SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: DEATH & SPARKLES AND THE SACRED GOLDEN CUPCAKE
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://robjustus.com/
CITY: Ottawa
STATE:
COUNTRY: Canada
NATIONALITY:
LAST VOLUME: SATA 386
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Children: two sons.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and illustrator. Previously worked as a market researcher for ten years.
AWARDS:Selected as the illustrator for the TD Summer Reading Club in Canada in 2022; Manitoba Young Readers Choice Award, 2023, for Death & Sparkles series.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Rob Justus is a children’s book writer and illustrator. After working for a decade as a market researcher, he turned his attention to storytelling and more creative pursuits. Justus draws from nature and his observations of the world around him to create curious scenes to attract his readers. Justus has published several picture books for younger readers, including Kid Coach, Death & Sparkles, and Brave Enough.
In an interview in Writers’ Rumpus, Justus spoke with Hilary Margitich about how he came to be a writer and illustrator. Justus recalled: “Growing up, I drew all the time. I wanted to be a comic book artist. That was kind of my thing and my dream. But at the time, I was discouraged from pursuing art because it wasn’t considered a safe, secure career path. It’s really competitive.” Justus explained that he got a job as a market researcher but was eventually laid off. Justus continued: “I started drawing again for the first time in about fifteen years. I started drawing cute little things for my niece and nephews, and got to see them have a fun reaction. Someone asked me if I had ever tried doing picture books, so I decided to try it. I re-taught myself how to draw, with color theory and composition. I have no formal art training whatsoever … zero. I read books on writing, watched YouTube videos on drawing, and just started playing around.”
In his debut picture book, Kid Coach, Justus tells the story of a young kid known as Kid Coach, who attempts to get his couch-potato father in shape to compete at Wrestle-Rumble Mania Kingdom Tournament of Champions. Dad does well in the early rounds of the competition, making use of his effective Tater Tangler move. However, Kid Coach is embarrassed that he did not teach his father how to be a good sport. Dad tries to get his competitors gifts to make amends for his behavior. However, it isn’t until he offers an apology that he is forgiven. Writing in School Library Journal, Chance Lee Joyner called the book “a playful title to remind readers that important lessons about sportsmanship can be learned at any age.”
In Death & Sparkles, the titular characters are an odd couple. Sparkles is the last living unicorn in the world. While promoting a sponsored product, Sparkles suffers a fatal flaw and meets Death, who has the bureaucratic powers of killing with a single touch. Three sentient extraterrestrial lizards replace Sparkles at the manager’s request. However, they believe in conservation and taking responsibility for planetary care, causing a rift between them and their new sponsorship duties. And Sparkles may not be dead after all. Reviewing the book in School Library Journal, Thomas Maluck opined that “introverts and extroverts alike will unite watching true friendship blossom between Death and a magic unicorn.” A Kirkus Reviews contributor suggested that “readers will be enchanted and will ponder for some time the ideas presented here.” The same reviewer labeled the book both “powerful and fun.”
In the picture book Brave Enough, Little Brother is afraid of monsters. He hides from them but is still curious enough to read about them. Little Brother’s sibling chides the boy for being afraid of monsters and brings him to an abandoned building to go hunting for them. The sibling claims that monsters do not exist. However, the two fall through a hole and come face to face with a large pink monster. Luckily, Little Brother knows exactly what to do because of having read up about monsters and prepared himself. A Kirkus Reviews contributor found the book to be “a charming tribute to sibling dynamics that will amuse anyone who’s been underestimated—but proven a hero in the end.”
[OPEN NEW]
The “Death & Sparkles” graphic novel series continues with Death & Sparkles and the Sacred Golden Cupcake. The unusual duo of Death and the Last Unicorn are off on another adventure when Sparkles’s horn starts to glow mysteriously. Then Sparkles receives a magic golden cupcake left by his parents, and the two have to get to the bottom of it—in the sewers. There they meet up with vengeful mole men, who are trying to steal the cupcake, even as Sparkles has an urge to dance and dance. “Endless visual jokes make each page turn rewarding,” wrote a reviewer in Kirkus Reviews. They called the book “uproarious” and wrote that it is “worth following to see where it crash-lands next.”
