"I kind of found my niche through my style and my style through my niche," says illustrator, Kelley McMorris
Finding your niche, or speciality, might help you hone in your skills and identify your audience. This way you can target your clients and build a brand for yourself and a lucrative career.
Jessica Tung Lee advises music to focus your mind, catering to your specific mood
It's no secret that freelancing from home can have its distractions. Learn how to stay in "the zone" and you will maximise your time, meaning there is more room in the day for play, or an extra couple of freelance gigs.
"The Watching Trees": A lot of Dave's more recent personal work focuses on mood rather than narrative
It's integral to make time for personal projects. Don't believe us? Learn from expert illustrator Dave Palumbo and stop putting them off in favour of comissions.
One of Titus Lunter's concept illustrations: Minneapolis Snow Playmat
This might seem an unrealistic expectation for the new year - we all suffer from it from time to time. However, Titus Linter's tips really can help ward it off and know how to reign your thought back in to the case at hand.
Ilya Kuvshinov's Maid is one of his many crowdfunded pieces
More and more artists are seeing their dreams come true with crowd sourced campaigns.
Read how Kickstarter could help you fund that personal project you have been putting off and Gumroad and Patreon could mean bill payments are no longer a major stress.
Pinterest's layout and more intuitive search options make it a prefered reference tool for artists
Pinterest is an invaluable tool for artists. Learn why top industry professionals are using it to inform and organise their projects and why you should be too!
Ross whips through stages quickly and with such enthusiasm you can't help but feel inspired
Modern technology is great – you can now become famous in the comfort of your own home.
Follow the tips for finding your niche, how to best gain online exposure and then read Ross Tran's story of how he became an internet art sensation and learn from a success story – done!
Keep your passion for painting alive this year, remember why you love art!
Sometimes work can suck all the fun out of art, motivation can dry up and all you want to do is throw every last sketch attempt in the bin, put on your PJ's and watch Lord of the Rings in your onesie, lamenting the "fact" that "you suck".
Face your demons head on with Donato Giancola's tips to keep that passion flowing (and some tip-top advice on painting techniques to boot!)
Trapped between Wormwood and a Leprechaun: mingle amongst "your people" at a convention
It's not what you know, it's who you know, and that is true for pretty much every career. You need collaborators, support from people who know what you are going through and a neverending flow of fresh inspiration.
All of these things come together, and more, at conventions and expos - they aren't just a chance to meet your idols, and waste all of your hard earned cash on prints you no longer have room on your wall for but if you follow our steps, they can be instrumental in helping your own career along.
Collections like Exposé and Spectrum can help you to gain clients and confidence
Take a risk this year – you might find it's the best thing you ever do. Seeing your work in print, especially in a highly regarded book like Spectrum can really improve your confidence.
Even if you don't get accepted – ask for feedback, try something new next time – failure is only a learning curve!
If you aren't quite ready for Spectrum, why not submit to ImagineFX's FXPosé section?
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