A Giraffe "Cured" My Illustrator's Block

Yes, it's a thing.

In a former life (in this lifetime) I had an online illustration shop. I made a good chunk of my living selling prints of my illustrations. Then we moved, and I stopped. Just stopped! What was going to be a temporary shop closure while I got settled into my new home became permanent. I can’t give you a list of reasons why, I can only say, “It was time.” Time for a break, time for a change…time.

And now, nine years later (nine years?!), I’ve written a million (only slight exaggeration) drafts of a few picture books. Over lockdown I took some online courses on making children’s books both from the point of view of the author (SCBWI) and of the illustrator (The Goodship Illustration). I joined critique groups, rewrote, paid for professional critiques, rewrote, etc.

I’m currently taking the picture book course taught by Louise Grosart via London Writers’ Salon, and for the first time in my life, I actually look forward to critiques! I know! Wild, right? Highly recommend!

Currently, a couple of my books are now in a place where I feel juuuuust about ready to start querying agents. And one of the books, I feel in my gut, I really need to illustrate myself. I’ve been feeling this way for some time but I haven’t done it. There’s been some strange sort of block.

And then two things happened this week.

Thing one:  I heard a quote at Writers’ Hour (with London Writers’ Salon) by Toni Morrison. She was speaking of writing, but I think this wisdom can be applied to any artistic endeavor:

I tell my students there is such a thing as ‘writer’s block,’ and they should respect it. You shouldn’t write through it. It’s blocked because it ought to be blocked, because you haven’t got it right now.

Wait, it’s possible that all this time, I just wasn’t ready?! *queue angelic choir and ray of light.* I didn’t have it.

And thing two:  Clay. As I mentioned last week, David Bowie said that when he was having a hard time writing a song, he’d paint, and by the time he’d finish a painting, he’d have the song. I had this gut feeling that clay might be my paint. I have zero experience with clay, so I looked online and found a very beginner-friendly company called Sculpd that sells starter kits and bundles, et voilà…a giraffe pot:

Now, I’m not saying that I suddenly know exactly how each spread of my picture book is going to look. But something about trying a new (to me) art, and using my hands in an untrained way, along with utilizing a different but still artistic part of my brain, has freed me up. The storyboard I’ve been seeing in my mind has become clearer. And more importantly, I know where to start with my drawings. And I feel ready.

To that end, I know myself and how I tend to be when I’m on a project. Especially illustration. When I’m in it, I am in it. I have to be, and I’m happy to be. In fact, I’m so in it that when I Illustrate it is really the only time I ever truly reach a flow state. More on that in a future post.

All to say, for a little while, things may look a bit different around here. There will likely be musings that spring up as I go through the processes of redrawing the storyboard, making sketches, and making one or two color spreads in preparation for submissions. Actually, the first musing has already been percolating! It’s about reluctance to take the time needed to create, especially when that time is not yielding immediate returns (money bucks, as my son calls it– thanks to Bluey), or in many cases not even yielding the finished product. Clearly, I’ve got some things to work through. I hope you’ll join me next time for that rollercoaster. These rides are more fun/ less scary with friends.

‘til then,

XoJo

PS. If you’re wondering what will go in the pot: lemon drops.