#86 The Way of an Author and Illustrator: Finding Inspiration in Art Featuring Bob Eckstein

Bob Eckstein (he/him) is an award-winning illustrator, writer, and cartoonist for the New Yorker, New York Times, Reader's Digest, Smithsonian Magazine, Atlas Obscura, and many others. His Footnotes from the World's Greatest Bookstores was a New York Times bestseller and made many ‘Best Of’ 2016 lists and continues to be an ‘Amazon Most Wished for Title’ years later. He is also the author of The History of the Snowman, The Illustrated History of the Snowman, and The Complete Book of Cat Names (That Your Cat Won't Answer to Anyway). 

His work has been exhibited in the Cartoon Art Museum of San Francisco, Smithsonian Institute, The Cartoon Museum of London, and many others. Eckstein has spoke in over a 200 TV and radio shows like Good Morning America and places like NYPL, Miami Book Fair, The Norman Rockwell Museum, and The Grolier Club. He teaches writing and cartooning around the world including School of Visual Arts, New York University, Pratt Institute and Yonsei University in South Korea. His new book is Footnotes from the Most Fascinating Museums: Stories and Memorable Moments from People Who Love Museums. 

In this episode:

• How Bob started his unlikely career in writing 

• Advice for writing stories from a different lens

• Pivoting in your career to discover new forums for your work 

• Bob’s live drawing process and how to learn, and grow, while remaining authentic

• Emerging into a state of playfulness with your work

• Bob and Estelle’s actionable tips for writers 

Connect with Bob:

Website: https://eckstein2.wixsite.com/mysite-1

Book: https://www.amazon.com/Footnotes-Most-Fascinating-Museums-Memorable/dp/1797224395/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bob_eckstein/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BobEckstein?lang=en

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bobeckstein1?lang=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bob.eckstein

Substack: https://thebob.substack.com

Podcast: The Cartoon Pad: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cartoon-pad/id1561378159

If you purchase Bob’s new book, Footnotes from the Most Fascinating Museums this month (May 2024), as a thanks, you will receive a free lifetime subscription to his popular humor newsletter The Bob. You need to notify him by email you bought a copy at snowmanexpert@gmail.com—he is using the honor system. 

FREE PITCHING GUIDE: Find out more about this episode at 

https://estelleserasmus.com/podcast. You also get a free pitching guide if you sign up for her newsletter.

Sign up for Estelle’s Micro Memoir Workshop with Writer’s Digest on May 23

https://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/courses/making-your-mark-with-micro-memoir

Sign up for Estelle’s online Editor-on-Call Event in Partnership with NYU on June 13

“Making the Cut” with editor for The Cut, Jen Ortiz

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