Hello! Applications to my mentorship program are now closed. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who applied! If you didn't get a chance to apply this year, I'm hopeful that I might be able to do this again in the future! As I mentioned, I will be contacting everyone by e-mail on the 31st of July.
Making art is hard. Making a living with your art is also hard. Every artist's path is different, but it can be a lot easier with someone helping you along the way. That's why I'm starting this mentorship program. Read what I have to say below, contact me if you have any questions, and submit your application at the bottom of this page!
Why am I doing this?
After college, I struggled for years with my art. I felt like I didn't have much of a community, and I didn't have any guidance. After the structure, the feedback, and the mentorship I had in school, I felt really lost and clueless out in the real world. I want to help talented artists early in their careers with feedback about their work and help with their ambitions.
I love collaboration, talking shop, and giving thoughtful feedback. But I don't get to do that enough, since so much of my time is spent making art alone! I'm hoping that I'll learn a lot from my mentoring, and that maybe you will, too.
Who am I looking for?
I'm seeking 1-2 artists who are serious about their work, but who would like some help improving it and establishing a career in their chosen field. Although I'm best known for my illustrations of drag queens, I'm also a cartoonist, and I have a big comic book project coming out from Knopf in 2018! So I would love to work with illustrators AND cartoonists, not just folks who want tips on drawing better drag queens!
Here are some more specifics: I would like applicants to be 18+ and fluent in English, since that is how we will be communicating. Maybe you've gone to art school or college, but maybe not! The whole point of this mentorship is to speak every week or so and to discuss the new art you're making, so you should be at a point in your life where you have the time for regular chats and you're able to consistently make new work!
I've been working on my own comic projects and in various illustration styles for a long time. I can offer critical and constructive input to help you improve your work. I've also been working with digital art for many years, so I have a lot of experience in that and can offer some guidance on the programs and equipment to use. My primary software is Clip Studio Paint, so if you have any interest in that, I will have a ton to offer!
I've also been supporting myself with my work for the last five years! So I can give advice on being self-employed, how to exhibit at comics conventions, how to share your work online, sell stuff on Etsy, etc.
However, I can't get you a job in animation or at Marvel. I don't have much experience in either animation or mainstream comics, so I don't have many contacts or connections there.
What can I help you with?
What do I want from you?
This whole thing is entirely free, and I will never ask for any money or work in exchange for my guidance. I hope that we will both grow and learn from the mentorship experience.
The formal mentorship will last for 9 months (August 2017 - April 2018), and it will consist of either weekly or bi-weekly phone chats, Skype sessions, or Google Hangouts -- whatever works! Additionally, I'll be available via e-mail to answer questions and offer feedback.
You can submit your information below and contact me if you have any questions! Applications will close July 26, and I will contact everyone who applied by July 31 about their status.
Samples of your work can be shared on any site that is best for you -- Instagram, Tumblr, DeviantArt, whatever you're comfortable with! If you are not able to put your work online, please include a comment about that in your application, and I will try to reach out to you so that you can share your work directly with me.