In describing his artistic approach in an interview with Writing and Illustrating, Justus said, “When I decided to go into children’s books my main goal was (and is) trying to keep it loose and simple. I’m constantly trying to simplify my art, while giving it a sense of action and fun.”
[CLOSE NEW]
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, September 1, 2019, Ronny Khuri, review of Kid Coach, p. 102.
Children’s Bookwatch, September, 2022, review of Crayola: Follow That Line!
Kirkus Reviews November 15, 2019, review of Kid Coach; July 15, 2021, review of Death & Sparkles; December 1, 2021, review of Brave Enough; October 15, 2023, review of Death & Sparkles and the Sacred Golden Cupcake.
School Library Journal, January 1, 2020, Chance Lee Joyner, review of Kid Coach, p. 58; December 1, 2021, Thomas Maluck, review of Death & Sparkles, p. 92.
ONLINE
Critter Lit, https://www.critterlit.com/ (February 6, 2020), Lindsay Ward, author interview.
Rob Justus website, https://robjustus.com/ (May 1, 2022), author website.
Writers’ Rumpus, https://writersrumpus.com/ (September 3, 2021), Hilary Margitich, author interview.*
Writing and Illustrating, https://kathytemean.wordpress.com (January 7, 2023), author interview.
Who is this guy?
Author. Illustrator. Nice guy.
Rob Justus is an award winning author, illustrator and graphic novelist. His graphic novel series Death & Sparkles won the Manitoba Young Reader’s Choice Award in 2023. In 2022, Rob was selected as the illustrator for the prestigious TD Summer Reading Club in Canada.
Prior to all this, Rob spent nearly a decade as a market researcher writing very bland reports. Taking a chance on himself, Rob decided to return to his childhood passion of drawing and storytelling and hasn’t looked back.
Rob has written and illustrated five picture books and two graphic novels. When Rob isn’t telling people that he draws unicorns for a living, he is wrangling his two young boys in Ottawa, Canada.
Friendly, approachable, and professional, Rob is always open to new opportunities and challenges.
Illustrator Saturday – Rob Justus
Rob Justus loves to create stories and imagery that capture the wonder, excitement and mysteries of childhood and the joy of exploration.
After spending nearly a decade as an award-winning market researcher, Rob decided to pursue a career that better suited his passion for creativity and storytelling.
Rob draws inspiration from nature, human observation, dreaming of the future and constantly wondering “what if?” His intent is to draw the audience in through curious scenes and composition leaving them wanting to know more.
Rob resides in the capital of the Great White North (which is not Toronto), where he greatly misses his recently passed bernese, Cooper.
Friendly, approachable, and professional, Rob is always open to new opportunities and challenges.
HERE’S ROB DISCUSSING HIS PROCESS:
So I thought I’d show you beautiful people my process for creating the cover to BRAVE ENOUGH. The cover process is pretty much the same as my regular process…so I guess I’m just showing you my process.
So as you can see below, the cover to BRAVE ENOUGH started as just a bunch of quick separated sketches that I knew I’d marry up in ProCreate.
Everything I do starts in my sketchbook. There’s no better feeling than pencil to paper for me. I try to keep everything as loose as possible while sketching, and just capture the essence I’m looking for, which is generally action motion. I use several coloured pencils while sketching, and I’m not sure why I do that. Just works for me and looks cool!
Next I take a quick photo of my sketchbook to import into ProCreate on my iPad Pro. I clean and put everything together in a digital sketch.
Since it’s the cover I tend to provide the publisher with a few options that I like. I let them make the choice, but I also let them know which one I prefer. Sometimes I get my choice and other times I don’t.
