Inspirational Books and Podcast Round-Up

With the coming of the new year I find that it’s time for me to review my goals, set new ones, and get inspired.  I usually do this by listening to some of my favorite podcasts, and reading inspirational or educational books.
Since the new year started, I’ve taken to reading a few pages from an inspirational or creative book upon waking to start my day off on the right foot.  I’ve put together a round-up of some of my favorite books and podcasts below. Feel free to share in the comments any books or podcasts for creatives that you are loving right now!

Podcasts

Kid Lit

• Literaticast with Jennifer Laughran - A podcast with Jennifer, senior agent at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, on all things in the children’s publishing world.  She interviews art directors, agents, editors and more!
  http://www.jenniferlaughran.com/literaticast

• SCBWI podcast - A podcast filled with interviews from the whole array of the kidlit industry: illustrators, authors, agents, editors, publishers etc. You must be a member of SCBWI to listen to full episodes
  https://www.scbwi.org/online-resources/podcasts/

• Make It Then Tell Everybody with Dan Berry - A podcast that interviews comic artists about their process and making a living as a creative.
  makeitthentelleverybody.com/category/podcast

Note: The founders of the All The Wonders website have decided to end their project; however, the site will stay up so that people can continue to use it as a resource.  The podcasts will continue on their own respective sites, which I have listed below.
To take a listen to the archives of the Picturebooking podcast and All the Wonders, visit www.allthewonders.com/podcasts

• Picturebooking Podcast with Nick Patton  - “A Podcast about creating and sharing picture books.” Nick discusses picture book creation process in interviews with authors and illustrators. I have discovered so many wonderful authors and illustrators through this podcast!
  www.picturebooking.com

• The Children’s Book Podcast with Matthew Winner - “Weekly Interviews with Authors, Illustrators, Up-and-Comers, and Everyone In Between.” A must listen!www.matthewcwinner.com/podcast

Creativity/Inspiration

• Creative Pep Talk with Andy J. Miller - If you are an illustrator, you must listen to this podcast. Andy will pep you up with his upbeat and hilarious episodes about making a living by making great art.  Get ready for a lot of dad jokes, but also to feel all the feelings. 
  www.creativepeptalk.com/episodes

• 88 Cups of Tea with Yin Chang - a podcast generally for writers, but a quick shout out to the episodes with Rebecca Green: Staying Inspired as an Artist, and Greg Pizzoli: Developing Picture Book Ideas & Diversifying Your Work as an Artist.
  88cupsoftea.com/podcast

• Design Matters with Debbie Millman -  Debbie is renowned in the design world and an excellent interviewer. This podcast is jam packed with in-depth interviews of the best in the creative industry. AND on her website you can filter the podcast episodes by discipline, ie illustrator, art director, writer etc. Woo! Go listen!
  www.debbiemillman.com/designmatters

Business

• Ask a Freelancer with Andy J. Miller - If you are a freelance artist like myself, you’ll find some great tidbits in this podcast.  There are only 16 episodes, but they are worth listening to.
  https://soundcloud.com/cushionapp/

• Being Boss with Kathleen Shannon and Emily Thompson - Aside from finding Kathleen and Emily incredibly entertaining to listen to, they have some great content on living your life and running your business as a creative entrepreneur. They recently updated their website so their content is super easy to browse by topic. Just head to their resource page.https://beingboss.club/podcast

Books

• Draw Every Day, Draw Every Way By August Wren
  As simple as it sounds.  A drawing prompt for 365 days of the year.  The book is divided into themed sections with different paper and suggested media to use.  I rediscovered my love of colored pencils because of this book. A great way to get out of a creative rut and get yourself into the ritual of making art daily. 
  http://augustwren.com/draw-every-day-book/

• Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
  A book about finding inspiration, facing down your fears, and creating just for the joy of it. I’m a big fan of Elizabeth Gilbert because her writing is always relatable, humorous, and poignant. You’ll definitely want this book on your nightstand.
  www.indiebound.org/book/9781594634727

• Get It Done: From Procrastination to Creative Genius in 15 Minutes a Day by Sam Bennett
  I can’t say that I am a creative genius after reading this book, but it seriously helped me define what my true creative goals are and how to break them down into manageable tasks. I think all artists should have this book.  In fact, I think it’s time for a re-read.
  www.indiebound.org/book/9781608682102

• Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
  A fun light read comprised of short passages about the daily rituals of artists, scientists, writers and more.  From Jane Austen to Picasso, Woody Allen, and Benjamin Franklin. I’m constantly striving to find the “right” daily ritual for me to produce my best work, and this is a great book to find a little inspiration in how other artists have worked.
  www.indiebound.org/book/9780307273604

• The Creative Habit: Learn it and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp
  A book that is inspirational and useful to artists of all mediums. Another book about the importance of ritual, doing the work, and getting out of your creative rut. Each chapter ends with a straightforward exercise to help you on your creative journey.
  www.indiebound.org/book/9780743235273

• Art Inc.: The Essential Guide for Building Your Career as an Artist by Lisa Congdon
  A no-nonsense guide on building your career as an artist.  This book talks about the nitty-gritty - from licensing, copyright, diversifying your income, to working with an agent.  There is so much great information in here.  I also highly recommend taking a listen to any podcast interviewing Lisa Congdon - in fact, one of my favorite podcasters, Andy J. Miller of Creative Pep Talk, has one!
  Listen here:https://soundcloud.com/creativepeptalk/166-its-never-too-late-with-lisa-congdon
  Find her book here:www.indiebound.org/book/9781452128269

Hope you find some new things here to get you inspired!

Alexandra Thompson
www.alexandraco.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/alexandraco_illustration
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlexandracoArt

Breathe

Who's to say
the real effort to be real 
isn't the beginning of wings?

The above is an excerpt from Mark Nepo's THE BOOK OF AWAKENING. It met my Brooklyn studio in the stifling summer of 2013; a gift from a dear friend who knew I needed a change. It set me on the path of making and breathing and living happily in the moment.

My impression of meditation had always been enough to keep me from trying it. I couldn't imagine what crossing my legs, and muttering long vowels would possibly accomplish.

It turns out, meditation is a twisty-turny thing, and there are as many ways to practice it as there are to make a picture book. Among other things, it is scientifically proven to help its practitioners alleviate stress, depression, and anxiety, improve self-confidence, increase focus, develop positive social connections and prevent arthritis. Writers and illustrators are my favorite kind of people, but I'm yet to find one that couldn't benefit from that industry-specific list of preventatives. If you're uncomfortable with OMs, consider guided meditation, that's where I started.

Daily mindfulness practice has taught me that one thing done with patience and peace is much better than ten things done in a panic. My life and my art are more effortless, comfortable, and fun when I quiet my mind for 5-20 minutes every day.

Meditation is my key to living creatively. It might be what you're looking for too. Not ready to dive into the deep end? Consider dipping your toe in the lotus pool.

Try an app:
・Aura on iPhone and Android
・Aware on iPhone & Android
・Calm on iPhone & Android

Or a podcast:

・Deep Energy 2.0
・Meditation Minis
・The Meditation Podcast -
 a $2 a month Patreon subscription pays you back ten-fold in happiness. Choose an episode for what ails you. The CREATIVE FREEDOM episode is a new ritual. They make their most recent episode available free on their website 

Try a meditation for the painter in their studio:

・Place a dry sponge and a glass of water before you.
・Center yourself by letting the energy of all that feels urgent rush through you. 

・Exhale and try to let it go.
・Now drip a small stream of water on the sponge.
・As you breathe slowly watch how the sponge opens.
・Keep dripping water on the sponge as you breathe slowly and feel your heart open

xo,

Amber
.........................................

www.AmberAlvarez.com
Instagram @shesureissketchy
Twitter @shesureis
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Seven Keys to Being a Freelance Illustrator-by Christina Forshay

I am a freelance illustrator. Therefore, I am an entrepreneur. Okay, there. I said it. In writing. As much as I want to sit and paint and sketch all day, being an illustrator means I have to have some “business-like” responsibilities. 

I still consider myself a zygote illustrator and I’ve got lots to learn, but with every project, comes new ideas on how to make the next project more efficient and keep my career moving forward.

Here are just some of the ideas I’ve incorporated into my business model as a freelance illustrator. I can write a lengthy blog post and go into much more depth with each of these topics, but here they are in short form. Maybe I'll do an in-depth series based on these and the other ideas I didn't have room to mention here: 

