I am Christine Sharp: author, illustrator, book designer, editor and photographer.
I seem to have a calling to creativity.
I am either dreaming up a creative project – be it a book, an artwork or something else – or getting behind other people’s ideas – helping people bring their vision to life.
I have worked in the creative industries for around 25 years, across the literary, visual and performing arts. As well as birthing books (the thing I do most often, these days), I have worn (and still wear) various creative hats. Things like narrator, actor, singer, publicist, graphic designer, proofreader, presenter, photographer, voiceover artist, arts marketer and even (many moons ago) dancer.
While I have, over the last ten years, delved deeply into the world of words and become a maker of books (no, not a bookmaker – that is an entirely different profession), I love to draw on my broad spectrum of creative superpowers to make ‘good things’. I especially love to make things of beauty, of heart and soul, and of benefit to the planet.
At the time of writing, I have written, illustrated and designed three picture books for children, all published by UQP: Bea (2013), Sylvia (2014) and Bertha and Bear (2017). I have co-authored, designed, edited and photographed a cookbook called Eat Local: Food, Farming and Conversation in the Scenic Rim (2016) with the extraordinary Brenda Fawdon for the Scenic Rim Regional Council, and we are currently working on Eat Local Volume 2, due to be released in May 2018. You can read more about my books here.
Currently, I am working with Brenda Fawdon on her new venture Real Food School, an online platform for food education and recipes, focusing on local, seasonal and sustainable produce.
I also create books for clients. Over the past ten years, I have designed, edited or illustrated over one hundred books for various authors, organisations and publishers. You can read about how I can help you bring your book or idea to life here.
Besides all things ‘book’, some things that stir my blood are the ever-changing sky, whole food, dreaming, kitchen gardening, the sea, my fireplace, visualisation, abstract painting, eucalypts, movement and music, sweet music.
If you are interested in qualifications, I hold a Master of Arts (Research) in Writing for Youth & Children, QUT, 2010; a Graduate Diploma in Creative Industries, Creative Writing, QUT, 2007; and an Associate Diploma of Expressive and Performing Arts, UNSW, 1991. Basically, I am qualified to write, edit and be creative, which is fortunate, as that is what I do.
I am represented by the wonderful Jo Butler, literary agent with Cameron’s Management.
(All photos of me have been taken by Natalie McComas.)