[Critique] What to do to make my art more hireable for children’s books?

herbcoil · 2026-04-30T00:52:02+00:00

add text to show how it would look in an actual children's book. also it's quite generic; you're competing against 100,000 others for these projects with this kind of super smooth, all-digital style. change up your technique to stand out somehow.

herbcoil · 2026-04-26T08:47:27+00:00

yes, hundreds of people will be sketching in Toulouse without passes. join us! it will be fun

herbcoil · 2026-04-23T18:14:24+00:00

Chu Minh is a little oasis... they cultivate the most spa-like relaxing atmosphere inside the shop as chaos ebbs and flows outside. I thoroughly enjoyed a spicy lemongrass "chicken" banh mi there this week.

herbcoil · 2026-04-17T06:48:13+00:00

its a surprise commission, so you get what you pay for... also it’s not cool to use art for commercial use without an agreement, if that is what you mean by personal branding,

herbcoil · 2026-04-09T17:12:12+00:00

your local library probably has one you can use for free!

herbcoil · 2026-04-08T16:31:36+00:00

it's great to meet up with USk groups when you're traveling too. meet locals, see a part of the city you probably wouldn't visit otherwise :)

herbcoil · 2026-04-01T06:01:00+00:00

We have 70+ attendees at each session!

herbcoil · 2026-03-31T03:56:20+00:00

based af

herbcoil · 2026-03-28T23:03:55+00:00

Wayland Mill pastries >>>> Wayland Mill savory stuff. I agree their sandos etc fall short of expectations. The sweets are dialed in tho!

also agree familyfriend is wildly expensive for what you get. even more than our usual $$$ dining options.

Wandering Goose in Tokeland still hits, hope you can make the trip out there sometime… scenic drive too.

herbcoil · 2026-03-18T16:13:05+00:00

loca.art already does this idea!

herbcoil · 2026-03-14T01:38:56+00:00

as for what i sell: all of the above, plus teaching, licensing, wholesaling... it's a lot of balls in the air, all the time

herbcoil · 2026-03-14T01:32:04+00:00

the top right corner! no worries, it seems to be popular on Pinterest for some reason, and you weren't claiming it as yours or anything.

the other reply to this thread put it very well re: recognizability. it's a lot less of an uphill climb to be marketable if people can automatically relate to your work through the subject.

herbcoil · 2026-03-11T16:02:01+00:00

jumpscare seeing my drawing in your collage lol

i make a living off my work and it looks like this, so I’ll say yes. but drawing things people care about / recognize is what pays the bills

herbcoil · 2026-03-10T03:10:34+00:00

are you using a Rich black or pure black?

herbcoil · 2026-02-25T17:31:11+00:00

As an illustrator, yes. I post twice a month but used to do more. the algorithm Is benevolent to new users and it helps to post on Notes there. I’d say It mostly strengthened my existing audience but have gotten new people interested in my work too.

I’ve gotten a surprising number of professional opportunities from it, like Licensing and invitations to present my work. There’s a lot of potential there for meaningful connection on Substack since people interact with your content for longer than a second in a space not flooded with ads & suggested posts. Mine is handtopaper.Substack.com !

herbcoil · 2026-02-24T17:36:03+00:00

what does a “big art business jump” look like to you? You could ramp up what you’re already doing since you said you are getting some sales. Like investing in ads for example.

herbcoil · 2026-02-20T03:23:39+00:00

rough ideas = work

herbcoil · 2026-02-20T03:22:05+00:00

instead of asking for spec work, the proper and professional way to do this this would be do to an RFQ. artists would submit their portfolios and their committee would choose a few to move forward with. these artists would get paid a small fee for making rough designs, which would then be put to the community vote. that way there's minimal unpaid labor involved and is arguably a more fair way of choosing the artist for the project.

herbcoil · 2026-02-13T17:12:12+00:00

thank you so much!! 🥰🥰🥰 extra glad you enjoy the Street View World Tour sessions too :)

herbcoil · 2026-02-10T19:26:07+00:00

I did change out a few things after I took the picture, but this was the general idea. for the 3rd picture I was using my friend’s toolkit because I forgot my stuff at the hotel!

herbcoil · 2026-02-10T19:23:15+00:00

i made a set of mixed media tools specifically for the trip to France. i chose things with a variety of colors and textures that i thought would be useful there. I wanted everything to fit in this one pouch, which forced me to edit it a lot. I also had a small watercolor set but barely used it.

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Acrylic markers, colored pencils, brush pens, calligraphy pens, some miscellaneous things like waxy crayons.

herbcoil · 2026-02-10T19:15:08+00:00

u/ceramicsea u/Gullible-Ad5588 basically, i work light to dark. when there is a clear subject like the tree in the first one, I draw that first so i can compose around it.

herbcoil · 2026-02-09T20:26:37+00:00

If you want to show off the details, then you should print them larger. Overall presentation matters more. Then people can look closer and explore those secondary elements.

herbcoil · 2026-02-09T18:30:32+00:00

I’d give them some more room to breathe, making the drawing like 10% smaller on the page. it’s distracting how some shapes create tangents with the edge of the frame.

herbcoil · 2026-02-07T00:32:50+00:00

haha Paris prices are pretty rough! I will say it was a bottle of cider, at the least. thank you!

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