I was thinking...

…a life is kind of like a drawing.

Whenever you’re ready you can imagine it exactly as you’d like it to be.

Then you can begin to work on it.

If you have the diligence to continue creating the picture in your head even when it’s extremely difficult; and if you have the patience to work on it even when you’re tired and it’s far from over: you can create that beautiful masterpiece that you first imagined and then enjoy sharing it with others.

I love that.

Suspense...

Here's my entry for this week's topic on Illustration Friday - Suspense.

I can't help but remember the time I was suckered into that old joke...

Them: "How do you keep an idiot in suspense?"

Me: "Hmm, I don't know. How?"

Them: "I'll tell you tomorrow."

Classic. You just gotta laugh when you swallow bait like that!

New girl art everyday! - DailyDivaDrawing.com

BOO!

I'm super excited to finally announce my daily blog exclusively devoted to girl art!

It's on Tumblr.

If you're a fan of buxom bombshells, sexy superheros or even just a girl in a tee shirt and jeans then head on over to www.DailyDivaDrawing.com!

I post a new piece of girl art literally every single day. I'm up to day 99 already so there's plenty of goodies to see over there!!

I hope you'll join me in the fun with daily doses of cutie patooties but if that's not your cup of tea, don't sweat it. I'm keeping this blog goin' too.

Happy Halloween everybody!

Vampirella Halloween Illustration

With all this Twilight madness bringing vampires back in vogue I gotta think that old school fans of Vampirella are gnashing their teeth fangs.

Well, this one's for you!

I drew this 8x10 on chipboard with Prismacolor markers and pencils.

If you'd like to own the original art it's available here on eBay for a few days!

10 reasons why you’re beautiful the way you are

As an artist who draws an awful lot of physically idealized bombshells I'd like to share my sincere thoughts about beauty. 


This is not about the lies our culture feeds you to keep you insecure and buying things. This is not about you believing those lies & obsessing over your tiniest flaws.

This is about truth. The truth that YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL and just a few of the reasons why…

10 reasons why you’re beautiful the way you are.

1. Your flaws. Your flaws are part of your unique and beautiful stamp. They’re attractive. You want to fix them (and the magazines agree) but don’t! You have a crooked tooth? Beautiful. A scar? Beautiful. A weird sneeze, cellulite, a pug nose, blah, blah blah: Beautiful! Personally, I LOVE flaws & I’m not alone on this (trust me).

2. The crush you don’t know about. Have you ever had a crush on someone but were too nervous to ever tell them? Of course. Everyday that you’re walking through life someone out there is promising themselves that this will be the day they get the guts to talk to you. That person (and hundreds of others who pass you on the street) will think you’re the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen and never have the courage to tell you.

3. You said yes. Remember that time when someone asked for help and you said yes? Remember what a difference you make in other people’s lives? If you’ve forgotten then it’s time for a refresher. Helping people is beautiful!

4. You love. It doesn’t matter what or who you love or if the love is ever returned. The selfless and unconditional positive energy that you give when you love makes you more beautiful than any amount of reciprocated approval. You love, and that makes you beautiful! 

5. They way you look when you think no one is watching. You adjust your skirt or sing in your car or drop your keys or blow your nose. Those small moments that you think are private rip away months of getting to know you and expose your humanity. And you know what? You’re beautiful! 

6. Your interests. Fashion? Manga? Movies? Art? People? Music? Underwater nickle stacking? Your interests are one of the most beautiful things about you. They are a window into what excites you and ignites your passion. That’s beautiful!

7. Your body. Yep, I said it. Already you disagree. You have a long list of things you hate about it. Well, sorry to spoil your party but your body is beautiful. If you wanna test my theory then go ask out five guys today. Watch what happens.

Turn off your television, close your laptop, burn your magazine and look outside. How many “Perfect” bodies do you see? And yet people are attracted to each other, loving each other and enjoying each other’s unique beauty. YOUR BODY IS BEAUTIFUL. Deal with it.

8. You just rolled out of bed. Have you ever had guys approach you or check you out on a day when you thought you looked like crap? Every woman I know talks about this. Wanna know why this happens? It’s because your walls are down. We see the real YOU and not your facade, and guess what; YOU are beautiful! Duh!

9. Your story. Your memories, your experiences, your fears, your strengths, your insecurities, your passions, your concerns your laughs and your cries. Your story. Maybe you don’t think you’re interesting. Maybe you shrink away from sharing how great you actually are but that doesn’t change the fact that you are great. Your story makes you beautiful.

