Discouragement of the Trade
-
Hey Guys!
I have been having some feelings of discouragement over not getting my lucky break. I want to be a children's book illustrator, and it's been a long road of waiting, working, and failure. I have had some successes along the way, but it's feeling few and far. between. What thoughts do you guys have on this topic? What do you do to combat it?
-
@Kori-Jensen do not let it get you down! I just joined the latest SCBWI conference and the word is, it’s a looooong road for everybody! Some like nine years! Sure there are a lucky few who strike gold right off the bat, but they are what’s few and far between. Its a slow game. In the meantime, keep working and perfecting your skill, your time will come! Nice to have you back around!
-
@Kori-Jensen Hi Kori! First off, Nice to hear from u again. Secondly, are you ok with me giving a brutally honest critique?
Portfolio: nyrrylcadiz.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nyrryl_cadiz/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbJCF1Im8ZO7hpGWTKOJMuA -
@Asyas_illos 9 years! That could definitely be discouraging for many, but I also think many aren't as willing to work on getting better and many keep a stagnant portfolio that never grows. I think it's easy to fall off the motivation bandwagon (I definitely have this summer, the kids are only little for so long and winnipeg summers are only 2 months), but I think the key is to keep growing in what makes you happy and if you need a break take it. Then get back up and persevere!
-
@Asyas_illos Thank you so much for your encouragement and for your statistics.
I appreciate your kind words, and hope you are right about the time coming. 
-
@Nyrryl-Cadiz Yes, I think I could use a good direction. If you don't mind me bouncing some drawings off you?
-
@AngelinaKizz I hear you, my kids take up sooooo much time and my heart aches for my work :S. I reaaaaalllly want to improve so if you have any advice/critique at all, please let me know.
-
@Kori-Jensen cool. Though, i was planning on addressing the portfolio as a whole instead of individual pieces. Will that be alright? We could also do it in private if you prefer.
Portfolio: nyrrylcadiz.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nyrryl_cadiz/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbJCF1Im8ZO7hpGWTKOJMuA -
@Nyrryl-Cadiz yah of course
I meant in response. but whatever you feel is best -
@Kori-Jensen I always have a sketch book with me, and I try for "coloring time" and taking the kids on Art trips (it helps that mine both love art and drawing). Lately I've just been playing with shapes, and trying to sketch over and over again the things I struggle with. I really struggle with eyes that I like. Eyes are my favorite thing to draw realistically, but I'm struggling in drawing simplified illustrative eyes that show emotion. Hands are Always a challenge, so I've been sketching hands on the go. It's definitely helping, but I haven't added to my portfolio. Come September, I'm going to hunker down and refocus. My kids will be in school, and I'll have time that's just mine.
-
@Kori-Jensen I know exactly how you feel! It is such a slow road. I've heard discouragingly long time estimates too, like @Asyas_illos said. There are days when I feel like I'm on a pendulum swinging back and forth between feeling discouraged and inadequate, and hopeful and confident. I've recently been trying to look at it as a journey where this is my time to prepare and become the best I can be before launching large amounts of work into the world. The more carefully I prepare now, the more likely I am to have a long and successful career with work that really adds meaning to the world. So I try not to mind when the successes are far between. It just means that I have more time to do deep dives into honing my skills.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kirsten.mcgonigal.art/
Portfolio Site: www.kirstenmcgonigalart.com -
@AngelinaKizz I cant have a book with me due to my work but i try everyday to draw. I realize everyone has their challenges. I'm just feeling down about mine i guess
-
@Kori-Jensen My best advice for trying to get work done as a parent - give up Netflix! Seriously, take a break from TV shows and movies for a month and see how much you can get done. If you're not a night owl, wake up 1-2 hours before your littles get up. Also, consider how much time you are spending on social media platforms and give yourself a detox. I gave up FB and IG and somehow I am still alive.
Hope that helps! -
@mcschweitzer Hey budd, LOL I have given up all of those and I am doing just fine too :D. I honestly recommend it all too. but yah I am a night owl and I do my best to make the time count when I am away from the kids
-
@kirsten-mcg Thank you so much for your comment, I honestly connect with it. I feel that way too. I guess i just am so impatient with myself not being better the way I want to you know? I am so discouraged over making myself better. Thank you so much for your encouragement
-
@Kori-Jensen Maybe Nyrrryl has already sent you some feedback, so I might only echo some of her points, but if you're open to advise and critiques I'd love to throw a few observations in as well in the hope that they are helpful. I find myself much more motivated when there are clear actionable steps I know I can take - then you're never helpless when it comes to improving and working towards the future you want!
I can see you have a great sense of humour from your art and a lot of ideas, which I think are gonna be amazing one day. At the moment, they're not shining as well as they could be, and I think your portfolio is a really good and important place to sort out and make the very best.
- When we come onto your website, maybe the art could be centre-stage a bit earlier on. There's a lot of scrolling to find what I might be looking for were I an art director - quick links to the young-adult sections and your main portfolio would be useful. I think your art should be visible first thing when you click onto your site!
- I can see a lot of different styles going on in your work, which might really confuse potential employers. You have a few softer semi-realistic portraits, then you have comic-like images with really heavy lines, then there is the soft painterly ghost and a more poster-like image of ghosts in the woods. They don't feel super consistent, so picking a direction to stick with might make the whole thing feel more cohesive!
- Personally I'm not hugely sure the thick-line style is right for children's books. I've not seen a lot of it around and have an acquaintance that works in a very similar style, but his focus is definitely posters and comics of a more comical nature, like parodies, fanart, stuff to sell at conventions. I like your young-adult work, and wonder if maybe focusing on the slightly older age-group in your main work would suit your own interests a bit better.
As others have said it can be a slow road, and I really sympathize with discouragement. We all go through phases like it and those that eventually find success are the ones that just work right through it. I think those long-year estimates are partially due to the fact that some artists learn to draw at the same time as they want to start their careers, and improving their art takes up much of this time, more so than finding work. Others already draw at a professional level when they decide to become an illustrator, and find work a lot quicker.
I think at the moment it's important to measure your success by how good your art is getting over time, more so than by any jobs you might or might not be getting. You are hitting milestones, you might just not be seeing those victories for what they are if your mind is very set on jobs and publication.
-
@Nathalie-Kranich Wow I am touched by your reply to my post and that it's so detailed. I am glad to get so much advice from you. I agree, it might be a wee bit long winded in terms of art work wait time on my website. I do have a few styles to show that I am flexible in my art. This is why I dabble in both the hard line and the soft edges. I have been experimenting with the soft edge because. I know that children's books are more soft in nature.
I find it interesting that you say "
@Nathalie-Kranich said in Discouragement of the Trade:
I like your young-adult work, and wonder if maybe focusing on the slightly older age-group in your main work would suit your own interests a bit better.
Do you think that my youth stuff is better than my children's stuff?
-
@Kori-Jensen I must say that I'm not sure I recognize your children's stuff as children's art very clearly. The black-lines to me look like comical animations or comics, and then there is some character designs, which maybe steers more towards concept art.
I understand the desire to present versatility but all the advise I've ever heard, and what has worked in my own experience, is to show a cohesive, well-developed style that clearly applies to the industry you want to work in, and then show versatility in terms of subject matter. I think SVS has a course on what belongs in a portfolio for children's books that would be a really good starting point. Or look at other children's illustrators for reference -
it might even be that your interests dont gear so much to children's illustration as they do towards concept art or comics - and it becomes a question of finding the industry that facilitates the styles you love. That's just some things to think about!
