Guatemalan freelance artist and illustrator. Here I'll write my random thoughts and stories (when they come (like the seasons they come and go)).
[EDIT: This are simply my thoughts, I'm not an expert on this subject by any stretch of the imagination. I simply wanted to lay down my thoughts somewhere.]
Visual artist, you are a runner– your time training has given you skills, techniques, endurance– and now you are pitted against a race car.
This is the first one then, the first post I really have to work for.
I stare at the empty screen and words don't magically appear.
Surprise, surprise! Writing is something you have to work for. Drawing and painting is all I've known for the last years and a blank canvas has never been an issue for me. It's easy to go through the motions to get a painting or a drawing started. First you open your drawing program (what is it that you're trying to make? Maybe you need a vector program instead of a raster one), then you make the document (gotta think what size you'd like it), then you add a base color (one that complements your painting's subject and that won't hurt your eyes as pure white would), pick colors to sketch with (that must have enough contrast with your background color), select your favorite brushes (or maybe pick new ones to try things out), and then, finally, you're ready.
Took a while, didn't it? That's my particular process every time I start a new picture. Through every little step, no matter how small, I'm already making decisions of what I want to make and how I'd like it to look in the end. It's the perfect time to get into the mindset of drawing and when I'm done with it I'm ready to start. Even if I wasn't it's only a matter of taking a big brush and laying down some strokes to get things going.
With writing you have none of that. After you've got your writing program just how you like it there's no use in changing page sizes or playing around with colors. You open it and the great unknown is immediately there inviting you to step right in. As your finger land on the first key the dust rises and the page is no longer so barren. You hesitate. Was this first step the one you should take? There was no preparation for you to undertake before you started writing, you just crash landed in front of the vast white space and now you get to do anything you want– anything!
I need to find a starting ritual for writing.
___ January 18, 2019 #RandomThoughts #Writing
Last time we laid out the general idea of what I wanted of this year, now it's time to take a look into each category and define exactly what it is that I want to achieve. Hopefully this will guide me through the year and I'll be able to check off some boxes by the end of it.
There are an infinite amount of things I could do in this area, there is simply too much to learn. However I'd like to focus on:
What about other personal projects?
These projects and classes will be done during the morning, leaving time in the afternoon for other creative endeavors. This is a lot already, but they'll be in small chunks every day so I hope it'll work. I'll have to work some of this things in alternate days to make space for everything.
For reading we either have:
No amount of dreaming and chatting with friends will ever make a complete story, one ready to be shared with the rest of the world. I've been meaning to write ever since I was in 9th grade so I think it's about time I do. This shall take part of my afternoon (after lunch) and it'll include three things:
The question now is how to efficiently manage all this and fit it into a schedule that won't tire me and won't allow me to fall into a boring routine. What I've been thinking of is making some sort of movable weekly schedule. I could have, say, 15 days figured out and then just pick out 5 for each week, so that times and activities vary a bit to keep things fresh. I'll only work half a day on Saturday on miscellaneous things (like updating descriptions, organizing files, uploading to RB, putting things together, etc.) and I'm going to force myself to not do anything on Sunday. Sunday's will be to lazy around, read, watch videos and films, play games.
I think that's it, now it's only a matter of making schedules and sticking to them.
___ January 16, 2019 #Goals #Goals2019 #Writing #Reading
This might be hard, I'll admit that. From the time I begun thinking about writing this to actually writing it some 13 hours must have passed, more or less. I was close to starting two hours ago but chats, checking email, going to find books online, and other things got in the way. It's as if one part of my brain is trying to get something done and another part is throwing things in front of me to distract me. It's been like this for a while with everything and it's time to stop. It's time to set goals.
What do I want to do during this 2019 then?
Painting and Drawing This is vague, I know, and the issue is that I'm still trying to figure it all out. There are many projects that I want to tackle and many things I'd like to learn. Light and shadow, composition, inking and watercolors, human portraits, and the list goes on. This is something I have to sit down and organize because I know there is enough time to do a lot in a year if I'm able to focus.
Reading There are so many books out there to be read, so many books already in my library that I have to read, in addition to all the books I have in my wish-lists. All of those don't matter if I don't sit down and read any of them, so this is a must! So much that can be learned through them, too…
Writing Writing is something I've always loved dearly. Before I attempted drawing and painting I had tried my hand at writing and I fell in love with the craft. Weaving a story through words is something everyone does every day and it doesn't stop being magical. I have so many stories to tell, too, with so many characters and worlds that I've imagined writing about that I just have to. Keeping this blog comes in this goal as well.
Calligraphy and Handwriting Simply put this is something that brings me joy. The act of handwriting is the most intimate between way of marrying the imagination with reality. Typing might be faster (and more efficient at editing) but you can't beat the tactile feeling of pen on a paper. I want my words to be beautiful too.
Timely Uploads This one is perhaps the easiest: I make art and so I should upload the art. What good is it working if no one is going to enjoy it?
Commissions I've been meaning and making false starts for uncountable days for this and not starting sooner is one of my biggest regrets. This'll be the year to start.
Not that many goals and most of them are intertwined, they sound simple, right? We'll have to wait and see. The next journal will focus on expanding on each one to make them measurable in a way that I can track my progress.
Oh. Also hello to everyone here in the void, this is my first transmission, to whomever hears this may you have safe travels!
___ January 12, 2019 #Goals #Goals2019 #Writing #Reading