December Newsletter
❄️Holiday Shop & Finishing Book #3📚
Happy December!
November fly by! From Diwali to Thanksgiving celebrations, and finishing up book 3 to running Small Business Saturday deals, wow— can’t believe it’s already December!
What I have for you this month:
❄️ The Holiday Shop ❄️
Check out the shop to see all the cards, stickers, and gift tags for this holiday season. And I am so excited to announce new DIY Sticker Cards featuring cats!
What are DIY Sticker cards?
Each “do-it-yourself” set includes 3 cards/envelopes, 60 stickers, and bonus coloring activities. Accessorize the dogs and cats with hats, and decorate the festive cards with candy canes, stockings, and holly!
Here are some reviews about the DIY Sticker cards from last year:
“Great quality and a lot of fun. I gifted them to a friend's nieces and they absolutely loved them!”
“Fun sticker cards for the young ones! Keeps them busy and entertained.”
“These are so cute! I'm going to have to get more to give as gifts!”
And remember, there’s always free shipping over $35! Use code FREESHIP35.
Substack Library Sale (20% off)
The Library is a resource for artists who are interested in …
Guides for Children’s Book Illustration
Toolkits for selling greeting cards and products
Exclusive reviews and interviews with industry professionals
Monthly Children’s Book Studies
Practical advice for private commission work
It’s a treasure trove of over a year’s worth of content and learning. Unlock the full library with a subscription. Save 20% this week only.
Also… Psst… Sketch Parties are returning in January, so lock in your subscription now!
Weekly Artist newsletters:
In case you missed any, here’s what I wrote about last month:
Bonus: Small Business Saturday (check out my product and commission offerings!)
Updates about last month:
Illustrating Children’s Book Class
As promised, here are the assignments from the last two weeks of class: a cover and a spread. I set a goal to create five new portfolio pieces in gouache, and I’m proud to have them up on my website now! I’m looking forward to creating more work in this style.
All done with spreads for Book #3!
I’ve been illustrating My ABCF at School for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation of Western Australia. This book will be used at schools to build understanding and empathy in children who have a classmate with cystic fibrosis. I’m really grateful to be a part of this education and empathy building, especially as a former teacher. The authors did an incredible job of making this content accessible to students and teachers.
The book is done in a flat, educational style. I really enjoyed the process of this type of illustration. The last thing to do is the cover, and then the book will be printed in January!
Here are some pages:
A reminder to keep creating… you never know who’s looking
A publisher contacted me about a book they’d like to do about an animal. They included a screenshot of a piece from my website and asked if they could put it forward to their team. I didn’t have to be asked twice! That was early November, so who knows if anything will come of it, but it’s just an example of how having work out there is so important.
Submitting to agents and publishers
I sent off my portfolio to over 30 agents and publishers. Let’s see if anything sticks. If not, I’ll keep creating art and putting it out there. I had some serious imposter syndrome, stress, and doubts earlier this week, but my friends in the
built me back up. They reassured me it’s all part of this journey. Having a community to lean on makes such a difference.illoguild LIVE
Speaking of illoguild… the next illoguild live is December 4! We’ll be discussing process, and we have slides to share with you. I hope to see you there!
Monthly pup-date
I was definitely holding a treat…
That’s is for my updates! Please feel free to share about your month in the comments. It’s always inspiring to see what you’ve all been up to!
See you next week for post about children’s books,
Katie
PS - Remember to sign up for the illoguild LIVE and visit the holiday shop.
Lovely, Katie! Well done with those bear illustrations. They look fantastic! And finishing the CF book. It's been quite a year for you; I hope 2023 is even better! 😁💛