Top Ten Artistic Talent Scale

Here is my scale of one to ten to rate your artistic growth level. 

There may be some people who have slobbered over your art because you draw better than them.  They will give you a 10 and you're no better off than you were and still left standing there with false expectations.

Here's what my scale of 1 to 10 means. See where you fit.

0 – No talent.

1 – You have talent.

2 – You draw like a twelve year old because you ARE a 12-year old.

3 – You draw like a twelve year old and got stuck there, even though you are 20 or 30 years old now. You never expanded your knowledge/practiced enough/took life drawing classes/read art books or any combination of these reasons and more. Yet you think (insert current popular artist here) is a hack and you can draw better than them.

4 – You draw more adult like. Your work is primitive. This is just a hobby for you. You're happy to express yourself with your art.

5 – You mostly copy other artists to practice. Your total knowledge is from what you've seen other artists do. You gain surface knowledge from copying, but nothing deeper. (Don’t stay in the copying stage too long. it only hurts you.) You only draw figures and no backgrounds.

6 – You're finally taking classes and reading books to learn about anatomy, perspective, composition, chiaroscuro, color theory, storytelling, etc. You're adding skill to your raw talent. Now you're getting some where!

7 –  You have potential. You will answer an insulting ad from someone who won't pay you upfront, keep the rights to your art and promise you great exposure. If you can resist the temptation, use the time to make all the practice, learning and studying art to become second nature to you. Right now you still have to think about it. Editors have a field day tearing your work apart.

8 – The work is inconsistent. Figures are stiff. Backgrounds are weak. You're not able to maintain character likeness or your style consistently. Storytelling needs help.

9 - Draftsmanship is good. Storytelling could be better. You've learned how to use photo reference  as a tool, not a crutch. Now everything you've learned is a part of you. You don't have to think about how a deltoid and trapezius fit together and move and stuff like that. Now it's second nature to you.

10 – Art is good. Figures are lively, solid, anatomically correct with proper proportions and consistent. You can draw backgrounds that create a convincing reality. You understand how to create depth with foreground, middle ground and background. You haven't gotten bad critiques from editors for a while now. Just little things here and there and not the big glaring errors you used to make. You're just waiting for your big break. You just need someone to take a chance on you. Or create your own opportunity!

You will always find someone willing to give you a first chance. What determines if you are ready to go pro is if someone gives you that second chance.

Now you may not neatly fit this scale. You may be in-between. That's good, that means growth is happening. Can you honestly look at yourself? Can you remove your self from the confusion caused by accolades from well meaning people and the rejection from editors and art directors? Can you be honest with yourself about your talent and skill level? 

TIP - If you hear the same critique more than once. It's not an opinion, it's something you need to work on, so do it!

read next - So You Want to Collaborate on a Comic Book or Graphic Novel?
previous - How much do you get paid?

Keep reading and follow me. If you have found this helpful, please let me know and share with other creators. Are the explanations clear and complete? Feel free to ask me questions.

Remember… Just Create!

If you are interested in further expanding your knowledge, then I recommend these books.

You can support this blog when you purchase a book by clicking the link below, I get a piece of the action and helps me to continue doing this blog. Support an artist today.


copyright 2013 H. Simpson

Don't Fight the Feeling

Life is a Work of Art

If you are around 12 years old and reading this blog, this will be very helpful to you. I'm catching you at just the right time. Now is when the world tries to beat you down and tear away your dreams. This blog will be especially beneficial to you. If you are a teenager or in college, then you can still benefit from this.

If you're reading this and you're 40 years old… well this might not be of help to you if you want to make a living at drawing. At least this is what people who try to deter you from your goals will say. You are part of the rat race now. You're trying to survive doing whatever job you're doing now. You have responsibilities and so on and so forth. You can probably quote the excuses better than anyone else can about not having time to draw. You may have to face certain realities if you had the opportunity and it hasn't taken off… yet. 

You have to ask yourself some questions. Have I missed my chance? Is this just going to be a hobby? Do I have the talent? (Some people can't be truthful to themselves with this answer.) Did I never get the support I needed in the past? Is now the time to follow my heart and my passion, in spite of all the reasons not to do it? Is it time for me to take control of my life and do what I've always wanted to do and NOT what other people said I should do?

Because at 40 or any age you can still become successful. Plenty of people have start successful careers late in life. Rodney Dangerfield start doing comedy in his 50s. Grandma Moses became a painter in her 70s after having 10 kids! Both were very good and became quite successful.

The important thing is at any age, don't give up on your dream!

Keep reading and follow me. If you have found this helpful please let me know and share with other creators. Feel free to ask me questions.

Remember… Just Create!

