Last night I was extremely excited about some new ideas I had about my style but was way too tired to work on them, so I fell asleep 'counting sheep' so-to-speak by imagining what kind of drawings I would do next. Then I woke up this morning feeling like I had worked on my art all night! I essentially dreamed about drawing--perhaps for several hours and now unfortunately have nothing to show for all that hard work lol. I'm still trying to remember what exactly it was I had drawn; at least that would keep the time put in from being a total waste!
Nothing like the fresh smell of exotic birds in the morning.
James lifted up the shivery little dog and wrapped a towel around him.
Painting by: Edgar Degas
Inspiration is a tricky little bugger. It plays hide and seek, arrives when you least expect it, and leaves without a trace.....sometimes for weeks at a time. If you think your job as an artist is just to paint, draw, and create then boy are you in for a surprise.
Many artists feel alone when they're uninspired. They wonder if others go through the same thing (yes we do) and wonder if other artist's slumps have lasted as long as their own (yes they have). But please take comfort in this fact: losing and gaining inspiration is part of being an artist. It is the ebb and flow of creativity; a natural swing of things that you will continually try to weather and work with.
It's careful balance. Don't push too hard when you're just not inspired, but also take responsibility and try to gain that inspiration back. Reading books about your favorite artists (Degas is one of mine), visiting museums, going for a long walk on a beautiful day, whatever works for you. Sometimes the best thing to do is take a break from drawing and do something completely different for a while. That way you'll return to your desk feeling refreshed (of course don't do that sort of thing when you're on a tight deadline!).
The main point is this: don't let it get you down or scare you. It's just the wave pulling back from the sand for a bit. It always comes back. Believe me, I have to remind myself of that many many times.
**If you have any new tips to add, post them in comments below --I'll delete the comment and add them to the article with a link to your site. Thank you! I guess you could say this is a community project. When it's done I'll add it to my tool bar at the top :0) So here we go:
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This is written for people just starting out in the business. Everyone's been there, you have a dream but have no idea where to start. These are some quick, simple, to the point steps to guide you in the right direction. Following my steps are more helpful tips and comments added by fellow illustrators: Ginger Nielson, Kim Fleming and Phyllis Harris!
1. Practice a lot and study illustrators you admire
2. Create a strong portfolio of 8 - 10 pieces (kids, animals, and family scenes are typical subjects, but whatever inspires you is what you should draw!)
3. Create a website with your portfolio and contact information. A lot of people pay a professional web designer for this. I simply used iweb because I like to update my portfolio a lot and it would get expensive paying someone to do that each time.
4. Create a postcard with your website address, contact info and your best image and send it out to publishers who publish books similar to your art style (2010 Writers and Illustrators Market book is a must--contains detailed publisher's contact information and articles about getting started.)
5. (optional) submit printed samples of your portfolio to an agent. Agents do all that 'businessey' stuff (that I'm not only bad at, but fact of the matter is I would rather be drawing than printing out invoices, making calls, etc etc). They also go to bat for you if a deal turns bad or someone doesn't pay. And if you're lucky, they turn out to be really great friends as well :0) Typical cut that an agent takes is 25%. This is all personal decision of course, some people enjoy the business side of things and like being in complete control of every detail. There's no right or wrong decision!
There are lots of other things you can do, but the above is where you should start. Portfolio portfolio portfolio - you can't repeat that enough to yourself because it's everything--it's what represents you. Once you have a good one, promote till your computer fries--blogging, childrensillustrators.com, picturebook.com, vistaprints.com. Also go to the local SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) conferences and meet those publishers face to face!
Good luck, it's a jungle out there!
And now to continue, here are some extra tips from a few pros in the field:
Phyllis Harris:
Gosh, where do I begin?
First, do a lot of seat time on the internet. It has been the root of my education on the whole business of children's book illustration.
Second, always work on your craft. Draw, draw, draw. Paint, paint, paint. I continue to learn and grow daily. I look back on my first projects/jobs and wonder how I ever got hired?! But this is where persistence and patience also paid off. Gotta have those... persistence and patience!
Get a copy of the 2010 Children Writer's and Illustrator's Market published by Writer's Digest Books. Send your art samples out to art buyers via mail(postcards and mailers) and direct them to your online portfolio on your website. Website...gotta have one to promote yourself with an online portfolio and contact info.
For those who are still in school--take every opportunity available to network with editors and art buyers at publishing houses and magazines. Getting on as an intern is probably the best opportunity out there!!!
Ginger Nielson on Digital Illustration Tips:
1.) My transition from traditional art to digital art was one that took a good deal of time and choosing the right program for me. Many have asked which or how many digital art programs they might need to learn.
I believe that if you find ONE program that you are comfortable with you should take the time to learn it and learn it well. The time you spend becoming proficient in your chosen software will pay you back. There is a great deal of depth to the high end programs,(Photoshop, Illustrator, Painter) and if you are an illustrator, you really only need one that 'fits' you.
