October Newsletter 🎃
illoguild LIVE, roughs, & sketching
Happy October!
If you’re new here, welcome! This is the Monthly Newsletter where I share news and updates. It’s really great when I get to hear about your month, too. The comments are always open.
Also every Wednesday I send a newsletter specifically for us artists to learn and grow together.
What I have for you this month:
illoguild LIVE!
The first ever illoguild LIVE is happening on tomorrow, Monday, October 2 at 8AM EST. Click here to see what time that is for you. It is free for anyone attending live, and we’ll be sharing all our tips and tricks for starting your own critique group.
Weekly Artists Newsletters:
At the beginning of September, I launched the Library. It contains 50+ newsletters for artists interested in Guides for Children’s Book Illustration, Toolkits for Greeting Cards, Exclusive Reviews and Interviews, etc...
All the weekly newsletters will remain 100% free during the week they are published. After a week, they will join the other newsletters in the paid Library. Paid subscribers can unlock unlimited access to the whole Library. Here’s what was added to it last month:
Children’s Book Study #4: Down the Hole (this book hasn’t been released yet, but you get a sneak peek!)
Greeting Cards - Free Shipping
Stock up on fall birthday and everyday cards from the shop. As always, use FREESHIP35 for all US orders over $35 for free shipping. I also have signed copies of Timothy’s Tee Time!
Updates on last month:
Character Samples
A publisher asked me to create some character samples for a 2024 book! I’m not able to share any of the sketches or artwork, but the samples have been sent off. I, of course, am obnoxiously refreshing my email waiting to see if I got it or not.
Roughs for Book #3
I’ve been hard at work sketching and finalizing the roughs for the book I’m currently illustrating. The final roughs are due next Friday, which is a good feeling! Here are some of my favorite pages so far:
Commissions
I finished a watercolor wedding commission last month. I was nervous about doing a watercolor since I haven’t done a watercolor commission in 2 years! So I did a practice version on cheaper paper and then did the final on the large, high quality paper. The idea for this commission was to have guests sign their names around the painting. It’s such a great idea, so I hope I get to do more work like this!
If you’re looking for a custom project, sign up for a commission here.
Sketching with Gouache
After the watercolor commission, I was hit by a need to use traditional materials, so I painted these two friends in my sketchbook. I think the dog could improve. Maybe it looks like he’s wearing a mask on his face? Do you think just a brown dot over the eye would fix it? Any other suggestions? But this is the beauty of a sketchbook - it’s all about play and experimenting. No pressure to make it perfect!
Updated my portfolio
I’m gearing up to submit to agents this month (eek!), so I updated my portfolio with recent work and refreshed the format a bit. It always feels good to get work up on the site, so if you haven’t updated yours recently, consider penciling in a Portfolio Update Day. It’s relaxing and you’ll have work to show when you’re done! Also, anyone else submitting this month?? 💪
Blue Sky
I’m on Blue Sky! Anyone else? I’d love to give you a follow.
Peter Reynolds Visit at the Museum
I’m a part-time educator at the Museum of Fine Arts. We hosted a big celebration for Dot Day, and Peter H. Reynolds was there with his team! I had the pleasure of hearing him read The Dot, and he signed my copy of -Ish. Check out these cool drawings he left on our art tables! I’d like to write about his visit in a newsletter this month, because he was such an expert at engaging the audience. Have you ever celebrated Dot Day? It’s all about celebrating any kind of mark-making as art, even if it’s just a dot.
Monthly Pup-date
Enjoying some fall adventures! And digging many, many holes in the sand…
That’s it for updates! The comments are always open if you’d like to share anything about your past month (I love hearing from you).
Have a great rest of the weekend and see you on Wednesday for the monthly illoguild question (it’s a juicy one this month),
Katie
That mouse is so darling! And yes, the dog looks a little like he’s wearing a mask. Maybe the line where the white meets the brown could be less abrupt?