iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Andrea Brown Literary Agency @andreabrownlit.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

✨New book Tuesday! Happy book birthday to these incredible titles! ✨ 🚌 DOING SOMETHING NEW: A Prayer For Beginnings 🗡️ HOLLOW MAGIC 🏕️ BOX TALES: Brave the Wild! All available now wherever books are sold! 📚🥳

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Box is running out to get BOX TALES: SUPER TERRIFIC SHOWTIME! Bea and Box are back, and they’re putting on a variety show. The book includes lots of laughs, and you’re not going to believe this—Bea and Box even teach you a magic trick at the end!!! Get it wherever books are sold!

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

My Bird & Squirrel Cartoon Network short that I worked on ages ago has finally been released by WB on YouTube. Yay!

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Andrea Brown Literary Agency @andreabrownlit.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

A new book deal announcement! 🥳 Congratulations to James Burks on 🐉 FIDDLE FINDER AND THE GOLDEN GOOSE CHASE, a new graphic novel series! “There's nothing more fun than a boy and a dragon solving mysteries together.” -James @jamesburks.bsky.social @ksonnack.bsky.social

Book deal: FIDDLE FINDER AND THE GOLDEN GOOSE CHASE, a new graphic novel series, written and illustrated by James Burks

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Cole Sanders D’Alleva @princeofeternity.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

One last post for tonight and that’s it. One of my favorite graphic novel series when I was a middle-school lad (besides Cleopatra in Space and Dog Man) was Bird & Squirrel by @jamesburks.bsky.social. It was filled with humor, adventure, and strong emotion; the greatest thing I’ve ever read.

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Gina Perry @ginaperry.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

I've recently been WAY off track creatively. I really connected with this @andyjpizza.bsky.social podcast and the one before it (#528) Best part? I finally got into the zone today! www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7Es...

youtube.com

Escape Your Creative Rut with This 5 Part Creative Hygiene Checklist

YouTube video by Creative Pep Talk

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Andrea Brown Literary Agency @andreabrownlit.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

Happy Wednesday! We created a starter pack of ABLA authors & illustrators just for you! We are HUGE fans of these humans. Note: We’re still adding to this list, which has been created by an enthusiastic assistant and not AI, so if you see that someone’s missing let us know! 😊 go.bsky.app/Rux2YKX

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Andrea Brown Literary Agency @andreabrownlit.bsky.social · 08/10/2025

🎨 Spotlight on James Burks (@jamesburks.bsky.social)! James’s Illustrator Page James is represented by Kelly Sonnack (@ksonnack.bsky.social). He is open to picture books and black & white interiors.

digital illustration of Wisp, a small ghost with big glasses, buying a story from a friendly vampire

digital illustration of two smiling creatures: one is round and green with a small cap, and the other is yellow with fuzzy hair and glasses

digital illustration of a family packing their car for a camping trip, including impractical items like a toaster and a hairdryer

digital illustration of Kat, a yellow striped cat, reading a book in a cross-section view of her house

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Macmillan Children's School & Library Marketing @mackidssl.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

Happy Book Birthday to Box Tales: Grow, Strawberries, Grow! by @jamesburks.bsky.social. This graphic novel for young readers follows Beatrix and Box as they attempt to grow their own strawberry garden 🍓🪴 bit.ly/4fkJHsR

A book cover. The title is Box Tales: Grow, Strawberries, Grow! by James Burks

The cover depicts a cardboard box with a face, holding a gardening spade and a little boy with brown hair holding a watering can. They both stand in front of a patch of strawberry bushes.

A page from the graphic novel Box Tales by James Burks. Text reads from left to right, top to bottom:

If I were a strawberry... I'd eat me!

I could eat.. a MILLION strawberries!
I could eat.. a BILLION strawberries!

That's it! We have a new goal! Eat a BILLION strawberries!