Common sense dictates that you need a good working digital tablet and pen if you plan to create digital images. Wacom is the best and there is a whole range to fit almost any budget.
2.) On a merely practical note.... if you are a digital illustrator you MUST constantly "Save" the piece you are working on. A power outage, or program crash can wipe out hours of work. As many times as I say this, I have still suffered the loss of huge chunks of work because I forgot to save, save, save.
3.) Digital artists who work in layers in photoshop or painter should also save at least one version of their artwork as a full set of separate layers. You can drop the layers , give the piece an alternate name and save that as well. But, the fact that you still have a file with all the various layers separated will make any editorial changes much less stressful.
4.) I keep a digital file folder of the sketches, layered files and any reference material for any assignment I am given. When the assignment is turned in and the contract has been fufilled, I move the entire folder to an external hard drive for future reference.
5.) I also maintain a Digital File Cabinet. It is set up as if it were in my desk drawer, with categories for all the sketches, reference materials and finished artwork I have created. This is also kept on an external hard drive with a huge amount of storage space. It frees up my main computer and allows me to work faster and more efficiently.
Kim Flemming:
I guess I would say “put yourself out there” because that’s the only way you will get noticed. You could be the best illustrator in the world but if you do it in your living room, showing it to no one, then that’s where you’ll stay. So make a blog, a website, get involved with group projects, call publishers and set up appointments to view your folio (it’s not as scary as you think). Some illustration portfolio websites can be really good, but do your research. I’ve found that the majority of my work has come from meeting face-to-face with a publisher, and then word of mouth from there. Also I would say “be true to yourself”. This isn’t always easy! But I think if you do what you really love to do then that will be your best work in the end anyway! Good luck!
My secret weapon for tough contract negotiations...
*Thank you to Risky the Studio Assistant for posing for this important photo. You earned your doggy snack.
It's considered polite to hand someone a handkerchief when they sneeze or have a cold...even if it is to an alligator.
I'd like to have two styles in my portfolio. A pen and ink style, and pencil/watercolor style.
This is for another story I've written. I sketch little ideas in between my hired projects.
I stayed up until 4am again. Maybe one day I'll wake up at the crack of dawn and fall blissfully asleep at 11 pm on a regular basis......(I've been saying that to myself for years now, yet I still want to believe.....).
Creative energy: alive during the night, and non-existent during the day/slowly starts to show itself early evening. Why? Why??
Ok must sleep.
Wah.
Jay Asher (if you don't already know) is the extremely talented author of Thirteen Reasons Why. He has a blog - read it! Great posts, videos and information about his award winning teen novel.
I'm headed to amazon.com to buy it myself.
In other news, I saw one of David Small's recent picture books in Barnes and Noble. This led me to his site to see what he was up to, which led me to information about his new release, Stiches. I don't want to give away too much, but it's a graphic novel, autobiographical, and NOT for kids. This is one for the adults. Let's just say I was so engrossed that I stopped hearing the bubbling of my fish tanks, the blaring fan of my space heater and I can't even remember turning pages. It is a work of art and something to behold. It felt less like reading and more like watching a film. Do yourself a favor and pick it up.
One more thing--it's dark and tragic. Be ready for a heavy heart after you've closed the back cover.
This fall season, be cautious of sudden changes in wind patterns. Especially if you're a squirrel.
Here's another image from Raj The Bookstore Tiger! Mean ol' Snowball is informing Raj that he's not an ACTUAL tiger, but a mere kitty cat. Poor Raj.
Pig and Cow talked late into the night while patterns of moon-cast shadows overlapped and blanketed the empty barn.
You can tell I adjusted the size of the kitties via Photoshop. Have I sung the praises of Photoshop enough on my blog? I think not.
Bernice was very jealous of Margaret's patterned hat.
This is my possible illustration Friday idea - for the theme pattern (or patterns--too lazy to double check). I'll see how it develops. I want to keep working on it tonight but am just way too tired! :-P
This yet another Raj spread, but unfinished. I LOVE painting closeups like this and spending hours on the details of the fur and face. Here I just established the basic colors. Over the next day or so I'll keep layering thin washes of paint until it has a nice, rich textured look.
Also I really love orangish yellows and greens together. Most of my work seems to have that color combo in one way or another.
I've been given permission by the kind folks at Charlesbridge to post a sample spread from the upcoming book "Raj the Bookstore Tiger" written by Kathleen T Pelley. Publishing date is set for Fall of 2010.
Click to enlarge! Lots of details to see.
I have done the same thing!! :) I had to start keeping a small journal next to the bed because I would never remember what my artsy dreams were!
Artists creative juices never rest...
Hope your day is wonderful~
Michelle
Boy! Can I relate! I do that all the time! :o)
Yep, I've done that before! The journal by the bed is a great idea!