Let me first say hi everybody, and in a manner that Troy McClure would begin a blog post, start by saying: You may recognize me from strip 4, 7, 25, 39 and 46. Hence the #/%=”!!?#, who despite being one of the founders of the concept behind LoSRH, have contributed the very least to this comic.

To sum things up, I have been very busy in other work related projects and am slowly starting to recover from the deadline frenzy this spring. This happens from time to time. This is of course nothing new to me or any other freelance illustrator for that matter. It’s a very fun but also pretty tough business. You have to be able to take on many projects at a time to know how you will be able to pay the rent on the months ahead. At art school they teach you all about art. I wish they would spend just as much time teaching self promotion and financial planning, which are just as important for a freelancing artist. You will have to call, send postcards and visit A LOT of editors and art directors before any of them will call back. And since we are in a global economy you are always competing against people who will do the same job for a saltine.

If you happen to know web design, it’s a good idea to incorporate that in your business. It is a lot easier to get jobs and you are still working with creative stuff. Networking and joining collectives are also a great tip. If you are a whole bunch of skilled artists you can share experiences, ideas, help each other out and tip others on job opportunities that you can’t take at the moment. I have heard from colleagues overseas that signing up to an agency is a good way to go too. I don’t know much about this myself since I am not that familiar with Swedish agencies but what they do is basically to promote you and handle customer relations for you. For a percentage of your income, they send invoices, chase late payments and negotiate contracts and fees for you.

I’m sure for a lot of you reading, this have been a marathon in obvious statements but freelancing is a jungle, so let’s all hug now and help each other out m’kay?

-SireHappyPants