K. Woodman-Maynard - The Business of Being an Artist

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Artist K. Woodman-Maynard discusses her gorgeous graphic novel interpretation of The Great Gatsby, the business of being a graphic artist and other engrossing matters. A delightfully different interview with a charming guest.

Highlights include:

• Sal Introduces K. Woodman-Maynard, Creator of The Great Gatsby Graphic Novel
• “Color is gorgeous. The drawings are extremely expressive and interesting… the style of the period is displayed.”
• “…I think it's a good way to get people who might not otherwise read The Great Gatsby, the prose book, interested.”
• Cashflow from a Graphic Novel Is Inconsistent – Good to Have Steady Income from Graphic Design
• “…it was very painful for me to cut out specific lines, because I love those lines.”
• “I'm in complete agreement that you shouldn't dismiss somebody's whole life's work just based on certain philosophies. It's a balance.”
• “…it started by a very intense deep reading of the text…”
• “The whole book took about 1500 hours. That's actively time tracked hours.”
• “…the first thing for a beginner that they need to know is that they can do it. You can make a living as a graphic artist.”
• “I was encouraged to go into architecture because that was considered to be more stable for artists. I'm so glad I didn't, because I graduated college in 2008.”
• “One thing that's been key for me has been diversifying my income. I have income from graphic novels. I have income from graphic design work, from illustration.”
• “I think it's an important thing for yourself as a graphic artist to be able to pivot and to be able to work in different ways.”
• “…finding good mentors. That's something that I would encourage your niece to do.”
• “Going to Harvard has really helped me with asking stupid questions.”
• “You can be a good business person and also be good at your craft.”
• “The Great Gatsby was a commercial flop at the time that it was published.”
• “He was making a huge amount. He would just spend it before he even got it, which is the direct opposite of me.”
• “…a captive audience of troops who read The Great Gatsby and then returned and spread the word about it.”
• “I'm wondering what's going to happen once the vaccine is out. Will we experience another Roaring Twenties in a different way?”
• “I do the Pomodoro method. …You work for 25 minutes; you take 5 minutes off. Then every two hours, you take a half an hour break.”
• “In high school, we had to take career placement tests. I had equal likelihood artist and military officer.”
• The Importance of Story Telling
• Addressing Mental Health Issues with Kids via Comics: TKAMI.org
• “I decided not to go into architecture because it wasn't my calling. Also, because I could see that it wouldn't be good for my mental health.”
• “It's just gorgeous. I highly recommend this work.”