The Importance of taking breaks

This past week I worked a ton. I put in at least two, but possibly three 30 hour days. Honestly I lost track of the days and had to ask my wife what day it was Friday morning even though I have a calendar over my laptop. The life of a freelancer can get fairly complex and congested if you let it. But this past week was a combination of work that just had to get done and a massive creative spurt mixed with the realization that I had previously bitten off more than I could chew and needed to buckle down in order to make a decent dent in all this work. That would be a great problem to have if even half of what I were doing was paid freelance work, but as it happens I have been fairly ambitious this past year and this is the fallout of me trying to launch a few personal projects. The good news is that they are all gaining traction so far, so hopefully the hard work will pay off. In the meantime, even a creative person can't work non-stop all the time. Sleep is essential to a sharp mind. And a sharp, attentive mind is key to making wise decisions as you work. You can't realistically expect yourself to be able to constantly consider light, value, tone, composition, contrast, narrative, anatomy issues, brush, pen, or pencil strokes, line weight, color selection, and anything else I may have missed when you've been up for 24-30 hours straight and worked most of that save a sandwich and bathroom breaks. So what do you do when you're under the gun and time is of the essence? Most artists and illustrators will tell you it starts way before that moment, but if you are there, then the only thing you can do is rush to the finish line and hit your deadline. But as I can tell you, you end up like the drunk who wakes up on the bathroom floor with a splitting headache and you swear you will never do it again...until you do. So the solution is simple. Get a schedule and keep it. I know, I know, it's like a budget. It looks good on paper, but how's it play in practice? Well, obviously (see above), not so well for some of us. Still, on my road to correcting this issue, I have learned at least one thing. I need to take regular breaks, and here's why. 1. I don't eat right if I don't schedule it in. You don't want to eat at your desk. If you do, you never get a mental or emotional break from your work space, and then you grow to resent going there at all after time. Taking a break, leaving your work space for a while, and getting some nourishment is a good thing all around. 2. I don't sleep right either. Yeah, schedules are hard to keep as a creative type. I typically only sleep when I'm exhausted. This is a social issue and really cramps my wife's style, but it is also a health issue. People who sleep at the same time of day for solid periods of time (usually between six and eight hours) are typically more balanced all around. Proper sleep equals more energy and a clearer mind. 3. Your work needs to breath. Well, not exactly, but it's true that you need to step away from your work to get a better, all-inclusive view of it. Why do many traditional painters step back several feet to view their work regularly as they paint? Because you need to keep the overall composition and balance of the work in mind. Yes, you can zoom out, but your body (lower portions especially) will also thank you for the brief bit of exercise and returned blood flow. 4. This point could be placed with #2, but it's more than just an as you sleep type thing. Often times our subconscious mind is problem solving as we 'switch off' the conscious portion of our brain in regard to a certain task. I often refer to this as putting something on the back burner. Your brain will continue to work out the issue and often times if you sleep on it, go play a video game, watch a show or film, or go for a refreshing walk, when you return to your work it will flow much smoother than before hand. I'm sure there are more, but those are four big ones for now! Now I'll show some of the work I wrapped up last week. These are pieces I did for Misfit Studios up-coming Misfit Pathfinder project. You can see more at https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Art-of-Harsh/107530249314935?ref=hl

Just keep it simple

As I mentioned in my last post, which *gasp* was only a week ago! (That's fairly amazing in itself!), I have really been delving into 'art think' mode lately. I am calling myself an illustrator or freelance illustrator, or artist, or even art director when people ask what it is I do all day and never really leave my apartment, so shouldn't I start acting the part? I joke. I do work hard at creating my artwork, but the vast majority of people have no idea I even exist let alone my artwork or even this little blog here. So how to remedy that? I guess make a splash. How to do that? Well, be excellent at what I do is a good start.Obviously I'm not there and even if I thought I was there is always room for improvement. I recall reading about some of the great artists from days past and how they almost always had a low self-esteem regarding their work. Sure, some had a brave face, a bit of bravado, etc., but most when pushed would say they weren't all that good and needed to just quit or get better. As a whole I think artists are a bit like adolescents in that regard. They never really seem to have a firm grasp on self-image nor do they seem to be able to fully appreciate what they create because as soon as it's labeled finished it's crap in their eyes. They can always and always want to do better. Ok, so where is all this coming from? Well, I never really got into the whole 'art scene' at university. I was never really willing to be quite that pretentious as to make use of mysterious terms that only a select few understood. I was never really into the whole smoking jacket approach to critiques or criticisms of other artist's works. I always preferred to just look over a piece and try to learn from it. Give advice or feedback if asked, and be polite about it, and then move on. I never really got the need to juice up my ego at the expense of others, but I have certainly felt the effects of it. So when I hear terms tossed around as if they are some sort of private club speak, it baffles me. Something like "Rule of Thirds", for instance. It just means to create a solid composition that portrays a compelling, and visually appealing image. Yes, you can make use of the separation lines to adjust the image for maximum impact, but you also run the risk of a canned image that looks very much like many others out there. You can 'term' yourself into a cookie cutter mess if you're not careful. Now, I'm not saying that an art vocabulary is useless, I'm just saying keep it simple. Why not talk about how the image reads, how the subject is framed by the borders of the image, how the light, tones, values, etc. all interact to tell a story? (Yeah, I know those are more art terms.) Maybe I'm not 'getting' it, but for my money, keep it simple. Say what it is, and leave the decoding ring at home.

