Art by Marek Halko
Should I quit? Am I overpriced? What should I focus on now? Get some perspective on all this and more from illustrators Jake Parker, Lee White, and Will Terry.
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Lee White’s Drifting Moon Tarot Deck launches this month! Back it on Kickstarter HERE or click HERE to learn more!
SHOW LINKS
Nicholas Marlet
Nate Wragg
Dan Santat
Peter Brown
Júlia Sardà
Love, Santa (illustrated by Lee White)
Terrence Malick
The Sixth Sense
The Prestige
Arcane League of Legends
Webtoon
Old Man’s War
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Find your niche and become so good they can’t ignore you.
When you’re illustrating, ask yourself what you’re trying to say, and then add only those elements which contribute to that message.
Value your work and price accordingly!
QUESTIONS
Anonymous asks: “I have been a professional freelance illustrator/designer for over 10 years and am represented by a popular agency, but I keep hitting long periods of unemployment. Being represented isn't the silver bullet it's often made out to be; while some work has come my way via representation, I'm competing with a large roster of artists vying for limited job opportunities. The constant rejection is catching up to me. Is my work not good enough? Should I quit?”
After reviewing this person’s work, here’s the verdict: it’s good but generic. Even with a rep, it’s hard to land jobs if your style doesn't stand out. But don’t lose hope! It’s not quitting time just yet. Here’s the guys’ advice:
Overhaul your website. Get rid of 80% of your portfolio, keeping only the top 20% of your best pieces.
Narrow down what type of work you want to do (e.g. kid lit, concept art).
Make personal work in that area that allows you to flex your skills and find your niche.
These steps will clean up your portfolio so you can either find a new rep (look for someone more boutique-y and with fewer clients) or land an in-house job (a great option if you want a consistent paycheck).
With your time between gigs, create personal projects and products that can help you pay the bills until the next client comes along.
Daisy asks: “I'm new to commissions and originally set my price for stylized portrait paintings at $90. A client told me that my price was too low; would $350 per portrait be realistic?”
Check out Daisy’s work at ladychamomile.ink!
For the quality of your work, $350 is still too low! Raising the price of your work implies value and expertise and can actually help you sell more. When you value your work (and price accordingly), others will too.
A marketing suggestion: Paint Instagram influencers and send them their portraits. They’ll be excited to share with their audiences, and you'll likely get a lot of work from the publicity. Paint a few influencers a month for the next 6 months and see where it takes you. Don’t be afraid to do some of the bigger names out there!
Laura asks: “In a novel, we can read a character’s thoughts; how can illustrators visually depict a character’s thoughts and feelings, especially in quiet or magical scenes?”
With quiet scenes, ask yourself what you're trying to communicate. Is your character awestruck, thoughtful, or ashamed? What does that look like? It helps to act out these emotions yourself to get familiar with the subtle differences in gesture. Study film and animation, which use lighting and camera angles to create different moods. (The Sixth Sense is a great film to start with!)
Kayleen asks: “I like concept art and character design, but I want to get better at storytelling so I can make graphic novels and do storyboarding. Should I dive in head-first and make a webcomic by writing the story as I go? Or should I start with shorter stories like children's picture books where I can plan out the whole story before illustrating?
Storyboarding, children’s books, comics, and graphic novels require different skillsets. It will serve you to pick one and master it. You can branch out to other things eventually, but it’s better to go slowly and build experience in one area at a time than to scatter your focus.
If there's a story you’re dying to tell, write it down first. Allow the story to dictate who your audience is, and then pick the medium (a children’s book, graphic novel, etc.) that would best reach that audience.
Use small-scale projects (5-page comics, a few book illustrations, etc.) to help you discover what you enjoy doing and what fits your story best.
Talk to people working in your fields of interest to learn what their lifestyles are like and what would suit you. Storyboarding is the easiest of these fields to break into on an entry level and is a good option if you need a steady paycheck while you’re developing other skills and projects. Consider it as a short-term answer as you work on your long-term goals.
LINKS
Jake Parker: mrjakeparker.com. Instagram: @jakeparker, Youtube: JakeParker44
Will Terry: willterry.com. Instagram: @willterryart, Youtube: WillTerryArt
Lee White: leewhiteillustration.com. Instagram: @leewhiteillo
Daniel Tu: danieltu.co.
Lily Howell: lilycamille.com
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