If you are interested in further expanding your knowledge, then I recommend these books.

When you purchase a book by clicking the link below, I get a piece of the action and helps me to continue doing this blog. Support an artist today.

next - That's the Way Love Goes
previous - Mothers. You Gotta Love Them

copyright 2012 H. Simpson

Mothers. You gotta love them.

Pat Parker War Nurse commission

I am an Artist

Talent is good to have  You can have talent without passion. You can become a great draftsman and have all the technical skills, but if it has no soul or passion behind it, it's not going to appeal to a lot of people. No one is going to care about the story you want to share.

And you must have an intense desire to share. Everyday you must feel the need to create without being called upon to do so by anyone. Nowadays I get paid to draw. I yearn to be that little boy again who drew in the margins of his test papers. I would draw whenever I could in school and come home and draw some more. 

I would show my drawings to my mom, who was my best critic oddly. She couldn't tell me what was wrong with my drawings. She was no artist. I don't know of any of my family line who could draw. She would tell me simply it doesn't look right. After a silence that passed with an unspoken solution, I figured it was my job to figure out why it was not right. I grew fast as an artist because of her. I would rework the drawing and keep showing it to her until she said I got it.

I still have the drive of that little boy. All creative people need that internal drive and passion to keep them going in the face of disappointments. Something to keep them going in the face of NO!. Because there will be plenty of people to line up to knock you down. You should not be the first person in line to keep yourself from achieving your dream. There will be plenty of obstacles that will pop up and you have to be able to keep going in the face of all of these obstacles.

Don't be so negative to yourself. Don't be so easily discouraged.

Keep reading and follow me. If you have found this helpful please let me know and share with other creators. Feel free to ask me questions.

Remember… Just Create!

If you are interested in further expanding your knowledge, then I recommend these books.

When you purchase a book by clicking the link below, I get a piece of the action and helps me to continue doing this blog. Support an artist today.

next - Don't Fight the Feeling

previous - The Journey to Become an Artist.

copyright 2012 H. Simpson

The journey to become an artist.

Professional Comic Book Artist and Cartoonist

I'm going to continue to write about how to become a professional comic book artist/cartoonist, which henceforth I'll refer to as cartoonist so I don't have to keep hyphenating and/or slashing. I'm so lazy in that respect. 

By professional, I mean you can make a good chunk of your income from this endeavor.

My work has been published by a few companies. I like to think of myself as a storyteller following a grand tradition that started with our ancestors drawing on the cave walls to tell about the hunt and kills of the tribe.

What I will be writing about for the next few days will apply to all creative arts specifically and to life in general in some respects. Your life experience will allow you to take away what you will from my musings.

So stick with me as I'm not going to follow the stale linear path some people take when they tackle this subject. Boy, do they tackle it! I want to start by slowly caressing your mind. I may digress as my own mind gets inspired. Don't fret, I'll get back on track.

Keep reading and follow me. If you have found this helpful please let me know and share with other creators. Feel free to ask me questions.

Remember… Just Create!

If you are interested in further expanding your knowledge, then I recommend these books.

When you purchase a book by clicking the link below, I get a piece of the action and helps me to continue doing this blog. Support an artist today.

next - Mothers. You gotta love them.
previous - What Do You Need to Become and Artist?


copyright 2012 H. Simpson

What do you need to be an artist?

How to Become a Comic Book, Comic Strip and Graphic Novel Artist

Let's start at the beginning. What do you need to become a comic book artist/ cartoonist etc? This question usually starts with answers about things you need to learn, the tools to draw with, etc.

My answer applies to every field… mostly. It's what you can't control. You are born with this or it's instilled in you at an early age. Or maybe something happens that creates a spark inside you.

Talent and passion.

These are the things you can't fake. There is no app for this. You can learn to become better with your gift if the talent is there. The passion is what keeps you going. The passion makes this something you would do whether you are paid to do it or not.

What's the difference between a job and a career? A job is something you do to pay the bills. A career is something you would do without pay for the rest of your life. No one can stop you from doing it. You draw whether anyone will see it or not. You draw to satisfy your own burning desire. No one can discourage you. You're not a crybaby. Well at least not a lot. We can all use a good cry and it's healthy to vent.

Is this you?

Good then you're my type of people and we're going to get along well.

read next - The journey to become an artist

Keep reading and follow me. If you have found this helpful please let me know and share with other creators. Feel free to ask me questions.

Remember… Just Create!

If you are interested in further expanding your knowledge, then I recommend these books.

When you purchase a book by clicking the link below, I get a piece of the action and helps me to continue doing this blog. Support an artist today.

copyright 2012 H. Simpson