iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

Late post for #kidlitpostcard day, a throwback to something i made for #FolktaleWeek 2022 when i worked on a mashup of Emily Dickinson X Cinderella.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 14/06/2025

YOU GUYS... I think I'm gonna go to a #NOKINGS rally tomorrow... I should make a poster... any suggestions? Maybe I'll modify an old art poster I made for the original protests in 2017.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

Tool: playing a lo-fi music calm animation YouTube channel in the background as I write & draw for my #kidlit projects in my studio :) It’s like I have a little friend reading next to me :) #author #illustrator

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

#kidlitchat My recurring ones are… “broken” or “it’s not working” and getting back up”…. :P

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

Hi #kidlitchat! Long time no… chat :D… For today’s topic- I’m generally not too surprised by the subtexts in my work… I come back to familiar themes again and again… wait am I defining subtext correctly? I gotta look it up haha

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

A present!! 1949 Underwood Champion typewriter, pretty much perfect condition as far as I can tell, got it at an estate sale yesterday!

Photo of a 1949 typewriter, model is Underwood Champion

Words typed out on new (to me!) typewriter

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

Hey @studiobeancan.bsky.social thx for help w/my ?s re. what to submit > @kidscomicsunite.bsky.social Pitchfest 2025! Ended up going w/most finished story like u said. Also realized, I can be wedded to who my characters are AND be willing to re-configure how I write their story. Which: FUN! #kidlit

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

I went into The Shrinking Pod, but turns out, it morphed and slid into another dimension, a world like ours but not ours, where I couldn't get to know my main characters as a peer, but I was able to be a passerby and Yes! I witnessed their friendship meet cute! Thrilling! #kidlit #amwriting

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

And now… I am entering The Shrinking Pod, to live amongst my 2 main characters in their tiny world, to find them and see what they’re up to, asking them how they met, and hoping to befriend them if they’ll have me. I think they will. They are loveable and aren’t I also? 🤪 #kidlit #amwriting

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Reposted by Maritza Ruiz-Kim

Kids Comics Studio Anthology @kcsanthology.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

#KidsComicsLetsGo... MEET anthologist @kidlitedna.com. Edna's picture book HONU AND MOA is an Aesop Accolades recipient - so her anthology comic will be good! Support her work editing our Newsletter by subscribing at: bit.ly/kcu-studio-a... #KidsComicsStudioAnthology #kidscomics #kidlitart #kidlit

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Reposted by Maritza Ruiz-Kim

Teresa Robeson @teresarobeson.com · 21/02/2025

Tell the stories of Trump's victims. open.substack.com/pub/roberthu...

open.substack.com

Tell the stories of Trump's victims.

February 20, 2025

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

Something I gotta look into... Making a Starter Pack or.. a Feed instead?... of SF Bay Area KidLit people coz... seeing you folx IRL is so energizing and helps this little artist writer keep on keepin' on.... Who would be interested in this info? Thoughts? #kidlit

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

Seeing fellow #KidLit folx IRL, well it's just pretty dang niiiice isn't it? And also-- lots of *wows* hearing about the upcoming books! (Hey Jerrold does Tony have a 🦋?)  :D @mikejungwroteabook.bsky.social @stephlaubooks.com @mdashow.bsky.social @studiobeancan.bsky.social

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 20/02/2025

Yahooo Jerrold! A starred review!

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

Onwards to the Imaginary Places, where I find the stories that haunt me in good ways (aka- I'm going to work/write/draw now) haha #kidlit

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

You guys (who were there) remember when Twitter was like, a place to say writerly stuff out loud, the way you wish you could say things in the moment during hang outs with people, and you could be interesting instead of awkward, and it felt so real?

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

You know what feels like *The Worst*? Being worried people will see me as a Try Hard, but OMG I am trying really freaking hard and I can't stop.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

What happens with the replies I add to my own posts? Are those also invisible? Am I the kind of invisible that might come with perks, like, can I observe uncreepily without being seen, OOO!! can I go into the white house and invisibly observe and expose it all!?! Now that would be something.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

How raw should I be about how sad it feels to think like nothing is ever gonna go anywhere with my work? No one ever gonna see it, no one ever gonna really want it, but you know Great Effort! Nice try! Love ya! you know... heh heh i know there is no hashtag oh this, no feed visibility prolly 🤷‍♀️

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

Wah hahaha @roricomics.bsky.social said we gotta be Tumblr feral on Bluesky, didn't she?!? but what if I am a cuddly fluffy guinea pig who startles easily!?! // @kidscomicsunite.bsky.social 😂

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

A Fast Comic :) 🔎 What is the size of federal workforce vs. US population, compared to 1980? 🔎 Who are “private contract worker” = “non-profit”? What about “for-profit”? 🔎 What “for-profit” industries contract with the federal government? 🔎 Where is good data (not anecdotal) on this & how defined?

