Courntey Pippin-Mathur | notebook ,  Nervous

Thursday, January 12

Nervous

Now that I am registered to go to the Children's Illustration Mecca (for me that is) that is the SCBWI New York Conference, the anxiety sets in. I am starting to think about my work, the other very talented artists I will meet there, outfits I will wear and how crappy my portfolio will look in comparison. Oh, and did I mention the New York Showcase?

Now, I know I haven't got a chance to place in the top ten of this thing and a much, much smaller chance of winning one of the prizes. However, that will not stop my heart from going all fluttery when they announce the finalists and it will surely slam into my shoes when I realize how crapalious my work is compared to the winners. After all, I can't even get a runner up in the SCBWI monthly contest. So, I am preparing myself now. I will try to bang out an awesome illustration before then (or use the Diva) but I will not let my little eyes fill up with tears or sob to my husband about how much I suck after the finalists are announced. I will not. I'll just post about it when I get back. ;)

Anxiety revelations out of the way, lets move on to the preparations:

1. Prepare 2 portfolios.
A. One for the AD workshop
B. and one to carry around (just because I like carrying around my black portfolio case)

2. Prepare a piece for the NY showcase
a. Yikes

3. Complete more portfolio pieces
a. I have no animals in my portfolio and I think I should show that I can (almost) do animals.


so, maybe I'll re-do this piece or add animals to the fortune teller piece. That is one of my favorite pieces, I had to take her down because of perspective issues. Maybe I could tinker with her a bit, who knows, maybe she'll make it into the NY showcase.

b. add the new dino piece, although I now regret the hands/claws/wobbly froggy looking things.


4. Try to look presentable

a. I look like a cross between a suburban housewife and a wanna be hippie, I have let my hair grow long and the roots grow out. Time for a haircut and dye job and to plan a cool wardrobe. I have a few outfits in mind and I will consult my much more stylish sil for advice because I want to look like a professional, albeit a quirky, artistic one. If you want to see what I look like, go here. I have the same hairstyle I had in college, long straight hair almost always pulled into a bun. I don't think a v-neck t-shirt and bad fitting jeans will work either. I do have cool clothes, I just don't wear them to chase after my two year old daughter.

So, wish me luck and prepare to hear about this many, many times in the next few weeks.

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7 Comments:

Blogger Roz said...

May I say how "proud" I am of you? I've been watching you and Dee tackle your fears and "go for it" and I'm so excited for you both! I wish I could go to the NY conference with you guys and hang out.
You'll get it all together and your work will look terrific sitting up there with everyone elses! Yay Courtney!

1/12/2006 5:57 PM 
Blogger Toni said...

I am so grateful for IF
seeing your work makes me smile , laugh, and just plain feel good. You are talented and have a lot to offer.
I wish you luck and all the best to you. Keep your options open you never know what is around the corner.

1/12/2006 6:56 PM 
Blogger Dee said...

I love this post! Can I just put a post on my blog that says,"Ditto" and link it to yours? haha. I think you've said everything I could about the conference. :) Don't worry Court, just think of this as a chance to be seen (and maybe heard, cause honestly, how fast do we talk?)and hopefully to get work. I'm not counting on winning anything, either. I'm just going to have to figure out how to keep myself from smiling so much my face cramps up!
Oh, and Roz- thanks so much for your kind comments. Your sincerity touches my heart. :)

1/12/2006 11:12 PM 
Blogger Frizz said...

Relax, be yourself and have fun!! Soak it all up. I can't wait to hear all about it when you get back. You're a wonderful artist and your art speaks for itself.

1/13/2006 7:30 PM 
Anonymous catnapping said...

I love your work. I can honestly say that I have loved every illustration of yours that I've seen.

And I am prepared to listen to this many, many times in the next weeks.

You will do great. Have fun!

1/14/2006 3:25 AM 
Blogger Carolyn said...

Courtney, I wish you luck at the conference... you are a fantastic artist... I think your paintings would be perfect for children's books... I know that if I was a child who had a book illustrated by you it would be one of my favorites because it would be so much fun to look at, no matter what the story was about.

1/14/2006 10:50 AM 
Blogger Anonymous said...

I agree with everything everyone has said above ... PLUS more wishing you the BEST!

1/16/2006 2:11 AM 

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