You Don’t Have to Get Ready if You Stay Ready {mini pep talk}

Hi friends! Have you ever had a really daunting task? I am the queen of short, instant gratification projects. I could write a blog article every day for a year with no problem but if I had to write a 365 page book I would be overwhelmed, even if I had a year to do it! I realized that tasks can seem manageable or daunting depending on how we look at them. I am currently in the middle of a children’s book illustration job. The deadline is tight and I ordinarily would not have accepted a job with such a short deadline but the success of the book depends on it being ready for this years catalog for bookstores. Also I am friends with the author and I don’t want to screw up someone else’s dream. I had to start the process with the cover of he book which I would prefer to do last after getting a feel for the book and the other illustrations. People, despite good advice, judge a book by it, that is a lot of pressure! Creating the cover was like pushing a boulder up a hill on an unfamiliar path, you think you are at the top but the author needs a change, so you plod away some more and you think you reach the top and the publisher needs a change and then you finally do reach flat ground. phew!

Now, instant gratification “me” would be running for the hills (or maybe start a massive declutter of her house instead of buckling down and getting this job done…) but luckily responsible-artist-in-her-right-mind “me” grabbed the wheel and set this ship strait. I sat down with a stack of white paper, a copy of my friends manuscript and a pencil and sketched out 12 illustrations, and you know what? They were pretty darn good. I was so caught up in the immense size of the project and short deadline that I forgot that I have trained my whole life for this. I draw every day. I am always creating. I am ready for this. I don’t need to go 0-60 because I am always cruising down the art highway at 65. You don’t have to get ready if you stay ready.

A few works in progress I am evaluating, it is always best to take a break before you are “done” and see them with fresh eyes.

If you are feeling overwhelmed by a project whether it be a work, school or personal project remember that you have been training for this, or, if you haven’t, cut yourself some slack and just start somewhere. Just starting is often all you need to do. I hope you are having a great week! We will have a live show tomorrow at 12:30pm eastern time, I hope you can make it. Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!