Reviews - are they worth it?
Thoughts on getting motivated and finding inspiration
Are art reviews worth it?
For me - abso-bloomin-lutely. First of all, I work intensively to produce new work to get insights into whether or not my latest fad* style is worth sticking with. I am still in that glorious moment of experimentation, but I do feel in my bones that this is due to end and soon I will have to pick and stick. So far, every reviewer has enjoyed 2 particular pieces and told me they look less forced and as though I enjoyed myself - and it’s true!
(* giving myself permission to be fickle about genre, medium and style)
But every reviewer has also told me something I didn’t want to hear. And my reaction to these comments is always surprising.
Each month Illoguild answer a question together and this month we consider how you find inspiration. Head over to IlloGuild page to read other responses!. We are starting a new podcast, the first is On forming and particpating in critique groups. Sign up here
It has been a moment since my last substack. I could tell you it was a fun packed summer, full of trips around the UK; fossil hunting and body boarding; long days in the woods on bikes and ice cream on the coast. There were definitely those moments and I am beyond grateful to be in a privileged position to give my family these experiences. But we also had major upheaval after my Father suffered a heart attack and needed an emergency double bypass; a close family member developed anorexia and is thankfully recovering, whilst my 99 year old Grandmother needed a new type of support network after surgery and sight loss.
At the beginning of the Summer I let Illoguild know that I had to make some priority calls and that creative pursuits would take a back seat. As always, my global companions were supportive and understanding. Having our Discord channel to pop into and read everyone’s progress was a life-raft. I also attended a fabulous author and illustrator picnic in Regents Park London which was organised by Steve Lenton, which boosted my spirits and enthusiasm for this amazing community. If you haven’t listened to his podcast yet…well, you can thank me later.
Nevertheless, after all the drama, my inspiration was LOW. Time away from my she-shed (shedio) meant restless hands, eyes and ears and I had tried to use the gaps wisely to research female scientists; get my new printer working properly and reorganise my bookshelf of picture books. So when the kids went back to school last week (they gave an audible sigh of relief), I do confess there was a moment where I wondered if the constant battle to create pockets of time was worth it.
But I really, really, really want it. A creative career involving days of developing stories and illustrations and ink stained paper or embroidered textiles. Yes, all of that and the only way to achieve it would be to step back up and work hard.
So I took the one course of action which always puts the hot coals under my feet - I booked a review.
Since I am one of the world’s leading experts in the art form of procrastination AND I am likely to be the proud owner of a neurodiverse brain, there are often 100 tabs open in my head at any one time, which makes it hard to finish anything when the next new shiny thing comes along and takes me off course.
But, signing up to a review is one of the few things which keeps me on track, mostly because I have something specific in mind which I would like to ask for feedback about and tend to make 5 or so examples in quick succession. There is also a nagging ex-Catholic guilty feeling that if I DON’T take new work, I will somehow get in trouble. Regardless of what I take with me, the resulting surge in creative energy AFTER the review has the biggest worth to me. Why does this happen?
I don’t really like to be told what I can’t do.
And every reviewer has an opinion on what ISN’T working for me. Even if it’s true, my reaction is defiant - my own version of rebellion -
‘I’ll show YOU’!!!
It’s interesting to observe these sensations in my body. The Buddhist research of my teens kicks in and I watch the emotions flooding in; delight in being able to notice but not succumb to the rage of indignance and ask myself difficult questions about what message this gives me, if such a passionate response is ignited. Surely if I was looking for validation to give up and try something else for my twilight season of life, it would be a relief to hear that my efforts, whilst valiant, are misplaced. Instead what happens, is that I imagine donning my warpaint and breastplate and charging back into the shedio to throw colour at paper again, but paying homage to the advice I have been given about what IS working.
So how many reviews have I had and what are my golden takeaways? Would you like to know? Who did I meet, how did I find out about them and what did I do with the advice they offered?
It all began in 2022, when I joined SCBWI. Here are my notes on the journey so far.
Beehive/SCBWI: The hands and feet need practice, instead of hiding them. The characters are too static but one chap in particular is hilarious and should be explored. Using heavy waxy coloured pencil is an interesting medium. The bird illustrations are a strength. Several editorial pieces are the most exciting, especially the colour palette. I created a scene in the same style, which Walker Books liked at the BCBF23.
