I Am Not Concerned About New Year Resolutions

The new year is here and I don't give much thought to resolutions. 
I am more concerned about the challenges before me. I won't 

become overwhelmed as long as I organize my goals and set 

steps to achieve them.

My business is a priority but I do have a life and need to maintain 
it.  Business is business but only as good as a healthy outlook. I will 
dance and sing songs.

I plan to dream bigger and better and go after creative jobs that
excite me. I won't let my objectives disrupt me but will handle as
small steps. I will stay positive and greet people with a smile.

My calendar will have goals listed and nothing on it I can not achieve.  
I will not loose focus, become overwhelmed and procrastinate. When
I need to take a break I will strike a pirate pose and say "Aarrr".

I will enjoy my relationships with family, friends and business 
folks. Most of all I will appreciate each day I awake to the sound of 
birds and the sun shining.

Important thought:

The future is now and belongs to those who believe in their dreams
and set out to reach them.

Black and White Study

Who doesn't like picture books? Everyone that I know loves them. The shear excitement of discovering new adventures with various main characters. Characters may even discover something new about themselves within new situations. 

This sketch tells a story about characters and their love for picture books. I used pencil shading to create various shapes within space. Pentel Super is my main lead for use with my mechanical pencil. I love the subtle shading achieved with each stroke to build up the value. At some point this sketch may lead to a new painting but this remains to be seen.

Let Us Give Thanks

                                      Time to give thanks for all that we have and about to receive.

Stop Working And Take A Break

There are times when we need to slow down and take a break from all the projects we are working on. Time to recharge and refresh our energy levels so that we can continue at our maximum creative level. This should be a time to connect with our loved ones and maintain our mental and physical health. If this means turning down projects that aggravate our anxiety level and doesn't lead to any meaningful monetary or creative success, so be it. A walk through the park or favorite site may not be long enough to regain your creative spirit. It possibly might mean several days away from the studioallowing time to connect with people who are close to you. When was the last time you spent some quality time with your spouse, children and parents? Providing the opportunity to take some quality time with loved ones will add to your creativeness. This should be a good opportunity also, to evaluate your creative direction. What about discussing some of your ideas with your loved ones for their input? They may see your views in a completely different way. Also, quality time in this manner doesn't always need to be about your creativeness, but rather afford time completely devoid of the art profession.

After several days off, our body gives us signals that it is time to return to our inner space and create. Inspiration and creative energy is gradually restored and returning to the studio to create becomes highly anticipated. It is now time to consider an SCBWI convention, a trip to the museum, or to sign up for a course to get back on track. We need to remember to nurture our creative capacity and to not drown our capacity level. There are many avenues that add to our overall well being, and we need to maintain our healthy existence in order to continue our creative adventure.

A Giant Leap For Kids

Another one of my calendar illustrations for a children's publisher. I had a lot of fun creating this art placing the children in space suits floating around a space station. The colors were kept on the the warm side even if November is a bit chilly at this time. The line art was created with Adobe Illustrator and brought into Adobe Photoshop for final coloring.

Preparing for Halloween

I am preparing for Halloween weekend and it's just about here. First step is creating my zombie 
colored sketch. My next step is a creative costume and hitting the parties.