#breakingthrough

I have seen many artists in your position. I have often been the AD who has said to artists “You’re doing everything right, when the right project comes up I’d love to work with you.” — And I never say that to people unless I mean it. Unfortunately the time between “ready to be hired” and “hired all over the place” is variable. I have seen it happen so many times: An artist develops their work and gets to a unique voice and a hirable skill level. They have all the right connections. Multiple ADs have their eye on the person. We all know they’re going to “break through” all at once and get hired a ton of places…but it’s just a matter of timing. Once they get that first job or two the momentum quickly picks up speed and their career is off and running. A year later no one even remembers that they were struggling to find work.

Unfortunately I don’t know what to say other than hold on. If you’re getting responses and people are saying they’re keeping you in mind then trust that and hold on. ADs don’t say that shit to be nice. I can’t tell you how long you have to hold on. It may take a while for the right manuscript or Magic card or magazine article, etc. to land on that AD’s desk that says YOU on it. You may need to get a side job or take non-art work to hold on but please hold on. You are pushed right up against the glass and you just need that one commission to break through the crust. Do a good job or two well, communicate well, hit your deadlines, and the gossip machine will click into effect and all those ADs who told you they were keeping you in mind will start seeing that job and hearing from the AD that hired you what a great job you did. Chances are, some of the other ADs will be jealous that they didn’t get to hire you first. We seriously do gossip about you artists all the time. And we root for you too. 

Just hang on. Keep making great work. Keep showing it around. Send out that newsletter quarterly. Keep networking. A year from now, you’ll go back and read this post and will be surprised you doubted this much.

Just.

Hang.

On.

—Agent KillFee

Oooo great angle. I like how you’re thinking! Survivor Bias is something we’ve been thinking a lot about here at DearAD as we work on some new educational projects at our Drawn + Drafted HQ. 

So, this is an unofficial survey, but I do a LOT of portfolio reviews and I can say that these things hold many many people back:

(technical)

—Does not use/understand visual hierarchy

—Don’t thumbnail out compositions in advance, or if they do it’s not in the defined shape they want the final to be, or they don’t think about the shape/size of the piece until they’re halfway thru and leave to much “filler”

—Trying to fit 10 pounds of shit in a 5 pound bag, er, composition

—Not enough contrast overall, in every way I can mean that

—Is a terrible judge of their own abilities/pieces/quality level/skill

(mental)

—Too busy explaining/arguing/defending your intent that you don’t consider feedback

—Don’t get enough feedback from varied sources

—Scared to try any big steps and experiment so they only improve by millimeters because they’re afraid to fail

—Don’t prioritize practicing their skills

—Spend too long on one piece, noodling

—Spending more time criticizing or envying others’ art rather than focusing on themselves and their own craft

—convincing themselves to give up before they try

—afraid of failure

—afraid of success

—too much self-doubt to promote their work properly

That’s just what comes to mind immediately, there’s more I’m sure, but those are the big ones. Nothing hurts me more than seeing an artist with all the tools and skills just not have either the perseverance or the self-reflection to keep moving forward. Everyone gets stuck sometimes, but those of us that “make it” aren’t surprised by difficulties, we expect them, and know pushing thru them is part of the process. 

Artists toss around the terms “break in” and “break though” all the time, but never stop to think about what those phrases actually mean. It means you’re going to have to struggle at some points. You can’t have a breakthrough…without a wall that you have to bang your head on for a while before you break though it. 

—Agent KillFee

We often feel the pressure of the world pushing in on us. It’s heavy, it’s loud, and it feels like it’s trying to break us. But there is a beautiful difference between being "broken" and "breaking through." Think of an egg. When external pressure breaks it, the potential is lost. But when the pressure comes from within, it’s the start of a whole new life. 🐣 Your journey is no different. The "cracks" aren't weaknesses - they are the places where your light and your potential finally find their way out. Carry a reminder that your strength is built from the inside.