Black & White Comic
A child speaks with a man who says "You have too much, so I'm going to throw it all away." She replies "No" while hiding & protecting an object called Critical Thinking behind her back.
Nearby, Security, Service, Stability, Statistics, and Support are in a Garbage can, and Peace, Public Health, Promises, and People are in a Waste Basket.
A man at a desk has a pile of objects called Keep. Those items are: Easy Content, Self-Interest, and Polarization.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

I get the best progress when I start with *heart*.. what's the feeling, the need, the hope, the drive... :) #kidlitchat

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

Plantser here! Best of both worlds I suppose. Need to plan things out (maybe coz of disability stuff?) then I freestyle within what I've come up with. Freestyle as in... not just the material, but approach, too. Draw? Write? Thumbnail? Observational sketch? Who knows where it will lead! #kidlitchat

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

This morning I did a fast comic and didn’t agonize over details… I stuck with messy & posted… and I think I’ll do it again. I’m thinking the activity of drawing/writing + sharing will be more fun & more consistent if I shake off the perfectionism, right? #kidlitchat PS not sure of today’s topic yet

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

Hello! Here's something I did this morning... whadayathink? 🧐 If you like this fast comic I made, please do the things that will let me know you like it (buttons, words, etc) otherwise I’ll just make em when I feel like it since I’ll wonder if people are seeing it 😜 Much luv, maritza

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Reposted by Maritza Ruiz-Kim

Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Hello! I'm Maritza (sounds like 🧜‍♀️mer-izza🍕) I love to illustrate spunky kids and luscious landscapes and spirited animals! I work in watercolor, brush & ink, and digital. maritzaruizkim.com www.instagram.com/marzkim_illu...

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Reposted by Maritza Ruiz-Kim

Debbie Ridpath Ohi @debbieohi.com · 09/02/2025

To #KidLit ILLUSTRATORS seeking representation: Pls reply with ONE post that incl. a #KidLitArt image (include alt-text), link to your online portfolio and/or IG, other info if you can fit it in ONE post. (***READ INSTRUCTIONS before replying 👇🏼***) debbieohi.com/2025/02/are-...

Kidlit Illustrators seeking representation: Reply with one comment that includes one image. Make sure your image includes identifying info in case it is shared. In your comment text, including link to your portfolio and/or Instagram URL. If you can fit it in the one comment: include info about what kind of kidlit illustration work you are seeking. Please ONLY post in thread if you are the illustrator seeking rep.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Great #kidlitchat everyone! Lovely connecting with you all!

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

This might be a slight tangent on the tech prompt, but does anyone else have issues recalling where you put that note that is relevant to your project? Notes app, Scrivener, Procreate, Goodnotes app, Google drive... in addition to *which sketchbook*?!? hahaha #kidlitchat

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Hello all y'all btw! I'm back after hibernating in a cave to work on my portfolio (and my PB book dummy) for the SCBWI NY conference :D #kidlitchat on bluesky 🦋

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Technology has been a part me creating stuff since I was a kiddo in prehistoric days... hellooo fellow MacPaint users from the 80s ! #kidlitchat

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 08/11/2024

@sallymkim.bsky.social hi Sally! I meant to post this after the @scbwisf.bsky.social Golden Gate kidlit conference but didn’t get to it until now. Does this little sketch ring a bell? 😆🥭🧡🧡🧡 “Even mangoes don’t sell themselves”! ☺️

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 04/11/2024

Honestly, it’s hard for me to post political editorial illustrations, not just coz I’m a sensitive artist 😝 but because I fear adding to discontent… but I’m posting *because* I can’t stand the deceptive divisiveness, seeing people disbelieve the fascism or excusing it… 😞 #kidlitartist #votekamala

Illustration with word art, showing US president who presided over attack on US Capitol and incited his followers to violence

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 23/10/2024

Lulu doesn't want to go out. Meet new people? She just wants to stay home! But off they go. Sunlight gives way to starry Mojave skies as they drive. Finding comfort in playful imaginings, Lulu opens her heart to possibility of finding good in new places. DESERT DRIVE IN THE NIGHTTIME #skypitch #PB

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 23/10/2024

Wait I'm on the west coast, this snuck up on me! 😅 It's ok, I'll catch up! #kidlitpitch #skypitch

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 23/10/2024

Hi #kidlitchat! The thing I do here that I can't do as much on instagram is... asking questions, posting random Very Important Thoughts 😂😂, sharing resources, and #kidlitchat!

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 18/10/2024

Who's got some tips on best ergonomics practices when using procreate on a tablet for hours and hours? #kidlitart I've been working on portfolio pieces and redesigning my dummy books so yeah, my drawing arm hurts.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 11/10/2024

Here’s a little pic from the graphic novel pitch I posted to @KidLitGN’s 2024 pitch event😎 Moose & Slushie Solve a Thing an early reader graphic novel :) 🐭🟢🔎 #kidlitart #kidlitartist #kidlit kidlitgn.com/early-gns/#c...

Moose and Slushie (a mouse and a slug) look at an object dug up from Slushie's back yard. It's a cell phone.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 11/10/2024

I'm watching this right now! (LOL- "official chisme session) Currently scanning bluesky to see if there are posts to share about the last Festival Friday of the Latinx KidLit Book Festival, watchable tomorrow live on youtube www.latinxkidlitbookfestival.com/2024-festival #LKBF24

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 09/10/2024

I've been ODing on Tana French books lately :)... I read The Witch Elm when it came out but just recently started the Dublin murder squad ones. :) #kidlitchat I love her nature descriptions

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 09/10/2024

I'm terrible at giving straight answers for some questions but I'll try! #kidlitchat is asking what defines a cozy read.... So... Depends... I get get cozy while reading it, or is it about cozy things? As autumn cools, I like a good spooky read, which makes me want to curl up in a good way.

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 08/10/2024

Moose & Slushie gather all the undercover detective essentials. :) #scbwiArtober2024 Day 7= Hats

Mouse and slug characters getting dressed for detective work including Sherlock hat & cape

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Maritza Ruiz-Kim @marzkim.bsky.social · 07/10/2024

Here's my #scbwiArtober2024 Day 6, "Crispy"! :) :) This was the first thing that popped in my mind... Eating the crispiest crispies in a quiet movie theater 😆

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