10. The whole you. You are not a segmented & fragmented collection of characteristics, flaws and traits. You are a whole and complete human being. Everything about you (whether you judge it to be good or bad) contributes to the whole that is you. And the whole you is beautiful!

YOU, personally, are the only chance the world has ever had and will ever have to know the complete and unique expression of humanity that you are. You can share it or hide it but a flower is still a flower; and it’s beautiful even if no one ever sees it.

“Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.”

-Oscar Wilde

Halloween Black Cat

The Halloween Hottie hi-jinx continue! This time The Black Cat's got a gentleman caller...

8x10 on chipboard with Prismacolor markers, Prismacolor pencils and a few other odds and ends.

Halloween Batgirl

She may have the bats on her side but those ghosts are a different story!

I sold the original art for this on eBay and now I kinda want it back. Lol. It went to a good home though!

Just like the Catwoman I posted yesterday, I drew this on 8x10 chipboard

with Prismacolor Marker, Prismacolor Pencil, and other mixed media.

Catwoman Halloween Illustration

I gotta say, If this little feline gave me the option of Trick-Or-Treat, I'd definitely be thinking Treat!

It's time to get into the spirit of the holiday season by golly! Here's a little something I finished recently.

I drew this on 8x10 chipboard with Prismacolor Marker, Prismacolor Pencil, and other mixed media.

Self-Esteem & Building an Animation Portfolio

I've decided to take a good strong swing at building a solid Animation Portfolio.

For years I've lived right here in Burbank, CA among the studios and I've been terrified of rejection. A couple of years ago I submitted my portfolio to Nickelodeon and I received a follow up phone call to discuss it. The head of recruitment told me it was "Delightfully good" and had some notes for me on how to improve and resubmit.

I never did. The truth is that I've secretly always considered myself a hack and unworthy of any real level of success. That awful self-esteem has blocked me from passionately pursuing so many wonderful things in my life.

All that is over now. I almost died recently. I had a doctor tell me I was lucky. It was a close call and I'm quite simply finished doubting myself and settling for less than my best effort and full potential.

Wish me luck.

Close-Up Cutie: Wonder Woman (2 of 2)

I can think of two good reasons not to resist...

3x5 drawn on chipboard with Prismacolor marker, Prismacolor pencil, gel pen and brush pen.

Close-Up Cutie: Wonder Woman (1 of 2)

So let me get this right… you’re gonna tie me up with that lasso and then all you’re gonna do with me is make me tell the truth???

MAN! I just can NOT catch a break!

I've started a fun little series of these chipboard sketch cards called "Close-Up Cuties". They're a blast to draw and give me a free pass to focus on...uh... the details.

Tune in tomorrow for Wonder Woman's northern hemisphere!

I drew this on chipboard with Prismacolor markers, Prismacolor pencils and gel pen.

How To Approach Women

FINALLY! Here's an easy guide for those of us who weren't born with "The Gift."

I've had my share of epic failures in this department. I once spent about twenty minutes working up the courage to ask out a total bombshell at a restaurant only for her to flash her engagement ring in my face while her friends giggled.

Or the breathtaking girl in my old office building who rode the elevator with me every morning for months. Every night I would go home promising myself that the next day I would ask her out.

One morning (in a moment of pure bravery) as I was about to exit the elevator; I turned, began to speak and was suddenly smacked on both sides by the aggressively closing elevator doors which knocked the papers out of my trembling hands and squeezed me out of the elevator and out of her life forevermore.

So, for all of you fine fellows out there who are maybe just a little less than smooth when it comes to the opposite sex, this one's for you.

P.S. I eventually found out the name of the elevator girl: Angela. A friend of mine learned it when he met her and she took an instant and amorous liking to him. 

Video - How To Change The World

Sometimes a great idea can be even better.

That's how I felt about the cartoon I posted on Monday. It occurred to me that I might be able to enhance the emotional weight of the panel cartoon by creating a video with music. Hopefully I've done that because I really love the way this turned out. :)

A great big thank you to Dan-O for the free royalty free music: http://www.danosongs.com

How To Change The World

"Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world. For, indeed, that's all who ever have."

-Margaret Mead

Courage: a remedy forged by individuals

Nowhere is your courage more evident or your strength more demonstrated than in the bold use of your individual voice in the face of group opposition.

Within you is all the strength and power necessary to begin to heal the world. Your voice. Your truth. your courage.

Use your voice! Love courageously!

Wear your courage like a badge of honor. 

T-Shirts available: click here.

The world's most dangerous 11 year old

If you've seen the movie "Kick Ass" then most likely you walked away feeling mesmerized by the unbelievable, over-the-top, pure nitroglycerin awesomeness of Hit Girl! 

