Inaugural poet Amanda Gorman to launch kids’s guide illustrated by Cincinnati artist

The 22-year-old inaugural poet who caught the world’s attention is working with a Cincinnati illustrator on a children’s book due out this fall. Excerpts from Amanda Gorman’s original poem “The Hill We Climb” took over social media on Wednesday. The praise and admiration poured in while Gorman was still reciting the poem. “We learned that calm is not always peace. And the norms and ideas of ‘just is’ are not always justice,” said Gorman. Her words were full of compassion and conviction, and her delivery was eloquent and confident, especially considering her youth. “Yes, we are far from polished, far from flawless, but that does not mean that we are striving to form a perfect union. We are striving to forge a union on purpose to form a country that is all Cultures, colors, characters and conditions of people, “said Gorman. “And so we don’t look at what’s between us, but at what’s in front of us.” Loren Long watched the speech from his Cincinnati art studio and was moved to tears. “It’s going to be one of those moments that we all remember,” he said. “I got up in the middle of my studio and just watched her and was just blown away.” Long is currently bringing Gorman’s first children’s book Change Sings to life through pictures. He illustrates the book, which is due out on September 21st. It can currently be pre-ordered. Long rushed to illustrate the book’s cover after Long was selected as the inaugural poet. “So I just did this cover last week and we sent it out into the world,” he said. “These are really powerful words and they say great things, but as an illustrator you have to condense them and, in a way, bring your own narrative into what it writes.” Long said he was honored to be part of the project, especially given Long’s performance on a world stage. He has been authoring and illustrating children’s books for almost three decades. One of the most famous picture books he has illustrated is Barack Obama’s Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters. “I feel like I have somehow influenced people’s lives,” he said. “And it’s not rocket science. I don’t cure cancer, but I give people moments together.” Long said Gorman’s children’s book touches on some of the topics she talked about during the inauguration. He hopes it will serve as a beacon of hope that will also help unite. “It’s an honor for me. It’s humble,” he said. “Now this book isn’t just Amanda Gorman’s forever. It’s Amanda and Loren’s.” You can find Long’s work on Twitter @lorenlong, Instagram @thelorenlong, @LorenLongBooks on Facebook and his website.

CINCINNATI –

The 22-year-old inaugural poet who caught the world’s attention is working with a Cincinnati illustrator on a children’s book due out this fall.

Excerpts from Amanda Gorman’s original poem “The Hill We Climb” took over social media on Wednesday. The praise and admiration poured in while Gorman was still reciting the poem.

“We learned that calm is not always peace. And the norms and ideas of ‘just is’ are not always justice,” said Gorman.

Her words were full of compassion and conviction, and her delivery was eloquent and confident, especially given her youth.

“Yes, we are far from polished, far from flawless, but that does not mean that we are striving to form a union that is perfect. We strive to forge a union with intent, to form a country that embraces all cultures, colors and characters and conditions of humans, “said Gorman. “And so we don’t look at what stands between us, but at what is in front of us.”

Loren Long watched the speech from his art studio in Cincinnati and was moved to tears.

“It will be one of those moments that we all remember,” he said. “I got up in the middle of my studio and just watched them and was just blown away.”

Long is currently bringing Gorman’s first children’s book Change Sings to life through images. He illustrates the book, which is due out on September 21st. It is currently available for Pre-order.

Long rushed to illustrate the book’s cover after Long was selected as the inaugural poet.

“So I just did this cover last week and we sent it out into the world,” he said. “These are really powerful words that say great things, but as an illustrator you have to condense them and, in a way, bring your own narrative into what it writes.”

Long said he was honored to be part of the project, especially given Long’s performance on a world stage. He has been authoring and illustrating children’s books for almost three decades. One of the most famous picture books he has illustrated is Barack Obama’s Of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters.

“I feel like I’ve somehow affected people’s lives,” he said. “And it’s not rocket science. I don’t cure cancer, but I give people moments together.”

Long said Gorman’s children’s book touches on some of the topics she talked about during the inauguration. He hopes it will serve as a beacon of hope that will also help unite.

“It’s an honor for me. It’s humble,” he said. “Now this book isn’t just Amanda Gorman’s forever. It’s Amanda and Loren’s.”

You can find Long’s work on Twitter @lorenlong, Instagram @thelorenlong, @LorenLongBooks on Facebook and his website.