Once the publisher tells me which option they prefer, we talk a bit and I revise the sketch a little more until we have something that contains all the elements we want. So in this case it wasn’t too much adjusting. Shift the characters to make room for the title text. Show the monster a bit more and add some other spooky elements. Along with changing Little Brother’s facial expression.
Once the publisher likes the sketch, I start moving towards final art. This generally starts with the “flats” for the image, and figuring out some of the key colours to use too (You may not know this, but I like a busy colourful illustration). All the while, still making minor adjustments to the characters (We decided to change Big Sister’s hairstyle) and their placement too.
Once the flats are locked in, I start adding in a little bit more texture, shading and scribbly details. I find this helps add a lot more personality to the final image and keep it looking loose like it was in my sketchbook.
Then the publisher and I do a little more back and forth. We decide to add a little more ambience with a background, they insert the title, and BLAMMO! There you have it. A final amazing cover for an amazing book, BRAVE ENOUGH.
FINISHES COVER
INTERVIEW WITH ROB:
How long have you been illustrating?
Hmmmmm… Let me see. I guess I decided to make the jump from consulting to children’s book illustration about seven years ago now. I still feel like I’m brand new at this haha!
What and when was the piece of art that you did where someone paid you for your work?
The first piece of art I was paid for was a commission my friends hired me for. When I started out I did several commissions for peoples children and newborns in certain scenes. These were fun exercises that helped push me into drawing things I didn’t
normally draw. It was a great learning experience.
When did you start doing comic illustrations?
Growing up I wanted to be a comic book illustrator, and that’s what I mainly drew as a child and teenager. But it wasn’t until I was signed for Death & Sparkles that I switched my style to something more comic-like. The change in style was needed, so I could produce drawings/spreads of final art at a very fast rate. My record is 18 pages of final art a day. I think going forward I’ll continue to evolve my “comic style” with every title I release. Partly to suit the mood of the story and partly to draw as efficiently as possible.
What type of marketing research did you do?
Oof. I did a lot of types of marketing research. I guess mainly, I started as a data analyst and moved heavily into the qualitative research side, like focus group moderating and one-on-one interviews. I was (am?) a B2B specialist (Business to business), so I
worked on some pretty dry studies. That along with several other factors made me wonder if this is what I wanted to spend the rest of my life doing.
Did you do any illustrations for your research jobs?
None. BUT at that time I didn’t and hadn’t drawn in years.
When did you decide your wanted to illustrate children’s books?
I was in-between jobs when I started drawing again. My industry in my home town had collapsed and I had trouble finding a position at my level. So I thought that if I had to start over I might as well take a chance and try my hand at something completely new. That along with the sudden passing of a friend made me really reconsider what I wanted to do for a living. So I started writing simple stories for my niece and nephews. Then I decided that I’d take a chance at doing children’s books.
Has your little boy sparked ideas for your picture book writing and illustrating?
My son is three and his imagination is really taking off! He says these weird and hilarious things that are perfect scenarios for kids books. I’m developing a couple books right now based on some of the crazy things he’s said. It’s awesome.
I know you say you are a self-taught illustrator, but have you taken any illustrating classes to hone your techniques?
Honestly, I tell people now that I went to the school of YouTube haha! I did take one quick online course with the School of Visual Storytelling, which taught me a few things. I just try to learn and read about writing and drawing as much as possible. I’m always
curious about how other people work. I think it’s that natural curiosity about everything that suits self-learning for me.
When did you learn the ins and outs of digital art?
I’m mainly a digital artist (I don’t even know how to paint!). When I decided to seriously pursue illustration I just leaned directly into digital. It’s compact and convenient. I don’t need a big studio, just my iPad and stylus. I use a sketchbook during the ideas phase but other than that I work digitally.
How long did it take you to write and illustrate KID COACH?
