Last month, I resigned from my job. In fact, I retired from a rewarding career I’ve specialized in since 2006 – to pursue illustration 💥
I have no formal training – the spark for drawing began in 2018 and my dream is to create comic books and graphic novels someday. My short-term goal is to fully focus on learning the foundations of illustration as much as I can over the next 6 months. And then do a gut check to see if this is a viable career path. Worse case scenario, I go back to what I know already – employee communications – a very rewarding and meaningful career that introduced me to folks I proudly acknowledge as lifelong friends.
My decision to leave is what many would call a mid-life crisis 😅 I’m 42 years old and I figure I have 20+ professional years left in me. As much as I enjoy consulting, training, and executing on exciting internal campaigns, I’ve been asking myself frequently: “If I spent the next 12 years pursuing art, what would I be doing then?” And THAT excites me.
I’m scared. But full of hope! 🙏
People have been asking me, “So what’s your plan for the next 6 months? What does your typical day look like? ” And that’s when I smile. My biggest priority is to learn as much as I can and determine if the illustrator life is something I can pursue full-time for the long-term.
My typical day looks like the following:
8am to 11am – Learn and absorb from a variety of resources – online video classes I bought years ago, art books, meeting up with new and old friends who are illustrators, Youtube tutorials, etc.
11am to 1pm – Lunch and walk the cat (If I don’t, he’ll bite me)
1pm to 5:30pm – Focus on that illustration project that will force me to develop the skills I want to learn – and have fun!
5:30 – 8:30pm – Run and listen to illustration podcasts, eat dinner, and spend time with the family.
In my first few week, I was not only able to learn an abundance amount of information and practice, I published my first art project as a newbie illustrator. Not gonna lie – there were many moments of frustration when certain aspects of illustrating seemed to take forever or I kept revising because I wasn’t satisfied with my initial attempts. But I’m finding the perseverance (and boba!) are well worth the time and energy spent.
This project is not perfect, but it’s finished (thanks, Jake Parker for that mantra) and I’m very happy with the results!
Regarding this specific illustration- it’s a cover homage to The Incredible Hulk issue 181 (the first appearance of Wolverine) but I thought it would be super fun to draw characters from the video game, Fallout 76. Big thank you to Herb Trimpe (RIP) for the original 1974 cover, and Yildiray Cinar for the Turkish 2020 cover variant – amazing inspirations that I’ve learned so much from.
In my second week, I received my first paid commission 😍🤑 The deadline was a bit tight as the client requested a Christmas drawing of her mom with the client’s two kids (Grandma with the little ones).
I haven’t drawn anything cute and warm in years but I could not turn down a request like this. The illustration needed to convey warmth, love, and happiness – a precious moment of sentiment that accurately represents the joy one has with with loved ones. This has been a difficult year for many and I can sense the client wanted something special for her mom. So I communicated almost on a daily basis with the client and her husband on brainstorming, progress, and feedback. It was such a fun and exciting experience to partner with them in creating something meaningful.
On Christmas morning, I got a text from the client – she attached a picture of her mom holding the framed print of this illustration with tears on her face – smiling. It was truly touching and I felt incredibly honored to be part of this moment. My prayers and hope for her and all our loved ones – to be filled with strength, comfort, unity, and hope 🙏❤️
I often think about the impact of my efforts in everything I do so this first paid commission was truly the best Christmas gift to me. And while I spent more time on this project than professionals would, I’m filled with hope and confidence that I’ll be honing my craft and be even better in the near future.
By June 2023, I’ll have to make a decision. Not whether or not I’ll be pursuing illustration – I already know this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. But the main question will be if I can afford to explore illustration full-time or part-time. I’m fortunate and privileged to have saved up enough money for the short-term, but I will have to think deeply about the available options to sustain a comfortable lifestyle (part-time work, full-time with a less demanding career, or maybe my wife returns to the workforce) but I’ll be prayerfully considering what is best for the family and myself.
As for 3rd and 4th week of my creative journey, I’ve been more studious on figure drawing – learning gesture drawing, structures, and anatomy. I’ve also got an exciting new project to publish – stay tuned!
My Instagram art account shares ‘stories’ of my day-to-day sketches so if you’re interested in seeing my progress, I encourage you to check it out. Thank you!