I have an agent!
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@NessIllustration Thank you Ness!
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@Braden-Hallett Thank you Braden! Let's take over Advocate Art one SVS member at a time haha
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@Jeremy-Ross Thank you so much Jeremy!
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@Judy-Elizabeth-Wilson Thank you Judy!!
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@Coley Thank you! We all need a pep talk sometimes. I totally understand but I think you're doing great! You've been in the top 16 two times in a row, right? - not too shabby mate!
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@Chris-W @j-sienkowski @eriberart @LauraA @xin-li Thank you guys!!
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@Neha-Rawat Thank you Neha!
I'm trying to manage my expectations about what kind of work I will get through the agency and how much. It's great you've been able to find big projects by yourself! Thank you for the advice, I know I could be a lot more proactive about approaching clients myself. I find cold emails tricky to write. I'm not always sure how to strike the balance between being concise and polite/friendly. But I will give it a go! Thanks again -
Congratulations!
So awesome that so many SVS members are being signed by them 
I've had my eyes on them for a good while now but haven't had the guts to submit my portfolio yet haha
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@Annabishop yes, that made me feel good
. It’s definitely a long haul to become a professional illustrator and I think the ones who stay in it despite the self-doubt are the ones who eventually get somewhere. But it’s hard to do that. I guess it’s paying the dues ina way. Congratulations again 
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@Annabishop with your work, I’m confident they can find you something. It’ll most probably an educational job with little pay but it’s a good way to get your feet wet. But that’s my current fear tho. I think advocate is too keen on hiring artists and assigning them low-paying jobs instead of actually finding them trade book gigs. Of course these are just my assumptions and perhaps things would be different if there was no pandemic.
Portfolio: nyrrylcadiz.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nyrryl_cadiz/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbJCF1Im8ZO7hpGWTKOJMuA -
@Nyrryl-Cadiz said in I have an agent!:
I think advocate is too keen on hiring artists and assigning them low-paying jobs instead of actually finding them trade book gigs
@Nyrryl-Cadiz I'd love to have a chat with people someday about the differences between the kinds of agencies that are out there.
As far as I can tell, there's 3-4 'kinds' of agencies. On one end is the boutique agency which basically has a coach in your corner working closely with you and finding work that suits your career (ideally). On the other end is the glorified artist collective where the agency charges you a yearly fee and just kinda throws your name into a big pile hoping for a net gain. In some ways Advocate seems to be a compromise between the two extremes.
I like them so far, though. Certainly responsive to emails and quick to get contracts all squared away for me.
But anyways
sorry for hijacking the thread. Congrats again @Annabishop -
@Annabishop @Braden-Hallett I think you've hit the nail on the head! Small agencies may work closely with you from the start to find great projects tailored for you. Big agencies do that with their mainstays, but not usually with the new hires. They may not want to spend the time on artists that haven't proven themselves yet, or maybe they're worried about the artist's ability to finish projects and want to see how they handle jobs first. Also, they have a lot of quick, low paying jobs coming in from their clients. Although those don't pay great, agents work by commission so it's in their favor to assign those gigs instead of letting them go. Having some new artists they can send those jobs to for a quick low effort buck, as well as star artists that they can spend the bulk of their time representing, is what seems to be the perfect balance for these big agencies.
It may seem discouraging but agencies are businesses and that's the game! It is possible to move up in a few months time if you play the game, prove yourself and show your interest in staying in the agency and becoming a star artist eventually. The first few months I accepted a few low-paying jobs from them, did my very best work, and then slowly I received better offers, until Feb 2020 I scored my first 10k job. After that I talked to my agent, thanked them for this great opportunity and let them know my desire to move up to that kind of job regularly. Your work also has something to do with it. My vector style is a little bit commercial and young, so I've started to notice a cap in the kind of jobs I can get. I can't really picture my work fitting well with big publishers like Simon & Schuster or Penguin. So I've talked to my agent lately about experimenting with my style and incorporating a more hand-drawn, textured look. We had a great talk and they're supporting me all the way for modifying my art, and offered many great suggestions.
Working with an agent is a journey in itself, but moving up is possible and we can't get discouraged by the hard first few months!!
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That's so exciting @Annabishop Can't wait to see where this takes you!
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@NessIllustration as much as I dislike the whole hierarchical system in general. I do agree with your description, really spot on. But maybe the key is to really figure out where your art fits well and point to your agent the directions you want to go and ask for help. Not too long after I signed with my current agency, I had a meeting with my agent once and I told her my dream publishers (Chronicle books, Enchanted lions) and the kind of books I am interested in making a couple of years down on the road. After that, I stopped getting educational book inquires :-).
I think it is hard for my agent to know my intent, my dreams, my goals without me telling her. Schedule time to chat about long term goal is a good one in my experience.
I am currently very happy where I am. I feel the communication with my agent is really good, and I am busy with projects. I feel I can ask all kinds of questions, and be open with my thoughts. This was not the case in the first 2 months or so - it took a bit of time to get to know each other, and learn how each other works.
@Braden-Hallett I would love to chat about different types of agencies with you someday. It is a fascinating topic.
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@xin-li I totally agree, communication is key!!
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@KajsaH Thank you! I totally understand the fear, I put off applying to agents for way too long. Your work looks so professional, I reckon you should just go for it! You've got nothing to lose!
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@Braden-Hallett Don't apologise, please Hijack away! I'm glad this has started an interesting conversation about agencies.
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@djlambson Thank you!
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@Annabishop thank you so much!
Congrats again! -
Brilliant - congratulations 🥳