Writing children’s picture books is a much longer journey than people may realize. The first version of what would later become KID COACH, was called DAD LOVES PRO WRESTLING. I wrote it and did a quick dummy for my agent in a couple weeks. That first version was in the end of 2017. Then I spent months revising it into KID COACH and even then I still did dozens of version before it was finalized. It’s fun looking back at all the different variations I made of it. By the time it was released in February 2020, I had spent two years working on it.
Were you still work at your marketing research job while working on KID COACH?
I was not. I just said I was going to do picture books and went whole hog into it!
How did you connect with agent Molly O’Neill and how long have you been with her?
I’ve been with Molly for over six years now. Where does the time go, eh? An editor that I had met at a SCBWI conference mentioned to me that Molly was looking for clients who both wrote and illustrated, so I emailed her some of my stuff and she signed me shortly
after that.
Was Molly responsible for your contract with Page Street Kids?
Molly is responsible for all my book contracts. Before I did sign with Page Street Kids I was lucky enough to have lunch with Kristen Noble, who was the creative director there at the time. She was so warm and welcoming, gave me a great big hug when we met and we really hit it off. Based on that lunch I think she decided I was worthy of signing me for Kid Coach.
Did you have a full book dummy to present to Molly and publishers?
I pretty much work mainly in dummies haha. I’ll write something out quickly, but since I’m a visual thinker I need to have a sense of how things will look laid out and paced with page turns.
When did you start working as a full time as a free-lance illustrator?
When I decided to become an illustrator I went straight into full-time illustrating.
What do you feel influenced your illustrating style?
As I mentioned earlier, I grew up drawing comics. I drew superheroes non-stop. But when I decided to go into children’s books my main goal was (and is) trying to keep it loose and simple. I’m constantly trying to simplify my art, while giving it a sense of action and fun.
What made you decide to write and illustrate DEATH AND SPARKLE: BOOK 1 a 368-page graphic novel?
I wanted to try my hand at middle grade graphic novels, and once I sat down and figured out who Death and Sparkles were and the world they existed in, that first book just poured out of me! My new goal for graphic novels is trying to write one that is less than 300 pages LOL! It is a lot of work!
When do you think Book 2 will come out?
I’m hoping it will be on the bookshelves this Fall. If not it’ll be early 2024. It’s pretty much finished, we’re just in the final phases before sending it off to print.
I just featured BRAVE ENOUGH on Writing and Illustrating. Was this part of the two book deal with Page Street kids?
Yes Brave Enough was part of a two book deal. That is definitely the bonus of having an amazing agent like Molly.
CRAYOLA: Follow That Line!: Magic at Your Fingertips looks like it is your first book you illustrated for another author. Do you think your will do more illustrated only books?
That book contract came out of no where, and I LOVED working on it. It was just so much fun. Writing is really hard for me, so working on FOLLOW THAT LINE was just awesome. I’ll gladly do just the illustrations on more books. It helps that I work very quickly, so I can work on multiple projects at once.
Do you think living in Ottawa has hindered you in anyway?
Ottawa is a government town. Everyone either works for the government or Shopify. So personally I feel there aren’t a ton of creatives in Ottawa, so its hard for people to relate to what I do.
Do you have opportunities to do school visits in Ottawa?
I have done a handful of library visits this past summer as Canada was opening up a bit more from the pandemic. I really hope to do more visits. They’re super fun!
Would you consider illustrating a book for an author who wants to self-publish?
I consider every opportunity. I really do. That said, someone self-publishing might not realize how much it might cost to hire a published professional illustrator.
Have you done any illustrating for children’s magazines? Which ones?
I have! I’ve worked with Highlights magazine a few times, as well as Chickdee and Chirp magazine in Canada. Always fun assignments!
What do you think is your biggest success so far?
My biggest success so far is that I get to tell people that I draw unicorns for a living haha! DEATH & SPARKLES holds a very special place in my heart. Growing up all I wanted to do was make comics, and after a very round-about journey I’m finally achieving a lifelong dream.
Do you try to spend a specific amount of time working on your craft?
Not as much as I want to. Having a two young boys under three occupies a lot of time. I’m hoping in the near future I can resettle into a good routine. Right now I just wrangling kids!
