Ruth and the Runway

Print Design

Childrens Book

Illustration

This book, written and illustrated by me, is about the life of the aviatrix Ruth Blaney Alexander. The goal was to share her story with a young and impressionable audience and to inspire the future of aviation as well as provide a positive role model for following your dreams.

The Process:

When I started my research to create a children’s book, I began by creating a mood board to capture the look and feel of the story I wanted to tell. I then researched what is important when writing a book for children. Including the appropriate age range, themes, and writing style. To get more insights, I sat down with Philip Nel, a children’s book author, to gain valuable guidance on the process. Armed with this knowledge, I started writing the book and I chose a reoccurring motif that tied the story together while making it engaging and fun for children. To make it more memorable and enjoyable to read aloud, I decided to incorporate rhyme, adding rhythm and musicality to the story.

Drawing Ruth Blaney Alexander was an exciting and challenging process. I wanted to capture her courage, skill, and adventurous spirit as a pioneering female pilot. I then began sketching out rough storyboards to plan out the sequence of illustrations, focusing on key moments from her life that I wanted to highlight in the book. As I worked on each panel, I paid close attention to the details of the illustrations, including the composition, and lighting to ensure that they conveyed the emotions and ideas I wanted to express. Through each storyboard, my goal was to create a narrative that young readers could relate to and feel inspired by, while also learning about the remarkable life of Ruth Blaney Alexander.

Then lastly, I was able to print out my book by very tediously hand-flipping each page to make sure they lined up on each side and cutting each page to perfection. I also learned the book binding process and created a dustjacket for the cover.

Drawing Ruth Blaney Alexander was an exciting and challenging process. I wanted to capture her courage, skill, and adventurous spirit as a pioneering female pilot. I then began sketching out rough storyboards to plan out the sequence of illustrations, focusing on key moments from her life that I wanted to highlight in the book. As I worked on each panel, I paid close attention to the details of the illustrations, including the composition, and lighting to ensure that they conveyed the emotions and ideas I wanted to express. Through each storyboard, my goal was to create a narrative that young readers could relate to and feel inspired by, while also learning about the remarkable life of Ruth Blaney Alexander.

Then lastly, I was able to print out my book by very tediously hand-flipping each page to make sure they lined up on each side and cutting each page to perfection. I also learned the book binding process and created a dustjacket for the cover.