New Year Spruce Up (part one)

Reflection

Substack Jan 2024

Happy New Year

I love reflecting as you may know, and I can’t let the 2023 - 2024 transition happen without a bit of reflection and a little personal spruce up. And I am inviting you to join me!

I know some people are allergic to resolutions, but let me make the case for them for a wee minute. I think of it like the clothes pile that builds up in my bedroom every week. I let it build and build until it spills off the chair that is conveniently in the corner for such things, until the clothes start spilling onto the floor, at which point I have to take the time to put them all away. After which I always have very good intentions to put my clothes away every night as soon as they are shed, but of course, invariably am just too tired one night, and I unconsciously sling them onto the chair (often from the other side of the room!!). And thus the cycle begins again.

Maybe a slightly more relevant metaphor is one I like to use of a wind-up toy. I believe it is very important to point yourself in the direction you want to go and then you can wind yourself up and off you go in the direction you want to. And of course, after a while, you might wobble off course, so you need to pick yourself up and point yourself in the right direction again! This is what I see resolutions as. They may not be perfect, or things you can stick to with perfection, but without them, I feel I would be the wind-up toy wobbling off the table, the clothes pile that is so tall it teeters and collapses all over the floor!

I would love it if you wanted to join me for 2024 on my paid subscription - here is a special offer of 20% off for the whole of 2024! This is the last time I will be doing a special offer for a while, so if you want to join, now is a good time. And you might even be helping me get a tick next to my name (which makes me look very special I think!), as I currently have 92 subscribers, and I need 100 to get a tick!

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So, I am inviting you to a month of reflection and goal setting (for want of a better expression) or you could say wind-up toy pointing. Of dusting down the last year so to speak, so we can start with the closest thing to a clean slate as possible.

I want to start with a little Gather, Filter, Make resolution of my own. I have decided to make Motivation Monthly into a written post (like this) rather than a live meet-up. I am seeing it as a trial, I may decide to go back to live videos, or maybe they will become something else. But I feel like maybe more people will be able to participate more in written form, even if that participation is reading it. I would be interested to hear your thoughts on this - if you have any, let me know in the comments. 

So, for this first month of Motivation Monthly in 2024, I am making it a special month-long version.

I like to take a while to ponder everything in the new year, rather than race to a hasty resolution. So I’m starting with this post, which is all about Reflecting on 2023, and then I will make two more. The second will be Visualisation - where we make space to dream, hope, and point our wind-up toys in the right direction. Finally there will be one that for now I am going to call Setting Intentions. We do a mini version of this whole process every Motivation Monthly, but I am excited to do a new year one right now.

This first one I will make a free post, and the next two will be for paid subscribers only. If you want to join in, for the whole month, here’s a link to upgrade

Onto the first week….

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Reflection:

We always start Motivation Monthly with a ta-da list. A ta-da list is basically a to-do list after you have ticked off all your tasks. The schpiel I always give before we do the to-da list is: Put all things on, big or small, and as this is a creative space, try and keep it focused around your creative practice. BUT… If you just cleaned the kitchen, meaning it will be easier to cook meals, meaning you will have more time to make art, it goes on the list! Basically, did it give you a sense of accomplishment or joy? Then it goes on the list!

For this year, I suggest we do a big 2023 to-da list. One of the hardest things about doing a to-da list is remembering what the hell you have actually been doing the last week/month/year! So some tips are: look through your photos, look through old to-do lists if you keep them, look through old calendars, even text messages and emails can be helpful. I did mine this time by mainly looking through my phone photos. I’m going to break mine into quarters with a list per 3 months, (or it would be too unwieldy) and then add some favourite photos - partly so this post isn’t just a really long piece of writing. Feel free to do yours in whichever way you want. You could get creative and do a mind-map, collage, drawing, painting… Or you might want to keep it simple and just do a list (with extra thoughts for anything that you want to write a bit more for as I have if you want). It can be nice to start a new notebook for this sort of thing… One thing I ask is please join in with some thoughts, comments and ideas in the comments below. You don’t have to paste your whole list (unless you want to - in which case, do!), but let me know how it was for you. Did you enjoy it? How did it make you feel? Let’s chat about it below.

