Hey, everybody!

With the holiday break coming up, I wanted to drop in with an idea for your sketchbook time. But before I do, I just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to you newsletter folks.

I've appreciated your suggestions, drawings, and questions about ART STUFF all year. It was also great to see so many of you all at last week’s Holiday Sketchbook Club meet-up. I had a blast drawing, talking and listening to elevator music. Maybe we need another one very soon?

If you missed it, you can catch the replay here.

It’s Sketchbook Assignment time!

I typically like to do quick-ish sketchbook assignments, but this one might take a little bit of brain work. For this activity, we are going to look back at the year and draw 3-9 of your favorite moments from the year. 

Did you get a new house? A new car? A new sweatshirt with a cat on it with glasses that says Meowy Christmas? It can be a big, life-changing event or something as small as having a nice plate of olives with a friend.

Tips for this assignment.

• Start by making a list of anything that happened this year that you can think of.
• Can’t think of anything? Try scrolling through your photos. More tips on that here.
• Narrow your list down to ten favorite moments.
• Sketch your ideas out in pencil.
  These can be small icons that represent moments, short comics, or full scenes.
• Feel free to put them all on one page OR fill up as many pages as you’d like.

I like this activity because it combines sketchbook journaling and this classic bit of advice: 

(see the full post here)

If you complete the assignment, be sure to tag me on Instagram so I can see what you’ve been up to this year.

ART BUSINESS STUFF!

We here in the studio have already been planning and prepping for our big BUSINESS OF ILLUSTRATION course, Getting Paid to Draw. The 8-week deep-dive into portfolio building doesn’t start until Spring 25, but you can get a sneak peek here.

Can’t wait for spring? 

Check out these classes from two incredible illustrators.

Many former Getting Paid to Draw alumni already know and love my friends (and former GPTD speaker!) Nate Padavick and Salli S. Swindell. Together, they have 50+ years of experience running a successful freelance illustration business, and they share that expertise with students on-demand through the PRO series, open now! Check out my affiliate link below to learn more and level up with Nate and Salli. I highly recommend their seminars.

That’s all for now! 

If you’ve got a sketchbook activity idea or question for the newsletter, let me know! Just hit reply to this email.

No longer interested in getting these emails? Unsubscribe using the link below. If you have any issues with that link, just reply to this email with "unsubscribe."