Chin Up Pup!

© Holly DeWolf- Chin up pup! 

It's Monday so keep your chin up pup! We're going to okay.

Itty bitty Says You're Pwned!

© Holly DeWolf-Pwned! 

I'm not sure how this idea came to me...probably after too much coffee. If you are like me, you know coffee pretty much owns you! We love it. We need it! We worship the coffee pot and Starbucks too! So, to all the coffee drinkers out there, I raise my cup and salute you! 

I plan on putting this illustration on a t-shirt. I'll keep you posted! ~Holly 

Interview- My Thoughts About Social Networking

Recently I was asked to contribute to a talk by children's illustrator Hazel Mitchell. She wanted to know what my thoughts were on social networking. 

1. What area of social networking do you find most useful and why?

I think out of all the avenues to stay visual and vocal online, Blogging is definitely my favourite choice. Not only can you promote your latest work, you can show your process and share advice about being a freelancer. 

A close second is Twitter because it forces me to have a conversation even when I think no one is listening! The 140 character limit is a great wordy challenge that I enjoy. Because Twitter is easy to customize, it's a treasure trove of great reading material, links and witty banter that helps motivate me.

Linkedin is my third choice because it heavily focused on business, direct self promotion where you can get very specific of who you want to follow, what you do, while making it easier to ask for what you want. 

2. Has social networking had any impact on your career?

It's had a huge impact on my career. Being a freelance illustrator means a lifelong dedication to working long hours with no apparent off switch. This work involves many hours solo in my studio so it's very important to reach out, connect and promote as much as I can. The illustration industry is quite large with more competition every day so making this a daily creative habit is very important. 

I believe good things happen when you reach out in a consistent, positive and professional way. For me it has been more freelance work along with exciting new endeavours such as writing a book-Breaking Into Freelance Illustration, illustrating my first children's book, being asked to contribute to articles and books and even contributing work to a music video. Social networking allows you to think big and in today's times you need that energy to keep moving forward. 

3. Who are you reaching out to online and why?

In the beginning, I used to reach out to my peers and liked-minded illustration friends. Now I focus on still connecting but I reach out to more art directors, art buyers and publishers. The internet makes the creative work world a lot smaller and easier to access. Since I am in Canada, it helps me reach markets that would be harder to get to without it. 

I believe the new way of working as an illustrator means more than making connections- it involves having working relationships where the human side is just as important as the illustrations we make. Showcasing our creative worth as well as being of service to the industry is a very important thing to do now.  

More About Hazel:

Website: http://www.hazelmitchell.com

Blog: http://hazelmitchell.blogspot.com

Twitter: thewackybrit

Faceboook: http://www.facebook.com/hazelmitchellillustration

Come What May!

© Holly DeWolf- Come What May! 

"What is it about summertime that makes us so happy? The firefly-lit nights, the intoxicating aroma of a charcoal briquette, the hypnotic sound of a lawnmower running over a flip-flop?" -Spongebob

Summer is getting closer. It's warming up, everything is green, and the song birds are back! I don't want to see boots or snow pants until November! 

This is my busiest time. Actually, I think it lasts all the way to October. We often joke in the house that May is like our Christmas of Spring because work gets busy, school is wrapping up soon, everyone has a birthday and we are running from here to there with concerts, get togethers and school plays. 

Come what May- because it's so normally busy this time of the year you just have to roll with it. 

What's Going On At The Time Tonight? I'll tell you!

I received a special delivery today. Finally, the book I illustrated is available to buy and my copies were sent in the mail. It's an amazing feeling to hold the final product after working on something like this for 6 months! So without further delay, I present snippets of the book, What's Going On At The Time Tonight? written by Gerald Mercer. 

"What’s Going On at the Time Tonight? is a sweet and rollicking rhyming book about a Newfoundland “time”—a party—with a twist: it’s underwater! The sea lice are boogying, the jiggly jellyfish are riding the wave, and everyone is having a good time tonight." -Nimbus Publishing 

All illustrations are © Holly DeWolf

New work- White Lies!

© Holly DeWolf

I created this illustration for the article, The Illustration Fiction We Tell Ourselves.  A sample of the things discussed are: 

1. I'm not ready! The reality is, we are never going to be a 100% ready. There's always something to do and something to improve. Being ready is a process. This process should include a plan. Once you begin with your plan then start with the small tasks and keep going. Illustration is not about being done or finished because ideas don't stop.

2. I don't have time to promote. You can't afford not to. Promotion is one of the largest components to this profession. If you do not promote yourself then who will? If you do not have an agent, then it's up to you. This job is a daily event that includes social networking, updating your website, posting news, sending mailers, emails, phone calls and blogging not to mention making work. It all comes down to a pre-scheduled system. Once you begin doing this on a regular basis then it will become one of your greatest assets and a regular creative habit. 

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy year of the snake to you. I've been reading up on this event and it seems this is quite a positive sign. So here's to a lucky 13! 

New Work-No Rules!

©Holly DeWolf- No Rules!

I recently created a new illustration for the blog post, The Creative Hour. Plus to make this post fun, I thought I'd post my version and my oldest daughters version! 

©Reagen DeWolf

Happy Coffee Hog Day!

© Holly DeWolf- Happy Coffee Hog Day! 

It's Groundhog Day so of course coffee had to be incorporated in there somehow... well, we did wake the little fellas up early! Come on Spring! 

And here is a claymation my girls made in honor of Mr. Groundhog! 

Saturday Morning Diversion-animated coffee gif!

So in an attempt to add more creative diversions to my weekend outside of work I have decided to play with Vine and dabble with animated gifs. As I was playing around, I realized that this is also a great way to show your illustration process or to create mini animated movies of your work! So far it's pretty basic, the video goes to your photos on your phone and and from there you can email the movie to yourself to add to your blog or tumblr. Only thing I don't like so far is that it doesn't keep looping here on blogger -only on Vine. It's still fun and the BONUS, the app has some really fun gifs that other folks have created to look at!