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

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."