Post 30

I've spent some time in the library liking at book covers and researching other work that is similar to my own and have made notes on the publishers. I can't find much info regarding art directors on their websites, perhaps that is the time for the phone call? I'm also unsure whether one sends in samples unsolicited or whether it is correct practice to contact an individual first...time will surely give me some answers.

I think I need to put a few hours aside when I'm next in Lincoln, or anywhere in fact, to start a proper search through magazines, books and journals to find out where the work appears.

I've also been looking on illustration mundo and the AOI for illustrators working in a similar style to myself and finding out who their previous clients have included.

So, I need to look again at my portfolio. I have a good selection of images (mainly reworked digital drawings) on the AOI portfolios. Do I need to produce another completely separate body of work?

I've been thinking that The New York Trilogy could be a good start for a narrative series. On my illustration Friday blog (Bridgecrit.blogspot.com) I've started to write some short stories. I was thinking that I could look back through the NYC trilogy text and use it as a starting point for my own flash fiction, placing Quinn in a variety of sub plots, with a view to creating a series of text less narratives. This will once again enable me to use the figure as the central point of my portfolio. I find it difficult creating the same figure more than once...this is something that practice and further research will help me with.

I've decided that I would like to send out some samples of some existing work to potential clients and take it from there. I think it's important to get the ball rolling whilst I'm on the course rather that wait too long. I will try a few initial prints...A4 or A5 and just send them out. One thing I don't want to do is make early negative impressions, but I know my work is strong anyway. This is a stage where I feel the need to put self doubt to the back of my mind and simply get on with it.