The Good Ship Illustration

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The illustration job nobody tells you about 🌈

2026-11-0623:16

It's Tania Willis is in the hot seat this week (have you heard of her? That name rings a bell...) and our Katie is grilling her about maps! We dug out our dusty listener question spreadsheet and the first one out was a good 'un: how long does a map take? HOW LONG IS A PIECE OF STRING? Tania is going to tell you. Just hit play and snuggle in, ok? Timestamps, for the timestamp fans: 00:00 – How long? 02:30 – Map scales 04:30 – Off-plan fantasy 05:30 – Blue an...

How do I get my work featured? With Creative Boom's Katy Cowan

2026-10-3028:45

This week our Katie chats to Katy Cowan, founding editor of Creative Boom, the independent platform that's been cheering on creatives of every background for 17 years. It started as a side project dreamed up on a sun lounger on her honeymoon (true story!) and now reaches over 300,000 readers a month. If you've ever wondered how illustrators get picked up by Creative Boom, Katy tells us everythiiiiing: keep sharing your work, keep your Instagram active, and make your website a nice 'n' friend...

How to stay in touch with your illustration clients without being annoying - part 2 of our @MadebyJames interview

2026-10-2339:20

James Martin (aka @MadebyJames) is baaack! Part one was your starter, and this week is the chonky main course. James did promise to come back with something v useful, and he kept his word. Buckle in for a step-by-step formula to help you build relationships with the people you'd love to work with. There is absolutely NO cold emailing or cheesey self-promotion involved. Timestamps, for the timestamp fans: 00:00 – Welcome back James, and why part two is all about the practical stuff...

Is there any point becoming an illustrator now that AI is here? An interview with James Martin @madebyjames PART 1!

2026-10-1657:56

Trigger warning: In this episode, James talks openly about his experience of childhood sexual abuse, as well as addiction (drugs and alcohol). It's mentioned briefly in the 06:52 to 11:00 section and discussed again from 45:23. There's also plenty of strong language throughout. Look after yourself and skip this episode/seek support if you need it. This week our Katie is chatting to James Martin, AKA @MadebyJames. He's a designer, author, Canva design advisory board member & creative partn...

Lessons from our 'failures' + Illustration Business Club doors close tonight!

2026-10-0925:15

This week, you're stuck with Katie and Helen again, answering more of your businessy questions (Tania's back next week! Don't cry! She's coming back, really!) RIP to our dear friend and editor Deirdre McDermott of Walker Books, who died recently. Dee was a legend. We don't have the words to do her justice here, but we miss her very very much. 💛 And of course, Smelly Peggy too. Timestamps, for the timestamp fans: 00:00 – Helen and Katie are back 00:45 – Any consistency hacks? Katie...

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