Wednesday, August 27, 2014

DailyDoodles now for sale!

If you follow me on FB, Twitter, or Instagram, you might've noticed that for the last few months I've been posting a #dailydoodle. (Well...I don't post one EVERY day. But I post them regularly enough.) They're something I started doing as a writing warm-up--and I know you're probably thinking: how does doodling help your writing? But I swear it does. It gets me in a mindset to not be such a perfectionist.

Drafting is a messy process, and I hate it because of that. I want the words to be lovely and shiny and done as soon as I type them. So if I don't do something to stop myself, I'll start revising way too early. Cue the #dailydoodle, which I always do in ink, because it forces me to live with all my tiny mistakes. Sooner or later I'll draw a line or make a mark I wish wasn't there. But since it's permanent, the only choice I have is to keep going. And the really funny thing is, I always find a way to hide it. Or sometimes, the mistake even ends up making the drawing a whole lot better.

So I'll doodle for an hour or two, remind myself that it's okay to make mistakes, and that's it's better to just keep moving forward and not look back. It's been working really well, and for fun I started posting them on my social media, and the response has been ... well ... pretty surprising.

Here's a few examples, in case you haven't seen them. My style is sort of a mix between Zentangling and line drawing:





And the REALLY surprising thing is that people started asking to buy them. So after many weeks of debating, I decided to make them available.

I sell the originals by request, usually through Facebook, though email works too. You just have to contact me when you see one you want. They're not all that expensive, but there's only one of each, so setting up an Etsy shop and doing individual listings is too much work--especially for how fast they seem to sell.  So for now it's: see one, contact me, and first come first served.

But since a lot of times more than one person wants it, I've also set up a way for people to buy prints. Behold, my Society6 page:


Prints start as low as $16, and they ship worldwide. Even cooler: you can get the doodles on all kinds of cool things like tote bags and pillows and clocks and notecards. (it's kind of embarrassing how tempted I am to buy some).

So if you've been wishing you could get your hands on a doodle, now you have a way. And like I said, I still sell the originals too. You just have to contact me. :)

24 comments:

  1. Awesome. What a wonderful talent and a great creative outlet. (Not that your writing isn't enough...but I imagine this one feels a little less restrained?) They're beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  2. They're amazing! I love them! I've been so hoping you would make them available to buy! What a wonderful way to express your creativity and it's a great reminder to all of us to remember that mistakes are okay and make life beautiful! Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really is true. Some of the best stuff comes from the mistakes. Who knew? :)

      Delete
  3. Whoa! I've seen your sketches on Pinterest, but I didn't know YOU drew them! I just thought you were on a pinning spree! And the fact that you can get them on tote bags is amazing. And I thought your writing was enough.

    -Your Fresno Fan: Alyssa

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Where's Fresno? Never heard of it.

      Delete
    2. Well, I don't draw a lot of the ones I pin on pinterest. Those are just because I find bits of inspiration. But thanks so much. And it was so great to meet you in Fresno!

      Delete
  4. PHONE CASES!!!! I don't even have a phone but I REALLY want one! I love the danylions and the couple on the bridge. The mugs are adorable!!!!!!! I want the lantern one! Are your talents that endless?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, my talents definitely have a limit when it comes to anything musical. You do NOT want to hear me sing. :)

      Delete
  5. I can't believe there are phone cases! I absolutely LOVE the t-shirts! NEED ONE NOW! Are you going to take up the artist job now? PLEASE don't abandon your books!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL, don't worry, writing is still my primary job (and that won't be changing any time soon!) :)

      Delete
  6. Sky Fall fan here:
    I love them! I'm a big drawer too and yours are amazing! Do you like writing or drawing better? Though you probably feel more free when drawing. Love them! Keep up the good work. So once you're a millionaire off all your amazing books and drawings, are you going to travel to your fans more? :PI NEED to see you!
    -Brianna <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yay for a Sky Fall fan! And it's funny, I find drawing both freeing and frustrating. It's fun because I can pick anything and not be limited to contracts or deadlines or whatnot. But my hands also don't always cooperate and draw the picture the way I see it in my head. So in that sense writing is more freeing because I can always get it the way I want with words. And here's hoping I someday get to travel to see you. I do travel quite a bit already, but this is a big world with lots of awesome places. I really wish I could teleport.

      Delete
  7. Do you take requests. I had a quick look at your society page and those items are awesome. I really love the prints, throw pillows and T-Shirts. I'm on a tight budget right now but I would love to buy at one two over the Christmas holidays.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Requests are kind of hard because I've found that the people making them often have something fairly specific in their mind. So unless they can be very clear about what they want, it's hard to make the doodle the way they see it. But you're welcome to email me and I can see if it's something I think I'ld be able to pull off.

      Delete
  8. Amazing drawings...you're such a great artist! I LOVE them! I know exactly what you mean...whenever I have writers' block, I start doodling my charachters.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have a question...is pre-ordering the fastest way to get EVEBLAZE?

      Delete
    2. I'm not sure if it's the fastest, since it probably depends on where you pre-order it and what kind of shipping you pick. BUT, I do know that pre-orders are the only way to get the EVERBLAZE swag pack. I haven't posted all the details about it yet (and won't be until October). But all pre-orders will qualify, so if you order it now you can still fill out the form in Oct. and qualify.

      Delete
  9. To get your original daily doodles, how should you be contacted? Thanks!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you're friends with me on FB, you can send me a private message. If not, you can email me at SWMessenger (at) hotmail (dot) com
      (though you'll want to use "@"and a "." like a real email address. I just list it spell it out that way so it doesn't get hit by spammers.)

      Delete
  10. OH. MY. GOD. You are so talented. Totally buying one!

    ReplyDelete
  11. How much are the originals? I would really love to buy one.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It varies, depending on the doodle, but they're usually somewhere between $30-$50. I try to keep my prices as low as possible, but the doodles are also really time consuming. So the price is based on a $10 per hour scale, and then of course the prints through Society6 are much cheaper. If there's one you're interested in, you're welcome to email me to get a specific estimate. :)

      Delete