Do you take pictures or research a project before you start?
In the early phases of my books I’ll do a little bit of research. Maybe it’ll be to learn to draw something I haven’t drawn before – building up that muscle-memory. Or it’ll be making sure I understand an obscure background concept, but once I get the hang of
something I’m off and running!
Do you think the Internet has opened doors for you?
Totally. Being in Ottawa, Canada, you have to use the internet to make contacts and get your name out there.
Do you own or have you used a Graphic Drawing Tablet when illustrating?
As I mentioned earlier, I pretty much live on my iPad Pro. These Apple Pencil was a reel
game changer for me.
Do you use Photoshop or Painter or Procreate with your illustrations?
I used to draw in Photoshop, but my last few books have been done completely in Procreate. I can’t speak highly enough of Procreate.
Do you have any career dreams you want to fulfill?
I do. I’m a very ambitious person, but the pandemic and having kids now has made me start to refocus what I want in life. But yes, I want to conquer the world. 😀
What are you working on now?
I’m working on a bunch of fun stuff right now. After I had finished the heavy lifting with DEATH & SPARKLES 2, it was the first time in years that I had free time to start developing new books/series. I have a lot of fun ideas that I’m fleshing out. I really want to do a picture book love letter to LEGO. That will be a very different type of book than what you’re used to seeing from me. I’m also taking a crack at early reader chapter books, and just a ton of other silly concepts. It’s exciting and rejuvenating.
Do you have any material type tips you can share with us? Example: Paint or paper that you love – the best place to buy – a new product that you’ve tried – A how to tip, etc.
Not really. I’m a firm believer that if something works for you, keep working that way. Just do you!
Any words of wisdom on how to become a successful writer or illustrator?
I tell everyone who is thinking about taking this leap is that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. It’s about hanging in there and learning from your mistakes and setbacks. Just keep growing.
Rob, thank you for taking the time to answer the interview questions and sharing your process. Please let me know about your future books and successes so I can share them with everyone.
You can visit Rob using the following links:
WEBSITE: https://robjustus.com/
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/robjustus/
LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-justus-99837963/?originalSubdomain=ca
AGENCY: http://www.mollyoneillbooks.com/illustrator-gallery#/rob-justus
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
Rob Justus
BIO
Rob Justus is an award winning author, illustrator and graphic novelist. His graphic novel series Death & Sparkles won the Manitoba Young Reader’s Choice Award in 2023. In 2022, Rob was selected as the illustrator for the prestigious TD Summer Reading Club in Canada. Prior to all this, Rob spent nearly a decade as a market researcher writing very bland reports. Taking a chance on himself, Rob decided to return to his childhood passion of drawing and storytelling and hasn’t looked back. Rob has written and illustrated five picture books and two graphic novels. When Rob isn’t telling people that he draws unicorns for a living, he is wrangling his two young boys in Ottawa, Canada.
ADDRESSCity: Orleans, Province/Territory: Ontario
EMAILrobjustus@gmail.com
GENREPicture Books, Middle Grade Graphic Novels, Early Reader Books
LANGUAGESEnglish
PUBLICATIONS
Title
Death & Sparkles and the Sacred Golden Cupcake
Publisher
Chronicle Books
Year
2023
Title
Death & Sparkles
Publisher
Chronicle Books
Year
2021
Title
Crayola Follow That Line!
Publisher
Running Press Kids
Year
2022
Title
Brave Enough
Publisher
Page Street Kids
Year
2022
Title
Kid Coach
Publisher
Page Street Kids
Year
2020
AWARDS
Name
Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Awards
Publication
Death And Sparkles
Year
2023
LINKS
https://robjustus.com/
PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS AND WORKSHOPS
PROGRAMS & INTERESTSInterested in participating Union’s Ontario Writers-in-the-Schools program:
Yes
Interested in participating in the Northern Ontario WITS program:
Yes
Justus, Rob DEATH & SPARKLES AND THE SACRED GOLDEN CUPCAKE Chronicle Books (Children's None) $22.99 11, 28 ISBN: 9781797206370
Two adventures collide in an uproarious combination of heritage and revenge in this second series entry.