Bright/SCBWI 2022 conference: The character sheet of 2 children is terrifying (and would make small children cry). I can obviously do it [draw people] but my portfolio needs to show consistent characters who are both interacting and moving across the page, even though my non-fiction work shows promise. Don’t start with the colour palette, always begin with the story. I started a dedicated sketchbook for drawing people and it is still going strong and evolving. I lovingly call this my ‘area of development’ and remain oddly proud of eliciting this passionate response to some watercolour portraits of angry wood-folk.
Erica Rand Silverman/BCBF23: Consider non-fiction instead of picture books. The blue bunny from my sketchbook shows the most commercial relevance, to explore further in character sheets. Look at current books, particularly compendiums. I have been practicing the media - gouache and pencil and need to develop the poses for my blue bunny, but I did make him some woodland friends.
Kalaniot Books/BCBF23: My picture book text is sweet, funny and non-didactic in nature. I am ready to thumbnail the illustrations and decide page turns and working through an agent won’t necessarily be required for many publishers. Try to get the word count down and ‘show, don’t tell’. I have been consistently working on my picture book about 2 neurodiverse children now for 12 months, but cannot fix on a medium. Receiving this complement on the text actually rewired my entire creative brain in that one moment to believe I was now..an author.
Dolores Prades/BCBF23: There is so much beautiful work in your portfolio (I blushed deeply at this comment and experienced euphoria for about 2 hours!!) Use watercolour and gouache repeating patterns where possible and make more collage as this appears to ignite my passion, but develop work with personality. I have been experimenting with layer masks but haven’t found a home for my dragonfly repeating pattern yet.
Penguin House Publishing/BCBF23: A progression in the maturity of your style is apparent and the older pieces should be removed from my online portfolio, but keep going. Create several pieces to bring back next year. Delicate lines and detail suit you. Use watercolour patterns as wallpaper for interior scenes and consider editorial work in your preferred palette. I made a new page of interior furniture vignettes in this style but have not made any new scenes yet. Made 1 full cast of 13 characters to match this style, so far just front facing.
Sweet Cherry Publishing/BCBF23: Make 10 more collages of portraits for a non-fiction kids book. The other illustration work looks forced. I created a new collaged portrait and won a 121 Review with SCBWI as part of their sketchbook challenge! Made a third collage after deciding to concentrate on female scientists and have started my extensive research on chosen individuals.
Ohn Mar Win/Instagram. Picture books might not suit my family time constraints. There are options for illustration outside of picture books - specifically non-fiction and food illustration. Coincidentally I had already committed to a MATS course in Arty Books and am now planning both a historical non-fiction coffee table book and a niche cookbook.
Mallory Grigg/Twitter. Your mark making needs to become intuitive, so that the tools are not a handicap, which will allow you to concentrate on world building and character development. Consider the current collage work in portraits as a supporting exercise for designing characters. Commit to a year of mark making. I found myself inspired to draw 3 brand new full page spreads within a week, utilising characters from my sketchbooks but giving them more of a back story.
The main feeling I have come away from every review with, is one of possibility. The author and illustration corner of the internet is welcoming and nurturing. Tutors and mentors want only the best for their peers and students. This generosity seeps into the culture of newcomers to the scene and in time the student becomes the teacher. I may only be 5 minutes ahead of someone else but there is always another who is 5 minutes ahead of me, holding out their hand of encouragement.
After the meeting with Mallory, I realised that all the distractions on my desk were giving me an excuse to avoid my main focus - developing characters with personality. All the electronic systems and notebooks of lists didn’t seem to be helping so I bought a lever arch file and 100 punch pockets and filled each pocket with a different piece of unfinished work. There were 50 mini projects by the time I had cleared the desk!!! Very few of them were characters.
So here is my personal challenge: to finish these projects in the style which every reviewer has said suits me and get that set of characters moving across the page.
It may have been a busy summer but I’ve found the motivation to dig back in and my next review, which I won as a result of an SCBWI competition, is just around the corner!
Have you had a moment of clarity as a result of a recent review and if so, what did you change?
If you don’t find reviews motivational, perhaps you would enjoy a new type of short course? Check out my next substack which details all the courses I have taken over the past 12 months with Domestika and those which are still lined up to complete, as part of my learning journey.
Until our next chat….
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