I didn’t always know I wanted to be an illustrator. Until 2020, I wasn’t even fully aware of what illustration entailed as a career or where in the field I fit into. Nope, when I was a teenager trying to choose A Levels that aligned with my future, all I could think about was being in a band.
I had fed myself a steady diet of Blur, Radiohead, Weezer, Supergrass, and whatever other predominantly white male-fronted alternative or morose indie band out there since the age of 10, so I was ready to have my shot at fame as a somber rock chick.
It’s actually kind of hilarious to think about now — especially given how rock and alternative have tanked in popularity. Maybe it’s a good thing I never made it!
To quell my unattained goals of rockstardom I lived vicariously through actual bands and became a radio personality. It was fun and lasted many years, intersecting nicely with my love for music and the connections I’d made with local musicians over the years. My guitars are barely touched these days, and listening to those bands now sometimes makes me wince, but I do still occasionally enjoy getting lost in a Death Cab for Cutie playlist when I’m really getting into a drawing.
Next in line was the advertising copywriter — the role I fell into by chance. Landing in Sri Lanka and looking for a job, I found a vague but witty listing for a ‘person who writes’. Whoever released this ad was assuming the reader could read between the lines and recognise a call-out for an advertising copywriter / annual report writer / IT writer when they saw one. That particular assumption made an ass out of me and me alone.
Nevertheless, I took on a trainee role and became a budding copywriter in an era two decades before ChatGPT would fart out its first platitude. For the first few years I took it very seriously, winning a spot to compete at the Young Lions competition at the international level. Of course, a South American team wiped the floor with us, but my teammate and I had a blast at the festival regardless. If anything, being sent to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity strengthened my resolve to be a better creative.
By the time I hit senior copywriter level, I was pretty disillusioned. I was no longer convinced of my communication skills realistically being applicable in a local context (unless it was for a very niche, English-only brand), and I felt I was no longer growing or learning with the work I was getting. I had gone from a mid-sized ad agency to a massive ad agency, then a boutique branding agency, then head of a creative department, and finally freelance — the work was good, but I felt stunted. I also had a traumatising interview where one of the interviewers literally TOSSED my portfolio aside, having made up her mind that she wasn’t going to hire me from the moment she walked into the room. It made me want to stay out of the industry forever.
On the flipside, the most rewarding job I’ve ever had was as a lecturer. It was not necessarily something I’d ever seen myself doing, at least not at university level. All of my students taught me a lot — from the inspiring ones to the quirky ones and the downright challenging ones — and the whole experience that pushed me to grow, question and reflect. I was helping them eke out their paths year after year, and I realised I had never been half as focused at that age. It was through this reflection that I realised illustration had been an avenue all along. I just never put the pieces of the puzzle together.
So here I am at 40, clambering through year three of trying to make it as a professional illustrator1 and letting nothing but blind faith keep my motivation up. My second picture book as an illustrator just came out, which I’m immensely proud of (and immensely grateful that the Booker Prize Winning author asked me to illustrate it!) and I feel like I’m taking risks again. I’ve got a list of publishers, competitions and agencies that I’ve slowly been making my way through. Most of it has seen rejection but there have been sparks of success here and there. There’s a little voice in my head that reassures me that this is all part of the process — that when I finally make it I will feel like I’ve earned it.
Or I could be completely delusional. Either way, it keeps things exciting.
‘The Ant Who Walked to The Edge of The World’ by Shehan Karunatilaka (and illustrated by me🐛) is out now!
Disclaimer, I have a day job. Let’s not get too poetic about this. I got bills to pay and got mouths to feed — there ain’t nothing in this world for free, so sayeth Cage the Elephant.
So curious how you started building a style, a portfolio, and exploring mediums. Do you work by hand or digitally? Would love more behind-the-scenes!