1. Contracts: 



Here's my copy of Tad Crawford's book

• Be able to understand a basic illustration contract. Know which rights you’re giving up...do you know the difference between exclusive and non-exclusive rights?
• Get this book: Business and Legal Forms for Illustrators by Tad Crawford. It comes with a CD with a few different "fill-in-the-blank" standard contracts to help you write your own. 
• Have a basic boilerplate illustration contract at the ready. Tad Crawford's book helped me write and negotiate numerous contracts. 
• Make sure your contract is locked in and nailed before you begin work on a project. Negotiate any issues up front!
• Make sure there is a kill fee. If your project gets killed for any reason after the contract is signed, ensure you will get paid for the work you already produced for that contract.
• Stand up for yourself! If the fee doesn’t add up to you, ask for more! What’s the harm in asking? You are a business person. There is a way to negotiate without being a jerk. (And just because you do negotiate doesn't mean you are a jerk.)
• Watch the reality TV show Shark Tank. You can watch it free online here! I know that sounds weird, but it helps me realize that I have to really, really take a stance for myself when it comes to contract negotiation. Just be nice about it! ;)
• If you need to, hire an attorney to help you finalize a contract. The few hundred dollars you pay upfront is probably worth it in the long run.
  
  
2. Begin your job organized and keep it organized:
• Keep organized files/calendars of your projects. I keep two running Excel/Numbers files: one has due dates for each project where I can track my progress and the other has invoicing, billing and payment received dates. It helps to have this info from all my projects in one or two master Excel/Number documents for easy, quick access. Who wants to search through piles of unkempt papers or emails? That just makes me want to avoid paperwork altogether. You can work so much freer knowing you have all the info organized.
  I believe I got this organizational format style from the legendary animator Bob Singer (dude, look at that list of credits!!!), who used to attend our local illustrator schmoozes!



Sample project progress sheet...click to ENLARGE!






Sample running invoice sheet...click to ENLARGE!





3. Cultivate an open dialogue with clients: 
• Once you’ve landed a job, make sure you ask any questions you might have about the work/contract with your client BEFORE you sign the contract. Don’t be afraid of asking questions you might think are dumb. It is so much better for everyone to be on the same page BEFORE you put time into the work. 
• Get the job specs, the manuscript and fee upfront before you sign anything.
• Keep the client/art director abreast of how you’re doing as the project progresses and ask questions as they come up as soon as possible.
  
  
4. Meet your deadlines: 
• Totally obvious, right?
• If you feel you can’t meet your deadline because of an unforeseen circumstance like a serious illness, let the client know ASAP. I’ve only had to do this once or twice, but each time the client was understanding and gave me an extra couple of days to finish up. Of course, you don’t want to make this a habit, but if you really are in a bind (not due to poor time management), then ask. I believe it’s more responsible to ask up front than to turn in late work unannounced.
  
  
5. Follow up: 
• When a project is complete, thank the client. 
• Send a follow up note or email. End the job on a happy note. Leave with a good last impression!
  
  
6. Never speak ill of fellow artists or others in the industry:
• The children’s publishing world is like a small town. Everyone knows everyone else! Keep that in mind!
  
  
7. Keep learning! 
• Join established illustration organizations such as SCBWI and The Society of Illustrators. 
• Attend conferences, workshops and classes (especially those hosted by the aforementioned organizations.
• Listen to industry (and business) podcasts. Here are a few great ones: chrisoatley.com, Escape From Illustration Island Podcast and Big Illustration Party Time.
• Read/subscribe to industry blogs, newsletters and periodicals such as: Cheryl Klein's website and blog, Seven Impossible Things before Breakfast and Publishers Weekly Children's Bookshelf to name a few.
  

Hope there was something useful here for you to take with you! Until next time, here's to the promise of Spring!

~christina

_______________________

Christina Forshay is an illustrator for the children's market. Her work can be seen at www.christinaforshay.com. Follow her on hijinks on Facebook at Christina Forshay Illustration and on Twitter at @chrstinaforshay. 

Great Illustration Podcast - by Eliza Wheeler

I am admittedly a radio and podcast junkie, and find that at certain stages of my drawing process I like to have something playing in the studio while I work. It makes the time go faster, so I find I’m able to work longer hours. While I listen to all sorts of programs, there is one particular podcast that I really look forward to, and think it could be fun for any illustrators who may not have checked it out yet.

 Escape from Illustration Island

The shows are primarily interviews with illustrators, art directors and reps. The host, Thomas James, does an excellent job of asking great questions and engaging the interviewee in interesting conversations by being genuinely interested in what they do.

Escape from Illustration Island is not restricted to just illustration for children’s books, so it’s fun to hear what’s going on elsewhere in the illustration community and gives a good peek into other professional possibilities. That said, here’s a fairly recent interview you might enjoy with children’s book illustrator Elizabeth Dulemba

If you have any favorite audio programs, please do share in the comment section!
Happy illustrating,

~Eliza