Opposing journeys, told across alternating chapters, provide insight into unicorns' less savory qualities. In one tale, four orphaned moles end up in the care of unicorn society, where they're assigned gardening duties. While the moles toil under the belief that they're earning a higher status, they end up facing even more discrimination, including in unicorn court. Meanwhile, Sparkles has a glowing horn, a magic golden cupcake from his parents, and a restless urge to dance somewhere unknown for an uncertain reason. Death tags along like the friend he is. Sparkles endangers himself and others with his carelessly confident manner, instigating an argument between the two friends. Seeing ostensibly silly characters push each other into new growth, such as Sparkles experiencing humility and self-doubt or Death becoming a prankster, creates suitable dramatic foils for all the absurd humor surrounding them. The inevitable showdown with the scene-stealing moles leads to new stars in the series cast. Endless visual jokes make each page turn rewarding, from the moles' wide variety of traps to some winking references to green pipes from a certain video game franchise. A recurring gag in which someone delivers a wall of text, only to be ignored, speaks to the relaxed nature of the story.
An expansion of unicorn lore worth following to see where it crash-lands next. (sketches) (Graphic adventure. 10-14)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2023 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Justus, Rob: DEATH & SPARKLES AND THE SACRED GOLDEN CUPCAKE." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Oct. 2023, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A768633549/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=8cf11ca1. Accessed 20 Feb. 2024.
Crayola: Follow That Line!
JaNay Brown-Wood, author
Rob Justus, illustrator
Running Press Kids
c/o Running Press
www.runningpress.com
9780762475025, $15.99, HC, 32pp
https://www.amazon.com/Crayola-Follow-That-Magic-Fingertips/dp/0762475021
Synopsis: With "Crayola: Follow That Line!: Magic at Your Fingertips" children will have fun using their fingers to follow a line and help it burst into color. They will fully enjoy making magic with blooming flowers, tall mountain tops, splashing waves, and more by tracing lines with all four fingers and the thumb. Celebrating the power of creating artwork with Crayola products "Crayola: Follow That Line!: Magic at Your Fingertips" is a delightful and brightly interactive book.
Critique: Thoroughly 'kid friendly' in organization and presentation, "Crayola: Follow That Line!: Magic at Your Fingertips" is a unique interactive adventure for children ages 4-8. While also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.99), "Crayola: Follow That Line!: Magic at Your Fingertips" is particularly recommended for family, daycare center, preschool, elementary school, and community library collections for children ages 4-8.
Editorial Note #1: JaNay Brown-Wood's first children's book Imani's Moon won the NAESP Children's Book of the Year Award and her second book Grandma's Tiny House: A Counting Story! won the CELI Read Aloud Book Award. She also has several poems published in Highlights for Kids, Highlights High Five, and the poetry anthology Thanku: Poems of Gratitude (Lerner/Millbrook, 2019). She has a dedicated website at https://www.janaybrownwood.com
Editorial Note #2: Rob Justus is a former market researcher turned picture book author/illustrator and graphic novelist. He has a dedicated website at https://robjustus.com
Editorial Note #3: Crayola LLC, based in Easton, Pa. and a business of Hallmark Cards, Inc., is the worldwide leader in children's creative expression products. Known for the iconic Crayola Crayon first introduced in 1903, the Crayola brand has grown into a portfolio of innovative art tools, crafting activities, and creativity toys that offer children innovative new ways to use color to create everything imaginable.
Please Note: Illustration(s) are not available due to copyright restrictions.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2022 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com/cbw/index.htm
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Crayola: Follow That Line!" Children's Bookwatch, Sept. 2022, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A724099767/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=4daee7fe. Accessed 20 Feb. 2024.