I certainly did and after a little nudging from Lauren (thanks, babe) I knocked out this new sketch card.
Swerve on over to eBay if you'd like to own the original!

A Bevy of Beautiful Babes

A collection of cuties all packed together in one place and set to music. Hmm, sounds like a few clubs I can think of.

This time, however, you can skip the cover charge, the overpriced drinks and the inevitable dry cleaning bill. You don't even have to leave your seat for this one. I'm bringing the ladies to you!

Between personal work and private commissions I've managed to rack up a fair number of sketch card bombshells recently. I thought you might like to join the fun and spend some quality time with these lovely lasses.

Enjoy!

P.S. Yes, they are absolutely as much fun to draw as they are to look at.

Many thanks to Dan-O for the free royalty free music.

50% Quality is 100% Progress

Have you ever seen a successful piece of art that you thought was poorly done?

If so then you probably also thought that you could have done a better job (and maybe that's true). Here's the dirty little secret of making progress with your career...

EVEN IF IT'S NOT YOUR BEST WORK, YOU HAVE TO GET IT OUT!

Most of us creative folks are perfectionists that revise and wait and fix and toil away on something which never ends up seeing the light of day. We want it - no - we NEED it to be 100% quality.

But if the cost of 100% quality is that you never finish it and get it out before the eyes of the world, then what good is it? Beautiful half finished work is collecting dust in closets the world over.

This is from my sketchbook - 11 years ago!!

DO THE BEST YOU CAN but don't sacrifice finishing it.

If finishing it and getting it out means that you can only deliver 50% of your potential, then do it. Get it out. Show it to the world and then do a little better on your next round. Grow incrementally. Stop waiting to be perfect before you announce your existence.

The world (including those that would hire you) will be far more impressed by seeing you work relentlessly to improve than they will by seeing you step out from your cave completely free of flaws.

First impressions are overrated. Persistence is king.

Get busy.

Today comes AFTER tomorrow

The things you want most in your life are at the mercy of the things you don't really care about.

Think about something you really, really want in your life. I'll bet it takes some work and time to get it, right? Now think of all the things you casually want today that will stand in the way of getting what you really, really want.

For example: you really, really want a fit, healthy and attractive physique. You daydream about it. You imagine how good you would look at the beach. You imagine a new wardrobe and the attractive mate you would be drawing into your life and cuddling up with!

But today has been a tough day. Work was hard, life is stressful and you just feel like relaxing tonight with the television and a pizza, a beer, a donut, etc. You don't REALLY care about those things more than your beautiful new body but... you have them anyway and skip the exercise.

BOOM! You've decimated today's opportunity to take a step toward your true burning passionate desire. Your dream is delayed another day and believe me, these days add up to years very quickly!

We all have to be willing to put the things we want today AFTER the things we want tomorrow. We have to be willing to do the work when we're too tired to do the work. We have to value are REAL desires over our casual ones.

There's no secret to this. There's no trick. It's just about you and your own personal willingness to do things that are painful, hard, boring, inconvenient and tedious because they lead you to what you TRULY and PASSIONATELY care about.

This is what separates most of us from the people we admire.

I'm willing to bet that you (like me) have burning desires on your list that have been there for years. They sit there and you keep planning on getting around to them. But years have gone by in the meantime. YEARS! How long do you plan to let this slide?

It's all about H.A.B.I.T.

Think of something you've been avoiding and see if it fits into one or more of the H.A.B.I.T categories below.

This acronym came to me today as I was thinking about how to achieve goals.

We start by imagining a goal that excites us! That excitement carries us through the first few steps of getting there and then reality sets in.

We face the less than glamorous, completely un-magical day-to-day dirty hard work that's required to actually achieve the goal.

In my life personally, this is what usually puts me off course. I hit the wall, lose enthusiasm and drop out. Then I get a new exciting idea and start all over.

So, in contemplating this, I came up with the following little nugget. It was a huge breakthrough for me and I intend to begin doing my utmost to put this into action.

HABIT

Mastering this ‘HABIT’ is critical to achieving your goals for these are the elements that create the greatest and most powerful barriers. These are the reasons people quit. Let none of them stop you.

Stay strong and undeterred when the action you need to take is…

Hurtful (causes you pain)

Arduous

Boring

Inconvenient

Tedious

For me, this is the real nuts and bolts of why I don't get certain things done. Items that fall into one or more of these categories tend to get pushed aside and avoided. Time to change that!

I'd love to hear your thoughts.