Craig Brown -- Author/Illustrator

Welcome

Craig McFarland Brown

Author & Illustrator of Children's Books

Thanks for visiting my web site. These pages are my virtual home but I actually work in a studio in Colorado Springs, Colorado. My name is Craig McFarland Brown. I am an author and illustrator of children's books. When I am not at work in my studio or visiting schools, I am most likely enjoying the tranquillity of the streams and mountains near my home.

Some of my paintings are on display as a mural that I created for the children's museum in Pueblo, Colorado. The mural was dedicated in June 2000. In 2002, my home town of Tama, Iowa honored me during an open house and book signing which unveiled the permanent display of the art work from one of my books, In the Spring.

One of my most recent publications is Barn Raising (Greenwillow). The story setting is an Amish Community near Kalona, Iowa. Kalona is never mentioned, the illustrations clearly depict an Amish community in that region. Amish communities throughout the United States share many commonalities, there are variations in traditions, clothing, and such. Those who read of Amish communities in other localities will no doubt note those variations in this book. Barn Raising is a gentle story of how one community comes together when disaster strikes one family in their community.

Another of my recent books was written by Pam Munoz Ryan who wrote How to Raise a Raisin (Charlesbridge). I had a lot of fun creating the illustrations for this book. Visit Pam's website to learn more about how she wrote the book.

The illustrations for my books are created using stippling. That is a technique where dots are used to make the light and dark values in an illustration. After the I often speak about the technique when I visit schools to talk about my life as a writer and artist. I started as an illustrator and eventually began to write the books as well. I have found writing to be wonderful and sometimes forget that I have work on the drawing board which needs to be finished.

Focusing on the Author/Illustrator: Craig Brown and His Books