gifts to give to loved ones will really show them you care. It’s easy to make gifts in our studio or at home – you just need some markers and little creativity! Try these ideas:

Create mini cards
Mini cards are the perfect sized Valentine’s Day cards. Adorn the front with messages like “Be Mine” or “Happy Valentine’s Day,” and use the back to write an extra personal message to your recipient. Check out our deal on Poppins Perks! You can make 30 mini cards for just $15 while helping a classroom get bookbinding materials. The offer is valid at all Scribble Press locations, so spread the love!

Write a book
Need a gift idea for one very special person? Write and illustrate a book that’s just for him or her. This book, “50 Things We Love About Daddy,” with lines like “Picks out groovy clothes for us” and “Gives the best hugs,” is the perfect mix of silly and sweet – guaranteed to make any dad’s day. If you need some help writing a book, our Cueprint, fill-in-the-blank style books with themes like “I Love You,” will provide some inspiration and help you create the perfect gift. You can also make a Valentine’s book at home by folding some pink and red construction paper in half and stapling them together.

Make a “pocket heart” craft
Cut out two hearts of the same size from construction paper and glue or staple the sides together, leaving the top separated. Decorate the hearts, and then have fun filling the inside of the pocket with candy, stickers, love notes and whatever else you can think of. For more Valentine’s Day crafting ideas, check out our February workshop calendar.

We’ll also be featuring Valentine’s Day on Club Scribble, so come visit the studio and get scribbling! And if you have other fun Valentine’s Day gift ideas, please share them in the comments section!

‘The stuff of great storymaking’

So, I recently watched J.J. Abrams’ speech on the Mystery Box. Here’s the gist: Grandpa gave Abrams a box and it’s gone unopened for decades. His conclusion? Sometimes the best mysteries are the things you’ll never answer.

For someone like myself, and the generation of kids who were bottle-fed instant gratification, there is almost instantaneous frustration at not having answers at the fingertips. We tear open gift wrap, peek at the endings of books, and google breaking news events to imbibe facts before they’re even verified. Our appetite to know now is insatiable. So, when our first ever mystery class at Scribble Press began with the arrival of a mysterious box, I was not sure how the students would react.

I was pleasantly surprised.

Missing Miss Terious class

With detective pads inside, the package instructed students to begin honing their detective skills in order to solve the mysterious disappearance of Miss Mia Terious and a collection of priceless books from the Library of Congress. That the box and subsequent letters with clues had no postmark did not seem to bother anyone. Instead, everyone has managed to suspend disbelief and join us on our leisurely stroll through a slowly-unfolding story. It’s refreshing. Every week, the kids take out their magnifying glass and examine clues as the adventure inspires their own creative endeavors.

Writing is so amazing that way. It’s a journey that can’t be rushed. Like any good detective, we must unravel the story in our heads before it meanders its way onto the paper. When we make time to let it happen organically, the results are extraordinary. Our mystery writers this semester are thinking critically about how the pieces of the case fit together; at the same time, they are filing away devices that may enhance their own tales. I liken my job to that of Dumbledore – I get to teach the magicians the magic. It’s fun to be a writing instructor.

Mystery box!

Of course, next week, there is a box arriving for the kids with the singular instruction that the package NOT be opened until December. Will the heretofore unseen frustration flood our class or will the kids embrace the pace of a story not meant to be consumed in one sitting? Something tells me we’re going to be okay.

Let’s face it. The moments before the wrapping paper is torn away are the best. I intend to help my students milk it. After all, the anticipation, the unknown, the possibilities of what may come – they are the stuff of great storymaking.

Jennifer Sarja

Scribble Press Coming to the Upper West Side!

It’s official! In November, we’re opening our third Scribble Press at 84^th St. and Broadway. Zabars, H&H, The Museum of Natural History, Lincoln Center….We can’t wait to be part of the neighborhood.

So why the Upper West Side? We already have a studio in Manhattan – First Avenue and 84^th Street. A few reasons: First, the thought of going to a totally different city for our third store seemed really challenging, and there are so many great locations in New York City and Los Angeles that would welcome another Scribble Press. We wanted to stick with a market we already knew and loved.

The Upper West Side is such a busy, vibrant community filled with families that it seemed like the natural next place for us. Also, we can travel from one store to the other by just hopping on the 86^th Street Crosstown bus – kind of like I used to do when I was a seventh grader on my way to Brearley.

We found a terrific space at 84^th and Broadway. It’s catty corner from Five Napkin Burger (YUM) and right across from a Loews Multiplex Cinema and a Victoria’s Secret. (Although, I am not sure what our connection there might be – moms can buy thong underwear while their kids write a first novel?)

We’re going to a be busy for about eight weeks building marker caddies and painting the bathroom pink. Not to mention, setting up all the magical bookbinding equipment, creating an amazing party space and decorating a cool lounge area. This UWS location is going to be a fantastic destination for fun and creativity. Stay tuned for news on our November opening!

Do you have any suggestions for what you’d like to see at the new store? What things do you like about the Upper East Side location that you want us to carry over to the Upper West Side studio? What would you suggest we change or add? We’d love to hear from you!