J.K. Rowling Announces Illustration Competition for “The Ickabog”

by · May 27, 2020

J.K. Rowling has been making a lot of kids (and adults) very happy during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, she released Harry Potter at Home, which is now a source of infinite magical fun for old and young alike, and now she’s announced a brand-new children’s book that, let’s be honest, all the adults probably can’t wait to get their hands on. Rowling announced this new book, titled The Ickabog, on Twitter, and the announcement was met with a lot of excitement. Since then, more details about the book have surfaced. As it turns out, this will be unlike any other book Rowling has ever released, because this time around, its audience is getting the chance to be a part of the project.

This is a call to all the young creative witches and wizards between the ages of 7 and 12 to let their imaginations run wild and immerse themselves in a fun project. If you can draw or paint, sharpen those pencils and dust off your paintbrushes. The Ickabog needs an illustrator, and that person might be you.

 

 

A new chapter (or two) of the book will be released every weekday between May 26 and June 10. If you fall within the age group, your job is to read it, dive into the world of the story, and come up with illustrations that capture the chapters’ events. Rowling will be making suggestions for possible drawings to go with each chapter as the story progresses, so you’ll always have a place to go back to for inspiration, but what she really wants is for young artists to let their imaginations run wild.

Parents or guardians need to enter the artwork for the competition on behalf of their children via the publisher’s own website as set aside for each country. The competition is already open to residents from Canada and the United States, as well as residents from Australia, India, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Residents of Canada and the US can enter via the US publisher’s competition while residents of the other countries mentioned can enter via the UK publisher’s competition. Those who do not reside in these countries but would love to enter will be happy to hear that the competition will be extended to other countries soon. Keep checking the competition page for updates.

Rowling revealed that she will not be making the final decision regarding the illustrations featured in the published book since that will depend on each country’s publisher. That doesn’t mean that she doesn’t want to see all the artwork. She encouraged artists to share their work with her on Twitter, and she has already retweeted a few. We have to admit, the publishers are going to have a very hard time making a final decision.

 

 

 

 

Rowling wrote The Ickabog over ten years ago, and we couldn’t be happier that she decided to share it with the world during this time. While chapters will be released online every weekday, the book (with its illustrations) will be published in November of this year. Rowling also pledged to donate the royalties she receives from book sales toward groups that are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The first two chapters of The Ickabog are already available on The Ickabog‘s official website, so make yourself a nice cup of tea and dive into this brand-new world. When you’re done reading, let us know what you think.

Marica Laing

Growing up, I was a massive fan of Harry Potter and my love for the stories grew as I got older. It’s no surprise then that I love writing about all things Potter related. When I’m not writing about all the magic, you’ll find me reading (probably something Harry Potter related), listening to music, or writing some songs.