August AMA: Answers (Patreon)

 Thank you to all of the $5+ Patrons that submitted questions! Please take all of this advice with a grain of salt as always.

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Sarah asks: I definitely want to hear about some constructive habits you have. They say draw every day but what  are some intentional things you do that help you improve

I have a variety of habits relating to my work built into my every day. Some help me make art for as long as I need to, others force me to take breaks. Having a balance of both work and rest while getting into a rhythm is very important to a sustainable, healthy journey.

I've never worked well within rules or forced schedules that I've tried setting for myself. Saying "I'll make art from 6pm to 8pm" made it feel like a chore, something that I had to pressure myself into. Same goes for "draw every day." I try to focus more on organically increasing how much I make art. I think the one of the best ways to start making work really consistently out of habit is to focus in on what you have the most fun making and finding resources that challenge you. What are you making when you get lost in your work? What makes time fly by? Whatever that curiosity is, pursue it. That'll drive your portfolio while keeping you engaged.

The challenge aspect of this is essential. When I stagnate in my work and stay too far in my comfort zone, I get bored and it's harder for me to work consistently. Following along a video tutorial series like CtrlPaint or a Youtube series can help with this. Get some feedback on your work and figure out what your weak points are, then address them!

So if setting up rules and schedules for yourself works, that's totally fine. But if not, don't panic! It doesn't work for everyone, and it definitely doesn't work for me. When motivation or inspiration strikes, I take full advantage of it and pour myself into that idea for a few days. 

I keep that inspiration cycle rolling by consistently looking at other people's art and having a mental checklist of ideas and concepts and illustrations I want to try. I often write them down, or do a rough sketch that I throw into a WIP folder to finish up later so that I have a backlog of WIPs and ideas that I can pounce on if I haven't been feeling inspired lately. 

I try to be aware of how often I'm putting out personal work and portfolio pieces. I don't have a set "finish something once a week" rule, but if it's been a couple of days or weeks since I've made something I'm proud of, I try to find some inspiration or dive into that backlog of ideas that sound fun. Consistently making art is something at this point that's pretty woven into my identity, so for better or for worse (I don't necessarily think this is healthy), my self-esteem is tied to if I've made something I'm proud of recently. When I'm feeling down on myself, I strive to make something that I feel good about!

Relevant post:  https://www.patreon.com/posts/my-daily-routine-26041007 

Wren asks: How often do you run into little tidbits of information that drastically improve your craft? Every day? Every few days? Every few weeks? I've been getting overwhelmed by the quantity of new art tips I find by studying art online, and it makes revising my art and making new art very daunting because I'm suddenly able to see how much it could be improved in various directions. I know choosing one subject to study and focusing on that before moving on is probably the best way to approach this dilemma, but with the overwhelming amount of information available online, I find it difficult to focus. If you ever run into this kind of problem, how do you handle it?

This is a really interesting question. 

It's really easy to get overwhelmed with the infinite amount of information out there. I honestly think stemming that flow and limiting your exposure to it is kind of necessary sometimes in order to avoid freezing up. The most important thing to know is that the information is infinite- it will continue being infinite- and that will never change... so don't treat it like a checklist that you can one day complete!

Something that really helped me focus and avoid overinformation paralysis early on was to focus on making small-scope quick projects that didn't require hours and hours of work from me. Small works like icons or weapon designs allow for a quicker completion cycle, which means you can execute upon the new lessons you're learning in a smaller, faster setting.

Kind of like I mentioned in the answer for the previous question- I do NOT work well when I create rules or schedules for myself. I like to create a bit more spontaneously. There's enough that I'm curious about for me to always have something to do, so I try to create what I'm curious about in the moment. The freedom of that is liberating for me- I can just sit down and draw without tying myself to "well I should be doing X" feelings. Those spike my anxiety and crush my creativity. 

So...don't be afraid to be spontaneous! Keep a journal or a document where you can write down your thoughts, the things you want to try, the lessons you've learned. I write down EVERYTHING and have a ridiculous library of post-it  notes at any given time. Even if I don't go back and reference them, writing things down helps me remember important things and emphasize them mentally!

Hope that helps.

Kat asks: Always love to hear about constructive habits, but maybe also any advice on project management. How you keep track of projects and their stages of completion? Currently using an excel doc, but always interested to hear how others do it.

Ohhh boy. I pride myself in being reliable and not forgetting things, but damn me if I had an actual system for it. 

Like I mentioned above, I rely heavily on post-it notes and a slew of other documentation formats. Something that I've found to be really helpful when I'm getting SUPER scatterbrained is to use Trello! It's a free, simple task management software that helps me realign my brain when too much is going on. The most important part of it is that it helps me prioritize tasks. What NEEDS to get done today? What needs to get done this week? I'm able to mentally add some hierarchy to my (constantly endless) to-do list, which keeps my brain in check.

Honestly, I mostly just keep my brain organized on post-it notes. I'm an obsessive user and advocate for them. I have at least 4 or 5 hung up around my desk on the walls and my monitors on any given day. I find physically checking off a to-do list to be super satisfying while reminding me what to focus on!

spooks asks: how important do you feel it is to do warm-ups in art? I sometimes find it difficult to feel the tangible benefit of them in the way I do at the gym, for example. also, with warming up, is it better to focus on the literal gesture of the movement (ie, drawing straight lines, circles, etc), or on getting your brain to think in a specific way (ie, doing composition thumbnails)?

thanks again for being so generous with your knowledge :)

Art confession: I don't do warm-ups. I am the worst. (Not really, but I do get some pretty annoying wrist pain and this would help with it.) 

HOWEVER, I do find doing proper warmups helps with how quickly I can get into a rhythm when I'm actually working. This especially applies to when I'm doing rapid iteration (sketching) or lineart because either of those require me to work very gesturally. Warm-ups especially help with this factor of my workflow, but I partially avoid doing full warm-ups because I get distracted. "Oh I'll just do a quick drawing" turns into a full new personal piece WAY too quickly... so I focus more on sketching ellipses, drawing lines, that sort of thing.

Anything that warms up that gestural aspect of my work- that is what is especially helpful for me. Thumbnails, lines, ellipses, observational sketches, rapid figure drawing... use what works for you!