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Once Upon A Time Bookstore @shoponceuponatime.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Science is happening every day and everywhere! We are excited about our Science Saturday celebrations with three authors visiting on September 12th. 11 am: @kirstenwlarson.bsky.social 1 pm: @jamesburks.bsky.social 4 pm: @phdcomics.com www.shoponceuponatime.com/event/scienc...

The full window display. The science books scattered among charts, graphs, jars of animals, baskets of insects, skeletons, and beakers all on a neon yellow fabric with a light blue fabric background.

The left side of the display with a white lab coat hanging on the back behind piles of science themed books. From top to bottom are What About Science, Night Walk, The Super Smart Space Activity Book, Science Comics Solar System, An Immense World, DK Eyewitness Insect, Abby in Orbit Space Race, Birdwatching, Animals of Land, Sea and Air.

The center of the display with the event info. Signage reads “Science Saturday! Facts matter. Calling all inquisitive minds!! Saturday, September 20th 11 am: Kirsten W. Larson. 1 pm: James Burks. 4 pm: Jorge Cham.” On each side of the author information is the author’s photo and the featured book. Below that are the books The Super Smart Space Activity Book, Science Comic Solar System, Abby in Orbit Space Race, Birdwatching, Animals of Land, Sea, and Air, Scientists are Saving the World, ABCs of Science, Origin.

The right hand of the display with piles of science themed books. From top to bottom are Me and My Body, Stay Curious and Keep Exploring Next Level, What’s Inside a Bird’s Nest, Origin, How to Explain Climate Science to a Grown-Up, Say Goodbye to Plastic, Rocks, Gems and Geodes, and Animated Science: Rocks and Minerals.

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Andrea Brown Literary Agency @andreabrownlit.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

🎨 Spotlight on @mikeboldt.bsky.social Mike's Illustrator Page Mike is represented by @jenrofe.bsky.social and is interested in picture books and covers.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 23/07/2025

Some stop-motion to promote my new graphic novel series, Box Tales, that launches in September from First Second.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 02/07/2025

Dance like no one is watching! Some new stop-motion animation with a character I hope to use in a future picture book idea. #stopmotion #animation

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 08/05/2025

Cover reveal for the second book in my new GN series Box Tales. It'll be out on March, 3, 2026. But book 1 will be out later this year on Sept. 16.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

The first step when doing thumbnails for a graphic novel about camping is to paint a yellow tree on the front of a new sketchbook. This very important step is also called PROCRASTINATION.

A green sketchbook with a yellow painted tree on the cover.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 29/04/2025

I haven’t had much time to post lately, I’ve been in my writing cave working on the story for BoxTales book 3 and revising the outline for my new graphic novel idea, which is going out on sub. I had some free time, so I decided to rig this character in Toonboom and do some simple animation.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 06/04/2025

Another week, another author school visit adventure. This time I'm off to New Jersey to visit two school this coming week. Looking forward to seeing the students and inspiring them to be creative. Onward!

Drawing of James Burks wearing a jetpack flying across the sky on the way to Rivervale, NJ.

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SF Said @whatsfsaid.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

Every single school should have a school library & a school librarian, to help every single child find the books that will make them readers, and give them all the lifelong benefits of literacy. Libraries & librarians change children's lives FOREVER! #SchoolLibrarianDay #SchoolLibraryMonth

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

Some highlights from my two Indiana school visits. I was shown so much love and creativity by all the students, teachers, and librarians. Thank you! I'm always amazed that the books I've created have connected with so many people all around the US and the world. I don't take any of it for granted.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

After a day of traveling and hanging out in airports, I made it safely to Indiana for my upcoming author visits. I also had an interesting interaction with the rental car person at the exit gate. I'm not sure what she was talking about because my hair is the same now as it was on my license pic.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

Tomorrow, I'm flying to Carmel, IN, for two author visits next week. I had originally scheduled this school visit trip back in 2020, but that pesky pandemic got in the way. Well, 5 yrs later, it's been rescheduled, and I'm looking forward to entertaining the kids with my witty book-making banter.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

If you live in or near New Haven, CT, come see me this Saturday at IC3.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 12/03/2025

A good way to get to know a character is to design their space.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 25/02/2025

As close as I’ll ever get to meeting one of my biggest influences. #charlesschulz #peanuts

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

Exploring some story beats for an idea I'm working on.