OK, onto my list

JAN - MARCH

• Winter walks - I made a Big Winter Plan last year in the hope that I wouldn’t end up as depressed as I normally get at the end of winter. I used the Three Rocks system, and you know what? It worked! I’m going to talk about that more in the Setting Intentions post. For now, it’s enough to know that one of my strategies was to go for lots of walks, so I could soak up as much sunshine as possible.

• Cardigan - I finished a knit - a pink cardigan by PetiteKnit. I love their patterns, although I don’t love the colour of this one. I knew I didn’t when I started. A lesson there! And I find it’s pretty unflattering. It’s kind of heavy yarn, so it tends to hang and look a bit droopy. Anyway - it is warm, and I do wear it!

• I began the year painting two books - the Night Before Christmas and Rewild The World at Bedtime, so my days were filled with the studio, making lunch and going for walks. Looking at my photos, I was working on the covers for both books at the same time (you can see early versions of both covers below) and painting lots of animals for Rewilding.

• Playdates - we did three Art Play Dates (Jan Feb Mar)

• I got some new little pots in a charity shop to add to my collection of tiny pots and jugs. I have them on a shelf in the kitchen, much to my husband’s chagrin. But they make me happy!

• I taught on the MA for quite a few days

• I went to see The Impressionists exhibition at The National Gallery with friends

• Me and my son had a joint birthday party at the Royal Festival Hall with friends, as we both have March birthdays. We did joint parties there often when we lived in London, and friends and family would come along. The sort of thing where you see people sometimes for the only time that year, but it keeps the connection alive. Fun fact: The Royal Festival Hall is a public space, like a park, so you can eat and drink to your heart’s delight, meet friends, do art, have clubs, and it’s all fine and it’s all free!

APRIL - JUNE

• My sister came over for a visit from the UAE, and it was brill to catch up with her and her husband and have a chance to see. my nephews and nieces. They grow up so faaaast!

• Continuing work on the books

• More Art Play Dates

• More walks - sometimes with friends, which is extra nice!

• I attempted a few runs - I really want to actually manage to make this a habit! Tips please!!

• I did some outdoor sketching and painting, some of my favourite things to do.

• We had the First Picture Book Club in May

• My lovely friend Ruby Wright published her debut book Animal Crackers, published by Rocket Bird Books in May and had a fabulous book-launch. I copied the venue for my own book-launch, with Ruby’s permission - thanks Ruby!

• We had a lively debate about that blue dress AGAIN and me and my husband both genuinely got upset with each other (I am in the blue and black camp, he is in the white and gold, and neither of us can BELIEVE the other!!)

• I finished the Night Before Christmas art in May!

• I started working on my new book straight away!

• I made a process video of painting in my garden. You can watch it here.

• I met Rusty (my friend Tor Freeman’s dog) for the first time (apart from when I went with Tor to collect him and he was in his travelling box!)

• My lovely friends Tor and Eve arranged an afternoon tea in London to celebrate my finishing the artwork for The Night Before Christmas. I highly recommend celebrating things like this. It really helped it feel special and a good way of moving on as well.

• Our son finished his GCSE’s!!

  

  

  

  

  

  JUL - SEP

• In the summer I took part in my second Kings Cross Illustration Fair. I had done it once before, but I had been a last-minute addition to fill in for someone who couldn’t make it, and it had all been a bit scrappy, in terms of prep. So this time I got to get a bit more organised and plan things a little better. Some of you with Eagle eyes and a laser-sharp memory might remember me saying I suspect I have dyspraxia in one of my posts from last year. Well, this is another case in point. I found setting the stand up and organising the space suuuuper difficult. It also meant I struggled to think ahead and plan how the space would work beforehand. This is something I still wish I was better at, but never mind I suppose. It all worked out ok in the end. It turned out to be a fabulous day. I met so many lovely people, and sold lots of things, which still blows my mind! 