Collecting experience with knowledge

It's Monday again and I've managed to come up for some air a bit yesterday and today. Since August 12th until September 15th I pretty consistently put in 10 to 12 or more hours of relatively solid work every day without a break. Why? Well, for starters, as a freelancer I need to earn a living so I put in the necessary time to do what I could to meet that goal for my budget. Then, on top of that, GenCon '12 happened between Aug. 12th and 20th (including travel time). My business partners with Harsh Realities and a few volunteers ran 46 games in four days. It was a blast, people seemed to genuinely love our games and dice mechanic, gave praise and valuable feedback, and we learned a lot about what works and what doesn't work. It was also exhausting. Still, I took a few moments to look around the exhibit hall, see some other artists, and of course, a few art directors as well. I came home excited to get to work, and still had a week's worth of work to catch up on, so I put my head down and got to it. Oh, and on top of that there is the web comic to pump out every week. :)
So, that's why. I've been freelancing, working on artwork for Harsh Realities, Art Directing for Harsh Realities, doing the web comic for Worldview Warriors, and ramping up submissions for future projects and bigger clients as well. It's been crazy! This is the part where the rubber hits the road, as they say. I had a portfolio review with Wizards of the Coast that left me feeling in between worlds. I was told I was essentially wasting my talent by jobbing it out, but at the same time those practical needs of daily, weekly, and monthly life don't just go away because an artist suddenly decides he/she is just simply better than the pay they are currently getting. So here's what I have come to. If I want to reach my potential, I have to really hone those art and illustration skills. It takes hard work, dedication, and self-motivated drive. I also feel like I need to really locate my 'voice' as an artist, as much as I really dislike that sort of language. Still, I've had people tell me they can identify my work by it's look. I have a hard time doing that. So perhaps a better way to state this is that I need to learn to focus my already existent style in a more conscious manner.
Either way, I need to level up again. And the only way to level up is to gain experience. In the game world that's achieved by adventuring, slaying monsters, toppling challenges, and achieving goals. In the real world, as an illustrator, it's much the same, but I would say carefully observing, executing your observations, consistently and repeatedly knocking down the habits or short-comings of your work flow, and replacing your old portfolio with a newly acquired series of images to show off. After all, when you level up, people notice. You get new skills, or a new weapon or other gear, or a special ability that sets you apart from all the other adventurers out there. So. Knowledge and experience lead to leveling up. Putting in the hard work, extra hours, and dedication it takes to see yourself through to the next tier.
Oh, and one more thing that has helped put all this in perspective. Since starting the art direction process for Harsh Realities' first book, my artistic eye has changed. I have to give credit to Ninja Mountain podcast as well. I've been listening to their archived podcasts as I work and a lot of the insights offered there have helped remind me or inform me of things I need to know as an illustrator and an artist. I don't have that community of artists so much, but I now feel like I'm starting to create one around myself at least across the internet. A big part of this new network is from the artists I have been able to work with on the artwork for HR, and as I said, it's changed how I look at art. Especially my own. I think from here on out I will be thinking more like an art director when I create artwork, and I think that has already changed how I approach things from the ground up.

The 11th Hour...er...Month

I suppose it's a matter of being distracted and spread out a bit that keeps me from posting regular updates here or elsewhere, but here I am again. It's been almost 11 months and a lot has changed. I took a job last August as a designer for a newspaper. New experience gave way to new opportunities to learn and expand my range of skills. It was a good learning pool too. Several talented people to learn from and in the end it made me a stronger artist and designer. Now, however, I've returned to the freelance world only to find myself looking at even greater opportunities. I've started a web comic in the Marvel tradition and taken on the writing, pencils, inks, and colors duties for now. I have several children's literature books to illustrate, some game art, already done some game art and working on a pretty large order now, and my own games to illustrate as well! I'm super busy!
So what brought all this on? Well, prayer first and foremost, but also dedication, hard work, and diligence. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Now. Follow through and updating the marketing aspect of all this and everything will be right as rain.

Next up: Lots of artwork!

For now though, have a gander at these: http://wvwcomic.blogspot.com/