Fleishman - Starting your career as a freelance illustrator or graphic designer

Copyright 2016 by Michael Fleishman

All rights reserved. Copyright under Berne Copyright Convention, Universal Copyright Convention, and Pan American Copyright Convention. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Allworth Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Allworth Press books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Allworth Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or .

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Published by Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.

307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Allworth Press is a registered trademark of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation.

www.allworth.com

Cover and interior design by Michael Fleishman; cover assembly by Mary Belibasakis

Cover and chapter title illustrations Copyright 2016 Michael Fleishman

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Print ISBN: 978-1-62153-509-6

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-62153-515-7

Printed in the United States of America

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Without question, to my wife, Joanne Caputo (the Pittsburgh Piewright). Next, to my sons Cooper and Max. Because family is what counts when you absolutely, positively have to get your book written overnight.

A big thank-you to all the generous correspondents who added their unique insights, wisdom, and seasoned commentaryyour invaluable input was far more than merely appreciated.

Some folks were enthusiastically there from go, team, go you guys were the rock . Then there were contributors who jumped in somewhere along the way, as well as those who ran with me closer to the finish lineyall were da roll .

To my esteemed colleagues, valued counselors, and dear friends, I am deeply indebted to you for your comic timing, gracious help, solid guidance, and unstinting support.

And, of course, thanks to Zoe Wright, Tad Crawford, and Kelsie Besaw (along with all the crew at Skyhorse and Allworth) as well as all the folks who contributed to the first renditions of this book.

INTRODUCTION

If this introduction sounds much like the intro to its sister, Starting Your Career as a Graphic Designer, it should: Illustrator is directly built off its sibling volume and both combine (or rather branch off) to update their parent title, Starting Your Career as a Freelance Illustrator or Graphic Designer.

You probably have run into the line , or similar, in just about every current illustration book, havent you? Its most likely in the intro (as it is in this book and its sib). Its a relevant, absolute constant , an inescapable truism, so lets get it out on the table and out of the way. The line , as filtered through this project, would go something like this: There have been incredible changes in the profession since this book first appeared as yet another two separate volumes for a different publisher, says (fill in the blank here). Of course, in this case it would be says me, Michael Fleishman. Youd have to really fire up the Wayback Machine, Mr. Peabody, to see just when (and how) those titles were combined to create the original update offered by Allworth Press (but trust me, that deed was done).

Changes? Yeah. Sure. But compared to what? At what point? The advent of photography was quite the game changer in the nineteenth century, just as four-color reproduction seriously impacted the field back in the early twentieth century. Telecopying (a.k.a., the fax machine) was rather high tech in the seventies. Im hardly downplaying the incredible impact of the computer, the Internet, and social media; Im simply saying to keep a bit of proper perspectiveyour job description is changing as you read these words. The quotes encapsulating the word current are purely intentional. Hey, its all relative.

So, yes, since the second go-round of this book, there has indeed been an epic interaction of art and technology: the above-mentioned radical morphing of communications and marketing through the rise of social media; the modern (and extraordinary) delivery systems that squarely slam the global marketplace into your backyard. The thud of that shock wave has forever rocked both illustration and design and, not coincidentally, rolled our books third incarnation back to the future of two volumes again.

Illustrator and Designer address common challenges facing those who want to move up, out, or on. You might be a beginnerlong on talent but short on experienceor perhaps youre a burgeoning professional just getting out of school. You could be on staffdoing staff stuff anywhereand interested in a jet pack to rocket you to ____ (well, the sky is the limit).

Wherever you are on the continuum, I wanted to keep this updated volume as realistic and honest as the original, but now even more pertinent and absolutely current. Toward that goal, I adapted (and folded in) some particularly relevant content from my books, How to Grow as an Illustrator (Allworth Press), Exploring Illustration (Cengage), and Drawing Inspiration: Visual Artists at Work (Cengage).

While there has been that windstorm of changes previously mentioned, lets paraphrase illustrator Ward Schumaker from an earlier interview: those who gracefully lean into those winds will do quite well. Schumaker remarked that there is no such thing as thinking locally, and I agree, now more than ever. The technology that has made this possible was only hinted at in the very first editions of this work. It is simply business as usual now, and continues to evolve.

Over the years some lessons remain constant. Of course, what you know is key. Great chops construct the shark tank of talent you must demonstrate every day, on every job. It still matters who you knowin any business climate, military-grade networking is important. As Schumaker says, We must use each other to compare techniques, talk business and finances, to join in solidarity; we must be there for our colleagues.

Master marketer Roger Brucker tells you to diversify, diversify, diversify. Paraphrasing illustrator Elwood Smith: changes in the industry have opened the gates to other venues and fresh disciplines that mark whole new opportunities for creative growth. As Smith says, The Muse is guiding me into areas I never dreamed of. I am inspired to move into other areas of creative activity that Ive been meaning to investigate (but previously [was] too busy to do).

This edition of Illustrator is still liberally salted and generously stacked with studio-smart tips plus nuts-and-bolts information from illustrators up and down the ladder. It answers some basic questions including:

How to find jobs and analyze what market is right for you.

Ways to stay ahead of the competition and pick up new business.