Kids book
“Shipwreck Over Safety” Podcast
Earlier in January, I taped an episode of the podcast “Shipwreck Over Safety” with Dallas Verity & Blair Roberts. We had a great conversation about art, deconstructing our faith and sexuality. If that interests you, give it a listen! Available below, and also on Spotify & Apple podcasts.
LGBTQ Workshop Event UPDATE – Partnering with SheLoves!
Jan 22 UPDATE: GIVEAWAY! I’m going to sign a personalized Rainbow Boy for someone who comes tomorrow! I hope to see you there, grab your ticket before 10AM PST!
You may have seen my post about recording a video workshop telling my gay Christian story, for a Christian conference, and then them dropping the LGBTQ speakers. (Original story here.)
I am SO excited to share I have a NEW PARTNER to share my story – shelovesmagazine! This event will be open to EVERYONE whether you are in Canada or the US (or beyond!). So PLEASE friends all over, come join us Saturday, Jan 23 @ 10AM Pacific Time! We will all gather virtually, screen my video workshop and have a Q & A time after. I would LOVE to see some friendly virtual faces so it’s not just me alone in a Zoom room. 😀
Tickets are available on Eventbrite – fee is a sliding scale, so if things are tough, please don’t worry about paying anything and just come. More info is below.
About this Event
LIBERATION STORIES: Join us for a powerful personal story from Artist Stacey Chomiak on Owning Her Gay Christian Story (Plus Q & A)
WHAT: LIBERATION STORIES: Owning My Gay Christian Story, with Stacey Chomiak.
WHEN: Saturday, January 23 at 10am PST / 1pm EST / 6pm GMT
WHERE: Register on Eventbrite and hosted on Eventbrite.
COST: Tickets available at a sliding scale, starting from free through $20 plus fees. (Limited quantity.)
“For 13 years, I fought against my body and my heart and its innate desires,” says Stacey Chomiak, an artist in the animation industry. “I grew to hate them, because I was taught to do so. I believed my desires were bad and therefore I believed I was bad. I had to finally admit that I couldn’t pray my gay away any more than I could change the color of my eyes. I didn’t want to leave my faith, because Jesus and I had a very deep relationship.”
Join us for this powerful hour of Liberation Stories.
ABOUT SHELOVES:
SheLoves is a global sisterhood conversation on personal and collective liberation. We focus on deconstructing faith, practising allyship, antiracism, decolonization and the Jesus kind of feminism.
Rainbow Boy – in my hands!
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsSHEESH this was so exciting to open with my kids! My #illustrator copies of #RainbowBoy came today! Can’t wait for the world to get theirs Jan 19th!! 🎉❤️🌈 @BeamingBooksMN @TaylorRouanzion #kidlit #queerkidlit #picturebook #lgbtqartist pic.twitter.com/qCEm78GQI1
— Stacey Chomiak (@stacerchomiak) January 9, 2021
THIS was a GREAT. MOMENT. I received my illustrator copies of RAINBOW BOY, and my kids helped me open the box and see it for themselves. These illustrations have lived on my computer for a while now, but it was so surreal to see them printed. IN A BOOK. AN ACTUAL BOOK!
The book is dedicated to them, and they thought it was super cool that their names are both in the front of the book. (I think it’s super cool, too.) We cuddled together on the couch and they each clutched their own copy tightly as I took turns reading their copy. At the end of the book there’s a little picture of Taylor (the author) and me (the illustrator), and my kids said “Hi Mommy!” and kissed my picture.
And that is what I will remember as a huge WIN in my life.
Get YOUR copy on January 19th! Order or find wherever good books are sold!
Rainbow Boy’s almost here!
It feels like yesterday when my agent Claire sent me the first email about Rainbow Boy. Beaming Books was publishing it, and looking for an illustrator – and they were hoping I would be interested in doing it. A picture book about a gender non-conforming boy who loves tutus AND basketball? What’s not to like?!??!
I’m so grateful the author Taylor Rouanzion wrote this story – it is so needed! It publishes one month today on Jan 19, 2021. (Eeeeeek! Starting 2021 off right!) I can’t wait to hold it, and even more exciting – to see my kids hold and read it. First of many dreams to come true. Did you order your copy yet?? 🙂
“Rainbow Boy” book announcement
Friends, I have some exciting news!
With the help of my agent Claire at The Bent Agency, I’ve been hired by Beaming Books to illustrate a really adorable picture book entitled “Rainbow Boy” (written by Taylor Rouanzion)! I’ve been working on it for a little while, but it was officially announced this week in Publisher’s Marketplace!
Here’s the official announcement. Stay tuned for updates! 
UPDATE JAN 5, 2020: RAINBOW BOY is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca (for my Canadian friends)! It releases in September – and I am working hard now on the rest of the illustrations! Until then, here is the cover and a sample spread of the inside. 🙂
“Dear Younger (gay) Me” Book Update
MARCH 2020 UPDATE: We accepted a book deal from Beaming Books and it was announced on March 5, 2020! Details below:
https://staceychomiak.com/2020/03/24/announcing-a-dream-come-true/
My agent Claire and I have been working hard on this for the last few weeks, and hopefully soon I will have more news to share!
This project has just poured out of me, like a pitcher full of water finally being emptied. In my 18 years as an artist, I have never quite had that feeling before. Usually I struggle with getting what’s in my head onto the page/screen. I’m really excited to finish it, and for everyone to get the chance to read it! I have a lot more work [drawing] to do, but I feel so incredibly grateful to work on it every chance I get. Here are the latest illustrations I have done – they will make more sense with the text. 🙂
Stay tuned for the full story and publishing updates!
My “Stranger Things” Golden Book
I love Netflix’s “Stranger Things”. Who doesn’t? And I love Golden Books. So I thought, why not combine them for a fun exercise??
I tried to work my way through Season 1 [with full-time work and a toddler], so I only made 10 pages so far. With the new baby coming, I will pause this for now, but hopefully will come back to finish it later. It’s been fun to do!
See what I have so far: [all pages done digitally in Photoshop]
Stay tuned for more! 🙂
“Downside Up” book is for sale NOW!
This is exciting news for me! The book that my friend Peter Walker wrote, “Downside Up”, and I have illustrated for almost two years is for sale on Amazon NOW! It is also available in Barnes & Noble bookstores in the States! You can buy it Amazon.com or Amazon.ca 🙂 And if you like it, please feel free to leave a review!
This is the first project that I have worked on that I have fully been able to combine my art and my faith, and I am so excited it is available for purchase! It’s also the first published book I have illustrated 🙂
Feel free to like the Facebook page for more updates! Here is a synopsis of the book: “A picture book for grown-ups! Satire and humor in rhyme and verse about Jesus, the church, and what’s gone wrong! Is there any reason for hope?”
A couple teaser illustrations:
The front and back covers:
A Kids Book – Work in Progress
For quite a while now I have been working on illustrating a kids book with a friend of mine who has written one, and figured out all the publishing details. My life and work at the studio has kept me very busy and has made this project go very slowly…. but it is getting there one page at a time!
I have done roughs, a rough colour script, and so far two of the spreads. Here is a cropped sneak peek of two of the spreads.
Stay tuned for more!
