Roadblocks to Success
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Fantastic episode. I'm at the process of rediscovering illustration, having stopped drawing for about 10 years (feels like I'm starting over tbh). So much in this episode resonates with me. I want to do so many things, and have met many people who do things similar to what I want to do. I end up losing focus, and fall into the "Too much downloading, not enough uploading" roadblock. What a wakeup call.
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I have this moment of anticipation and dread when ever Lee mentions me in the podcast. He was so nice!! Fantastic podcast, as always. I'm going to set an alarm for 6 months to remind myself to listen to it again. The beginning reminded me of a quote I heard at SCBWI , "a goal without a plan is just a dream, and we aren't making dreams come true, we're making books." Loved the ca-meow from the kitties!
For reference, here's some of the work from the Harry Potter cover.SVS Instructor
https://www.annadaviscourt.com/ -
@AnnaDaviscourt Those covers look awesome!!
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@Kevin-Longueil
Thank you! It took a lot of work like Lee said.
It was a perfect example of how important it is to have a mentor, without him I would have been happy to make a super boring cover.
Thinking about how my process has changed - it involves a lot more ideation and a lot less drawing than it used to. It also yields better work! -
It never fails. Every podcast so far, I have been able to learn a lesson specific to what I was working on at the time. It's quite seridipitous and a little twilight zoney. Lol. I'm actually starting over on my book cover this month because I wasn't sticking to my goal. If I had continued, I might have had a nice piece of art but I wouldn't have been able to use it for my portfolio. Or I would have, but it would have been a mistake to do so. Thank you SVS Holy Trinity!
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As usual, excellent episode! Thank you!
I can listen to them over and over again. Hopefully some of it will rub off on me.. -
Oh wow they referenced my submission and question for the BIG contest. I feel honored. This was a great episode, I hit roadblocks on a regular basis.
Being someone that never formally went to a college or university for art, figuring things out has been tough. Especially while working a job where I’m on my feet all day and with a family that kinda sees my goals as a waste of time and not only provides zero support but is very discouraging.
Svs has been a huge help.
instagram and twitter: @artofaleksey
alekseyillustration.com -
@Aleksey Thats a shame about the no support from family. Hopefully the peeps on the forum are helping to remedy that. I think that your art is good. The little drunk gnomes were one of my favorites for the big contest.
Lisa Burvant
www.lisaburvant.com
Instagram & Twitter & SVS: @burvantill -
I use to have a great big Dam in front of me not a little road block haha.. its interesting to listen to you guys because I can relate to the bad students and the good ones. I have no goal in my art other than to be the best oil painter this world has seen but that might be my 100 year goal. My short term goal is to earn money making art on the way. might be too simple...
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@burvantill why thank you
yeah the forum has been totally supportive. And what really helps me is being around others that are also trying to achieve similar goals. (Btw i printed and sent those gnomes as postcards to art directors) -
This podcast was just the kick in the pants I needed. I listened to it twice while working yesterday and I do think helped me to up my ability to self-evaluate. Thank you!
@AnnaDaviscourt I love your covers!!! Thanks for linking them, because I was so curious to see them after listening to the podcast. And I really appreciate your point about more ideation and less drawing.
Yeah, where does one get a mentor?!
@Aleksey. I am lucky enough to have some financial support, but it feels tenuous, I work in isolation, and I get no emotional/aesthetic support unless I take classes. Basically everyone thinks I'm living in a dangerous fantasy world because I'm in my 50s and not producing portfolio pieces yet. What keeps me going is: knowing that I love drawing, looking at the difference between what I did two years ago and what I do now, looking at how beautiful illustration can be, and having a group like SVS for feedback. Illustration is an uphill battle, but hopefully it will have been worth it!
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@LauraA yeah i hear ya. I am very grateful for svslearn. I use the monthly contests as an opportunity to create portfolio pieces
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@AnnaDaviscourt I agree-that HP cover is awesome. The style is quirky and scary and the font is spot-on. We're cheering you on!
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@LauraA I was lucky enough to stumble into Lee's class in college. I think more pro artists are considering mentoring as a means of supplemental income, so it's a win win for all artists. I would suggest asking around and maybe proposing a time/$ balance to one of your favorite artists, and suggesting a specific aspect of your learning that you want to work on could help them understand what they'd be getting into.
SVS Instructor
https://www.annadaviscourt.com/ -
@Susan-Marks Thank you so much!! I'm working on some interior spot illos to kind of match the style of the cover! They're less painful, but there are more of them!
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Aw man, this was a great episode. Straight away, you hit the nail on the head with me. I am trying to do everything. Get good at everything. Totally true. I don't have a set goal/direction.
I'm moving this month, but I'm happy to tackle this next month.
I do have one question though, I still feel like I'm in the learning stage when it comes to foundations. Should I continue learning the foundations (currently focussed on colour, perspective and anatomy), or should I start picking a goal? (Or both?) Love to know what people think.
I think the next step after that would be to create a project as a vehicle that takes me closer to my goal.
Check out my latest drawings: https://www.instagram.com/nathan_creates/
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@AnnaDaviscourt Thanks for your reply. Wow, I didn't know that was a thing! I'm working on producing enough pieces to get style consistency for now, and when I feel ready to show them, I would love to try that!
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Hey just listened to the podcast. It's just so good. I've had so many roadblocks on my path to being an illustrator! My most recent roadblock is my little kids. Right now I've got 2 kids and this is why I wanted to comment. I have 2 boys 3 and 8 years old. It can really be hard to find the time to get work done. I love them to death, but there are days I can't work because of them. Also days I take off just to spend time with them.
I personally get to a saturation point with learning. I took Mira Reisberg's Children's Book Academy class in August - September last year. It was very intense and I learned a lot. I want to take the CBA's writing course, Make Your Mark's and Splashes class and OF COURSE SVS classes. Right now I feel like I need to get what I'm working on now out of my system before I can move on and learn more. It's not happening as fast as I'd like it to, but taking another class or going to a conference is just going to mess things up for me! I'm not sure that was directly talked about in the podcast. I have to put into practice the things I learn before I can keep learning big things. I'm always learning from my critique partners, but it's not hard core learning.
My husband and I are making the time now so I can spend more time on my work. I've got a full time job taking care of the kids/household/other stuff. I've got a direction for my art (which I haven't had for a while) and I'm getting better at getting things done. I wont be able to get a new portfolio done every 6 months, but i will get a new portfolio done this year (if not in the next couple of months). If I've got a few hundred dollars to spend on something it might be best spend on day care for my toddler so I can get my work finished rather than on a class or conference.
I think it will be a few months before I spend money on a class/conference. I think it's almost a waste of time taking classes and going to conferences if you don't put to practice what you've learned!
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@AnnaDaviscourt Great work! So many good ideas there. Are you going to finish any more of them?
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@Nathan I have exactly the same question. I’m actually learning the fundamentals for the first time. They definitely aren’t review! I heard on the podcast how to balance working on projects or portfolio pieces vs conferences. But how about with basic learning?
I’ve been trying to alternate months. One month I work on a personal project, something small enough that I can finish it. The next month I focus more of my time on learning another fundamental. I do expect to want to go back and retake the fundamentals in about 6 months because I think as I learn as little bit more, I’ll be able to get lots more out of it.
Honestly, as an adult learner I get lots more out of the personal projects. They inspire, terrorize and push me forward. And I usually enjoy working on them much more than the classes. I’m working on that!