A boy with a wooden sword stands back to back with a dragon in disguise as they prepare to fend off a pack of hungry wolves.

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Reposted by James Burks

Mike Boldt @mikeboldt.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

The wait is almost over!!! Can Do Book 2 is out next week!

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

This is the other main character from my dragon story. When I drew the original turn around, I wasn't sure how the hair would look from all the angles. The nice thing about modeling the characters in 3D is that I can see exactly how it looks now from every angle and adjust the drawings accordingly.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

Finished the dragon. Now, I'd like to get my brain to cooperate so I can figure out the story they belong to and turn this into a book. How's everyone else doing with their creative projects?

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

The latest from my adventures with Blender.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Here’s the latest from teaching myself Blender. I’m not sure why I spent two days on this. To animate it, I’d need to rig it, which seems daunting. I guess I did it to gain experience with Blender. Who knows, maybe it'll lead to something one day. Exploring new skills is never a waste of time.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Taking the time to model characters in 3d makes the perfect reference, not only for perspective but also for lighting. Not to mention, it’s also a great way to procrastinate!

From several different angles, a cardboard box character with paper arms and legs and a painted-on smiley face strikes a happy pose.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Box gets the full 3d turnaround in Blender. I can't wait for everyone to meet Bea and Box when their first book drops this Sept.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

Fun with props. Yesterday, I had an inkling to model a milk carton in Blender, and as these things usually do, it took on a life of its own. Ending with a fake ad for a made-up milk company.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

I decided to download Blender and follow a Domestika course to learn the ins and outs. Here's my first character sculpt. The program is very robust, and I can't believe it's free to download.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 05/02/2025

Here’s a Bird & Squirrel commission I did. Brown ink on mixed media paper.

A pen and ink drawing of the comic characters Bird and Squirrel walking through the forest following a treasure map as Bigfoot watches them from behind a tree.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Taking my anxiety on a little joyride.

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Jess Fink🍉🌈 @jessfink.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

The promise ai makes is that it could make products, write & illustrate books, create ad copy for junk, make you rich with zero effort. What it actually does is fill the world with more slop that the rest of us have to wade through to find something worthwhile and real.

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 01/02/2025

Spent yesterday and today sprucing up the website. I feel like its needed once every couple years. It’s also an amazing form of procrastination when you aren't feeling creative. Stop by and check it out if you need to do some procrastinating of your own. Www.jamesburks.com

jamesburks.com

James Burks

The online home of James Burks, children's book author and illustrator

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 28/01/2025

I just posted my latest newsletter on Substack. If you're interested, read all about how wanting to buy a hotdog cart led me to make stop-motion animation instead.

open.substack.com

From Hotdogs to Stop-Motion

How did an idea about buying a hotdog cart lead to making stop-motion and beyond?

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

The stop-motion adventure continues. Gilmore heads for the local Grub N Go for a quick bite to eat. #animation

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

Cover reveal. Happy to share the cover for my new graphic novel series—Boxtales! The first volume hits bookstores on Sept. 16, 2025. Click the link to read a sample and see the cover.

us.macmillan.com

Box Tales: Grow, Strawberries, Grow!

By veteran young reader graphic novel creator James Burkes comes, Box Tales, a trilogy of fun, charming, and how-to stories following the curious and spunky ...

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Kelly Sonnack (like "Sonic") @ksonnack.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

I took a bit of a break from social media but this is just the reason to return - CONGRATULATIONS ANALÍA! I'm so so happy ABLA gets to be the place where you build your list. Authors - get your submission packages polished!

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James Burks @jamesburks.bsky.social · 10/01/2025

Gilmore’s end-of-winter wake-up call arrived right on schedule. #stopmotion #animation #kidlit

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