• I made a piece of Art for the Black Shuck Festival Exhibition. It is available to purchase (I haven’t managed to get it up on my website, but let me know if you want it. It is £150)

• I got ill with a tummy bug for a week, which was horrid - but two good things came out of it. I read The Little Friend, by Donna Tartt. I love her books so much! I actually have to say I think The Secret History comes third in my order of preference list. I would probably go 1. The Goldfinch 2. The Little Friend and 3. The Secret History. But they are all amazing. She is such a great writer. Her characters feel alive, I feel like she describes how it feels to be alive and feel things so well. And I LOVED The Little Friend! Even though I was ill, my heart was bursting with how much I loved it! And it was great to read it in an intense burst over a few days. Maybe I will try and do more of that in 2024? I also watched The Detectorists for the first time! I had previously thought it was actually a program about MacKenzie Crook and Toby Jones actually doing metal detecting, like Gone Fishing, where Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse go fishing together. Don’t get me wrong, I have watched that and enjoyed it. But this is, how can I describe it without it sounding twee? Well, I’m going to say it: it is heartwarming and charming, and like a cuddle of a programme, but with a hint of off-beat energy that makes it not saccharine. MacKenzie and Toby are brilliant - you want to sit and drink coffee from a flask and talk about last night’s University Challenge with them! We’re actually just finishing it again. A rewatch for me and a first time for Nick. Love!

• Holiday! - We had an amazing holiday in the summer. We stayed with a friend who kindly shared his house in Croatia with us for free! We started off in Trieste, Italy, where we spent three nights or so in an airbnb, which was the perfect time to explore the city, and then we caught a ferry along the coast to Croatia. I think this is probably my most exotic holiday in a fair few years. We tend to stay in the UK for holidays, so it felt very special! Notable highlights. Seeing a Gladiator display in a ruined (but well-preserved) amphitheatre. Getting to spend two weeks painting on location as much as I wanted. Reading the third and forth books in the My Brilliant Friend series. Practising and taking some excellent timed selfie photos. That walk up the ravine when I became a sweatbag and was wearing the wrong shorts! Can you spot me trying to subtly hide the massive sweat patch with my bag! Haha!

  

  

  

  

  some of the paintings I made on location

• I finished another knit! Another jumper from PetiteKnit. It was supposed to have a full turtle neck, but I found it too choking, so I unravelled most of it, and gave it a cute little mini neck (is there a name for these?)

• I went to the Children’s Publishing Picnic organised by the gorgeous Steven Lenton. Poor old thing had fallen down the stairs the week before and broken a few ribs and was bravely hobbling along. It’s such a lovely event, open to anyone involved in the Children’s Book industry. Hopefully he’ll be doing another one this year.

• I went to another brilliant book launch for…Steven Lenton! It was for a special new book to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam, Shifty McGifty and Slippery Sam: Train Trouble, Published by Nosy Crow

• I made two new zines, one collating together the drawings and paintings made on holiday, and one just of people sketches made over the years. I have about 10 million, so I thought I should put them somewhere, rather than just be tucked away on a shelf.

• I had a great charity children’s book haul, including a great Jan Pienowska from my childhood and a Richard Scarry!

• More Art Play Dates and Picture Book Clubs

• Strictly started!! And my mum and I took the judging very seriously, with our very own hand-made paddles! (I made them a few years ago, and they have been pimped with various friends and family over the years!

• We adopted a cat! Sadly Nick’s mum has gone into a care home, so it’s lovely we could adopt her cat and show her photos of him still. He is named Sonny and is hilarious. He loves to lie on his side and cross his arms over like a little cosy human - is that normal cat behaviour I ask you!?

  

  

  

OCT - DEC

• My debut book published with The Folio Society!! Wow. What a moment! I took a bajilion photos trying to get one where I didn’t have a rictus grin on my face! I wrote a post about it and got so many lovely messages about it, both here and on Instagram. My friends and family have been amazing, and so supportive in helping me celebrate. 

• I had a launch in November for the book. I decided waaaay back that it would be good idea to do a launch and mark the occasion of my first book. But as the time approached, I got more and more nervous! At this point I was also juggling a lot of teaching on the MA and painting artwork for my new book, so it was pretty difficult to juggle it all. But, I managed, and it happened and it was amazing!! I have to say a huge thank you to the Folio Society who helped me organise it. I couldn’t have done it without them!

• More Art Play Dates and Picture Book Clubs

• More walks - I especially love an autumnal walk!

