A Day in the Life of an Illustrator by Kristen Uroda

Before I sit down at my desk to do any kind of work in the morning, I drink a hot cup of matcha and do some kind of physical activity like stretching, jump roping, or going for a quick walk. I find that when I skip this step, I feel more easily distracted, less focused, and stiffer at the end of the day. I’m not perfectly consistent, but I’m a big advocate of putting the pencil down regularly and tending to one's physical and mental health.

I’m a decently early riser, maybe more by habit and less by preference, but I enjoy working at times when it feels like the rest of the world is quiet. My most focused working hours span between 7:30AM-12:00PM, but I have periods of deep states of flow between 10PM-3AM. I try to shut off as many distractions as possible and avoid checking emails, text messages, and social media during these times because I can easily go down a rabbit hole.

If I’m working on an editorial project, I'll grab my tablet or a stack of sticky notes and write down some ideas I may have based on the title alone and then I read through the brief several times, looking for key words or paragraphs as “hooks” for the image. If the brief is on a complex topic or about a person, I’ll do supplemental research, looking up other articles and/or biographies to get a deeper sense of the subject. I do more writing than drawing in this initial stage, creating some mind maps or sentences of concepts I’d want to explore further, as ideas come rapidly and sometimes it’s faster to briefly describe in words what I’m thinking before doing a few squiggly thumbnails. The goal is to just get the ideas out as quickly as possible to sift through later.

For the first sketch, I was really intrigued by the idea that, "storytellers shape this world, and our understanding of it." So surrounding a planet within this starburst are various storytellers doing different activities like writing, thinking, speaking, editing, etc. I thought it would still get at the idea of how to craft a story but is more about how storytelling is this dynamic creative event.

This second sketch is a lot more focused on the craft of storytelling. When I think of those two words (craft + storytelling), I think of weaving as the phrase "weaving stories" is familiar and there are a number of cultures that use textiles, like weaving, as a storytelling tradition. So, in front of a large hanging loom sits a woman, weaving a picture and pulling on threads from various places surrounded by butterflies. 

The third one is more simple and straightforward. I was thinking about how the point of storytelling is about connection and how a good story can captivate us, so in the middle of an enthralled crowd is a person energetically sharing a story.

After the initial brain dump, I’ll go on Google and Pinterest for visual inspiration, color palettes, to see what has already been illustrated before, and gather reference photos as needed. Once I feel I have enough information, I’ll start making more detailed sketches and connecting everything I’ve digested up until that point. I try to take this stage as slow as possible while taking frequent breaks to give my brain time to synthesize and make unique connections.

I followed pretty much the same steps when illustrating the picture book I’m currently working on, but took a lot more time thinking about character design and going out to observe and people watch as small details—like the right haircut or polka dots instead of stripes on a shirt—can really impact the feel of the story and how readers connect with the characters.

"Moth" from "How to Tell a Story - From a Wedding Toast to a Job Interview."
Life Kit on NPR. 

From there, once I submit the sketches and one is approved by the art director, I’ll go to the final! The process at this point is simple—I just color things in and try to make it look nice.

 

Kristen Uroda is an artist best known for her vibrant, joyful illustrations. Often softly formed yet boldly colored, her work aims to express beauty in the ordinary moments, celebrate the poetry within diverse faces and figures, and tell stories that inspire reflection and social and civic change. While her career started in editorial illustration, she has most recently moved into narrative illustration with her first picture book coming in 2023. She also works as a design researcher at Civilla, a Detroit-based studio dedicated to changing the way public-serving institutions work using human-centered design thinking and design research.