Resolutions Meh-solutions (or is it Me Solutions?)

It's February and the first flush of excitement over a "New Year" is over and you also realize that a year or one month blends into the next, just as a week does and a day does. It all just feels like a constant hamster wheel with hops off for meals, snacks, rest and a look outside in-between. So the question Ive been asking myself lately is what have I done today to move me towards my goals and what can I do to get me closer. Another problem is that like most people, I have goals for several different areas in my life. How does one deal with that without feeling like you're trying to drive to five different destinations simultaneously? Again, back on that damn hamster wheel cause it's safer to feel like you're running, busy doing something without actually going anywhere.

So I've been looking for inspiration and structure with prompts and challenges out there that align with my goals. Signing up for these give me both community and accountability. So here's what I've been up to:

Create More submittable Kid Lit projects in 2023. Unfortunately I begin 2023 with nothing submission ready for my agent. EEK!

- Tara Lazar's Story Storm 30 story ideas in 31 days in January. Yay I did it. Came up with 30 story ideas, in January, sure some were just to make the count. Which leads right into...

 - Julie Hedland's 12X12, 12 Picture Book drafts and/or revisions in 12 months. Yup, in January fleshed out 1 of my story ideas from Story Storm and revising my graphic novel synopsis.

Create More Kid Lit Art and Share It. It's competitive out there and hard to be stand out. Need I say more. 

- Gina Perry's #KidLitArtPostcard or #kidlitartpostcard started in 2021 and getting stronger every year. children's book illustrators design a digital postcard and we all post on the first Thursday of each month. Which is when Art Directors, Editors know when and where to look.  I was able to come up with 12 last year. I will commit to doing the same in 2023. I'll be sharing mine this year on Instagram and Post.news and probably sharing it here too. Check out my January KidLit Art Postcard & 2022 postcard round up blog post.

-Illustration Contests: there's a bunch out there I'll be keeping my eye out for a prompt I like. The SCBWI runs a monthly one called #scbwiDrawThis - February prompt is Worm's Eye View, could be fun - deadline to post is 2/20/23. There are others. Right now I have my eye on one that has a deadline of March 31. I wasn't interested at first but the more I think about it the more intriguing it feels. The benefits of making the piece and entering even if you don't win: a chance to stretch as an artist and to be seen.

Ok Ok I hear you. But what about your own illustration projects? Yes, I do have one and it's a big one, my GN. Right now I'm revising the synopsis ending and doing rough rough stick figure + dialog scribbles. Making a point to do a bit almost daily. This stage alone could take awhile. Which means, I'll have nothing to share from this project for awhile. Hence my interest in doing shorter illustrations that I can share now. Plus I've found if I do nothing but sketches for awhile, I get scared that I will forget how to take a piece to finish.

 

Stock my Art Licensing/Surface Design Portfolio Currently focusing on greeting card designs

- #DHGartspark Design House Greeting on Instagram currently has a call out: Cue the Confetti, celebration themed greeting card designs with a deadline of March 1. I have a sketch on my drawing board ready to transfer to paper. I will show when I finish it.

Well that's my plan for now. Will you be joining me on any of the above prompts and challenges?

Web: dianadelosh.com

Instagram: @dtdelosh

Post: @dtdelosh

Check out my shops:

Greeting Cards: greetingcarduniverse.com/dianascards

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Art Prints: wingedrabbit.imagekind.com

 

The 2022 CBIG Illustration Directories are LIVE!

Just go to cbig-nyc.com and click on the ART TAB. Then Click on the covers and voila, you can flip through the PDFs. Ahem. Yes, I know it's now 2023, but I'm still proud of the work I put into both the directories and the gorgeous illustration promo pages created by the participating CBIG members that make up the 2 books. Kudos to Debbie Cuneo for all the image collection and dealing with all sorts of minutiae. Special Thanks to Vicky Rubin for proof reading when I was getting too bleary eyed. 

By the way my illustration promo-pages are on page 19 in the COLOR Directory and on page 5 in the BLACK & WHITE Directory.

Web: dianadelosh.com

Instagram: @dtdelosh

Post: @dtdelosh

Check out my shops:

Greeting Cards: greetingcarduniverse.com/dianascards

Gifts: zazzle.com/deloshdesigns*

Art Prints: wingedrabbit.imagekind.com

It's ALL about Time

I'm taking the period between January 1st and the start of the Year of the Rabbit, January 22nd to think about what I want to happen in the coming year and what I need to do to make it happen. As I was making my lists for all the facets of my life I realized that all this list making was an exercise in futility. If I didn't get a handle on my time, nothing would change from this year to the next.

Now I've never been good with time. My priority was based on If I don't do it now: 

• Is it a matter of life or death?

• Will I cause pain or suffering?

• Is it commissioned work?

• Does it have a hard deadline?

• Will it effect me/us financially?

Everything else could go to the back of the line and be taken care of in due time. For the longest time this system sort of worked at least until the Pandemic hit mid-March 2020. I don't know about you but since then I've been plagued by a case of bad timing probably caused by too many pajama days sprinkled with too many days of uncertainty. So the last 3 years, I felt like I've been running around putting out fires. Still, I'm happy to report that the only thing I killed was a houseplant or two.

While last year was definitely better as I seemed to gain some of my old speed back with creative and commissioned work, everything else was like slogging through molasses. Weeks speeded up as my to do list piled on. So what do I plan on doing differently now that I've decided to be serious about my time management problem? For starters, I've decided to log my time. This way I can see how long a task actually takes as well as where I'm wasting it. 

So far I've discovered (been doing this for a week):

1 - The weekly bills, a task I hate and dread and stress over and would always procrastinate before actually beginning, only takes an hour. Only one hour. Meanwhile I killed 2 hours not doing it. 

2 - I can cram a lot of creative work into the last hour of the day because I suddenly realize that if I don't start it now it will be another day that I'm mad at myself for not getting to it.

3 - Keeping track of my time helps me to use my time more intentionally.

4 - I will still have days where I'm totally off.

They say it takes 90 days for something to become a habit. I'm taking it 1 month at a time.

Web: dianadelosh.com

Instagram: @dtdelosh

Post: @dtdelosh

Check out my shops:

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Art Prints: wingedrabbit.imagekind.com

January KidLit Art Postcard

Panda Crack, from picture book dummy, Panda Panda - © Diana Ting Delosh

Ink with brush, Photoshop with Wacom.

Here's my first #kidlitartpostcard and #cbigArtShare for 2023! #KidLitArtPostcard Day is on the first Thursday of each month. Illustrators post their digital postcards on Twitter and Instagram giving art directors, editors and industry professionals a specific day to look. The next KidLitArtPostcard will be on Thursday, February 2 - better get creating.

Last year I committed to designing a different postcard layout for each month. This year I plan on doing the same. The challenge is to create art that you're proud of BUT also work that you can show now. Which means creating personal work on top of commissioned work. Unfortunately, most client work can not be shown until it's published unless you have special permission.

Below is a round up of last years posts. Beginning with Elephant and Meerkat Friends for January  and ending with a Mermaid Melange for December 2022.

Thanks for looking. I hope you enjoyed the show.

Read more About KidLitArtPostcard HERE

Web: dianadelosh.com

Instagram: @dtdelosh

Post: @dtdelosh

Check out my shops:

Greeting Cards: greetingcarduniverse.com/dianascards

Gifts: zazzle.com/deloshdesigns*

Art Prints: wingedrabbit.imagekind.com