Happy Birthday, Walt!

December 5, 2018– Ok, so today is Walt Disney’s birthday and I know he wasn’t an author, but he was one hell of an entrepreneur! We talk a lot about entrepreneurs on this blog, and as authors and illustrators, well, we are entrepreneurs. Walt was an artist, producer, and game-changer. To celebrate his birthday, let’s look at some interesting facts about the man behind the magic!

1. He failed. A lot. Legend has it that Walt failed an epic 320 times before getting the financing for his dream of Disneyland. Imagine if he had of given up!
2. He helped with the war effort. Even though the Disney Company was not in a good financial position at the beginning World War II, Walt decided it was vital that he and his company help in the war effort.  Walt Disney Training Films unit was created which were instruction films for the American military and propaganda films for the American public.  He won an Academy Award in 1943 for his short propaganda film, Der Fuehrer’s Face.
3. He learned to draw by doing this. Walt spent most of his time at school doodling. He learned to draw by copying newspaper cartoons, specifically from an American Midwest newspaper called Appeal to Reason which his father was an avid reader of. Walt wasn’t interested in the political editorials, but he enjoyed looking at the front page cartoons. At this time there were no animated films or comic books, Walt found the cartoons exciting and the style demonstrated in the cartoons would later appear in his own!

Happy birthday to the legend that is Walt Disney!

Where Does Inspiration Come From? By Erin Cutler, Illustrator for Pandamonium Publishing House

Inspiration

Hello! My name is Erin, and I am the illustrator of the upcoming book Pants written by Tamara Botting! I am thrilled to be working on this book because the writing is excellently crafted and I am honoured to be working amongst such great talent at Pandamonium Publishing. To share a bit about myself and the way I work, I’d like to talk about inspiration. As an artist, inspiration is important, but not always accessible. As any creative person knows, being inspired is not something forced upon you, it is a process, and it can strike at any time… anywhere. This is why I feel that my best work is based on my interests, and I often find true inspiration in nature. Exploring colours, movement and textures around me naturally weaves its way in and out of my creative process. Along the way, I have learned that creation is about the process and the techniques. Every piece that I work on, I am striving to make it better than my last piece, which is why I work even when I’m not inspired. The more I create, the more I learn and grow as an artist.

Interests never leave you, there will always be something that strikes your curiosity. Therefore, interest is a much more reliable way of working.  I believe that we never stop learning and that the time to make great art is always now. If you love to learn, and aspire to become the best creative person you can then get out there and start creating things! Let passion be the reason you pursue your creativity and trust that inspiration will come naturally along the way.

Thanks,

Erin