• I did some outdoor painting - always a treat.

• I went to see Tor Freeman do a brilliant talk about her work and creative life so far. Wow, even though I’ve known Tor forever (Our mums met across the ward when we were born, and since then our mums have been best friends and so have we!) I was still blown away by her talent, hard work, and all the amazing things she has done. I wish you could all see it! If you ever get a chance to see her talk about her work, you must see it!

• Wide Eyed Editions sent me the cover proof of Rewild the World At Bedtime to approve. It is gorgeous, if I do say so myself! It has a Wibalin finish (feels like it is printed cloth) and gold foil details! So exciting, it publishes in March this year, so I will be posting more about it in the next few months, you can be sure! I think it helps the publisher think I am very special if you pre-order the book - so if you know you want to, why not pre-order it!?

  

  

  

• I was a guest on Steve Lenton’s brilliant podcast Studiomate Steve. My first time as a guest - I’d love to more of this - I could talk about art and children’s books all day! Maybe it can go in my Visualisation next week!

• Halloween - one of my very favourite festivals, and feels special to me and my son, who always dress up together. Although I didn’t dress up this year. I think I felt a bit shy because he was having all his teenage friends round! Maybe I should embrace the embarrassment this year!

• I ran a Book Covers Workshop over on the MA for three days in a row. I’ve posted a slide I used showing that you can hide beautiful things under dust jackets!

• I also did a lecture about Trends in Publishing AND a talk about me and my practice for one of the year groups. And I did a TON of teaching this autumn - it was a busy busy term. Rewarding, tiring, and exhilarating. I love seeing the students flourish and feeling like I might have played a small part in that!

• I did The Kings Cross Illustration Fair in the Winter again! Same struggles with organising it all, same great fun, meeting lovely people and amazing myself that people want to buy my work! 

• I went through a series of thumbnails, sketches, sketch revisions and meetings with Thames & Hudson (the publisher of the book I am currently working on) and was given the go-ahead for colour. I have been painting away, and the colour is due at the end of January, so I will be hermit-like now until it is done.

• I got varifocals!! Finally, after a year of double glasses!!

  

• I finished a new knit - the PetiteKnit Novice Slipover. I think I just pipped the new year to the post, finishing it in the betwixtmas gap. I’m still figuring out if I like it. What do you think? Actually, now I come to think about it, I finished another tank top too! This one By PetiteKnit. You can tell I’m a pretty loyal PetiteKnitter - can any of you recommend any other reliable and fun pattern brands/websites?

• I finished Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin - I really loved this book. It felt very Donna Tartt-ish somehow. The characters are so alive and visceral. It’s a brilliant story of the thrills and the anguish (and everything in between) of the creative process. I think I will put it on a re-read pile!

• I got a new coat! Part of my continued plan to stay warm this winter! I’ve always made do with a slightly shitty coat, so this winter I wanted to get a properly warm one. ALthough this coat is thinner, it is super warm. It’s yet to be tested with below freezing weather. I’ll report back if I remember!

• Oh - and I got Covid bang smack in the middle of November and was in bed for nearly a week. Really bad timing for a very busy autumn.

• I read The Night Before Christmas to the family, in front of the tree on the night before Christmas, just before we went to bed. How special is that!?

I’m not sure how well I have mixed the photos in here if you’re reading this on the phone it’s going to seem like A LOT! Soz!) and I hope I have caught everything that needs a link, and I’m sure I have forgotten a few things. Probably some big things! But for the sake of actually finishing this post and posting it, I am going to leave it there. I hope this has inspired you to do your own end-of-year reflection, and as I said above, this will be much more fun if we get a fun and lively chat going in the comments. So, don’t be shy! Leave a comment, write a list and post it or simply let me know if you liked The Detectorists as much as I did!

Happy New Year and I will be back in the next week or so with a Visualisation post!

Ella xx

I would love it if you wanted to join me for 2024 on my paid subscription - here is a special offer of 20% off for the whole of 2024! This is the last time I will be doing a special offer for a while, so if you want to join, now is a good time. And you might even be helping me get a tick next to my name (which makes me look very special I think!), as I currently have 92 subscribers, and I need 100 to get a tick!