Yeah, you could say I'm having trouble.

[LMY]

I'm a freelance illustrator and I'm having the worst time finding companies to sumbit my work to. I've looked high and low for greeting card companies, colouring book publishers and sticker companies. I think my style would fit in best with this type of stuff. But I can' find anything! All those colouring books at Toys R Us, all those stickers at the toy stores, all those greeting cards, they must come from somewhere!
Is anyone else out there a freelancer? How to do get by in the lean times, when you don't have work? What do you think? I'm really bummed out. /phpBB/images/smiles/icon_frown.gif

[dturecek]

Do you do any work for the web? Also, you may want to submit your portfolio to different printing companies in the area. They often outsource artwork to freelancers. You could also do work for kids charity orgs, at least to build your portfolio.

Hope this helps!

-Doug

[LMY]

My trouble is finding these places. I've wracked my brain to think of places to check and then I can't find any resources for the things I think of. It just gets frustrating when I have an idea of what I want to do, but I can't find any companies to speak to when I know they're out there.

[zabarella]

Hi,
I used to work for a company called Boston Corporate Art. They worked like a gallery, but sold both original artwork as well as posters from catalogues. Their clients were corporations and hotels, nursing homes, etc. There's a pretty big market for reproducible artwork, esp. drawings of local scenery, etc. I'm not sure if that's what you're into, but it's a way to make some money on the side.
You could also freelance for textbooks, medical and science journals, etc.
-z.

[Chymes]

I'm an aspiring illustrator as well interested in the children's market. I don't know how much money you have in your marketing budget, but you may want to consider submitting your portfolio to www.Theispot.com. (http://www.Theispot.com.) It is an online portfolio service that is the largest online. You may already have the Artist's & Graphic Designer's Market book, which is a good resource as well since it tells specifically what companies want submitted. I also recommend you look into joining the Graphic Artist's Guild, as they have a good support system. Don't be afraid to approach companies. Call them, speak to the art director, and ask if you could submit you porfolio. Another good idea is to go to Barnes and Nobel, bring with you a pad of paper, and look for new markets. There may be markets out there that you haven't noticed yet. Write down any information regarding the company and art director. Look at book jackets, magazines, CDs and Videos, everything. Best of luck.

My portfolio teacher offered my class an excellent piece of advice, which I will share with you. Only put in your portfolio pieces of work you *love* as opposed to pieces you *think* are marketable. The work you will get will be based on what is in your portfolio, and it is best if you only show what you truly like working on.
Rachel

[LMY]

Thanks for the replies. I've tried finding companies to sumbit to but I can't think of any names. I've just started finding out some places on my own.
Where I live there isn't a lot going on so I have to rely on the internet to find places. I've found in the past that the name of a company can fool you.
I don't have any support system nearby and no money to spend on anything. I have to do it all for free!
I've found recently that posting on art message boards doesn't help. I was made fun of and treated like I didn't know how to breath let alone how to be an artist. I know they are impersonnal to begin with, but when you're in a bad mood, and you rely on them sometimes for information, it's really frustrating to not get the information you want.

[Chymes]

I had lunch with a friend who is also breaking into the business and she told me of a website that may be useful to you. It is Portfolios.com. They offer a free service to students and people new to the business by offering 5 free images to their site. Apparently it is good for people new to the business because art directors with smaller budgets go there. She was advised to start there for a couple of years and when she had some professional experience under her belt to get out and then go to the theispot.com (which I had mentioned in my earlier post.).

Hope that is useful.

[LMY]

Just getting back the reason I posted my main post, I was wondering how other freelancers, doesn't matter what profession, get by in the lean times, when work is infrequent?

[Anonymous]

One place you may like to check out is www.elance.com. (http://www.elance.com.) People look for various stuff including illustration can post their project there, you can browse through them and offer your skills.

Hope this is useful.

[Anonymous]

Hi LMY,

The only thing you can do to get by in lean times is make some money. You can take a part time job as wait staff, bartender or anything that has a flexible schedule to give you time to work on your art.

Or you can get more creative -

When I was in school and needed money, I participated in psych experiments at the university, which usually paid between $20-$40 for an hour or two of my time. I also sold my plasma. I recommend looking at the newspaper from a local college or university because they often have good listings for short-term money making opportunities.


Also, I don't want you to feel as though I'm picking on you, but your posts don't seem to reflect a very positive attittude. I know its hard work starting out on your own and its easy to get discouraged, but try to think of how you can make an idea work before thinking of why it won't work.

Good luck! /phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif

Stefanie