Hey everyone – just a quick update to say that I’ve been doing a LOT of art work lately, but a lot of it is unfinished. So, Works in progress it is for this post! So have some sneak peeks at some upcoming art: Boba Fett, Mandalorians, Bo-Katan, a Wizard concept design, a tiefling bard, Daredevil, a poster for some friend’s Pathfinder Outlaws of Alchenstar game… SO many things. Stay tuned for more!
Recently, I started to stream on Twitch; having my screen displayed for anyone to come along and view as I draw and work on my art projects. And I discovered something that surprised me. In fact, I found it surprising, yet powerful enough, to write this out in the hopes it will help other artists. Let me quickly explain why I decided to try streaming, and then I’ll let you know the new, and I think better, reason why I continue.
First, why did I start streaming my art? Probably for the same reasons that other artists would try it: hoping to expand my audience through a different website, let those who already know me watch my process, and maybe earn a little extra money. Simple, and straightforward. I’ve seen other artists be on Twitch, and know that it is a place that artists can be seen, so figured I would go for it.
However, so far, none of these have had the same impact as this next effect of streaming: my productivity went up. This is for a very simple reason. People are, or may be, watching. And since my channel is an art channel, when I know people could pop on at any time, it helps me to maintain focus on my art for longer than I often do otherwise. Not getting distracted by anything else, or even being bored. The idea that I am on here, and people (in theory) are here to watch me, helps me keep at the thing they would be here to watch. And I’ve found it helps even when I have no viewers – as I said, someone COULD pop on. Plus it helps my time to be more set aside for art, rather than just “when I feel like it.” Once I have the stream, I personally felt more accountable to myself and those who follow me.
Someone might wonder if the chat can be distracting. In one sense, yes. But I found that I can look up, see what people are saying, and talk in response, while continuing to draw.
So that’s it. Streaming helps me be productive. Or it has in the couple of weeks I have been streaming for. While the reasons I started are valid reasons, and I certainly hope my streams will grow in those areas, this productivity surprised me, and is the reason I think artists should consider streaming.
If you’re interested in my streams, you can find my channel and see old streams (or catch the live ones!) at Twitch.tv/MichaelHoweArts
Hello everyone! Happy New Year!
(New Year’s Day is totally in March, right? Right? Oh, ok…)
I have a lot of information about this last year and what I’m planning and hoping for 2019!
I received a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Illustration, with a focus on Sequential Design. It was a long haul, but so glad to be done. I was so happy to be with the graduating class I was in! We had a big show, with many amazing pieces!
I think it was one of my best years financially, but I know it was some of the most fun I’ve had there. Learned to focus on talking with people, and making my art, and having fun, not worrying about making sales. Had some fun commissions at the Con, and with my sister-in-law helping at the booth, my wife and I were able to wander more and go see panels and David Tennant!
This was such a neat opportunity to get to work with Marvel and X-Men characters in some sort of official capacity. These original sketches were distributed randomly into the Fleer Ultra X-Men 2018 card packs.
You can see the full collection of 50 cards on my previous blog post.
My friend Chad Beninati (http://handicapehero.com/) wrote out the beginnings of a fantasy story and I drew it. You can find what we got done here (it’s better on mobile devices): https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-knight-and-the-rat-king/list?title_no=220795
It was a bit of a personal challenge since the contest went on for a few months, but with school, I worked on it for only about a month, max. It was fun, but the speed certainly shows. Still, I think it was a good start.
My wife Emily and I had been planning a trip to Scotland for after I finished school. We went at the end of October/beginning of November 2018.
It was amazing and incredible: the place, the history, the locale, the exploring, and getting to spend so much time with each other without going to work or school. We stayed in Glasgow and Edinburgh, explored both those cities a bit, as well as traveled to Stirling and Loch Ness!
I’ve uploaded some art and logos I’ve done to a RedBubble Store!
I love the printing they do on their shirts – my wife and brother both have one, and they hold up really well and have quality printing done, not just a cheap iron-on. So go check it out!
to finally get some hand and wrist pain I had been having for months looked at. They said they suspected a strained flexor and actually had me stop drawing for about a month and on disability from my workplace for two months. It seemed like would be a problem, but was actually kinda nice, to take a step back from the art and my job. I got to spend the holidays with my wife and family without anything really pulling me away, and I was able to spend time praying, reading, refocusing and reconnecting with people. It reminded me that I am a person apart from my artwork and job, which is something I need reminding of.
My entry is one of the comic projects I’ve been working on for a little while, called The Artist and the Half-Orc.
The winner receives a job and payment to work on their creative, career-pushing project! So IF I were to win, that would become a huge thing, and of course, modify the plans I have for this year.
My interpretation and variation of Killer Wolf, a public domain script created by Justin Prime, which you can find details on Here.
Here’s some progress pics from a commission I’m working on of my brother’s Bard/sorcerer character from DnD.
I hope this “New” Year is going great for you! I’d love to hear what things you’re up to, excited for, or planning for the future, so please shoot me a message!
“May you always have light for your feet.”
Tales of Warriors and Wanderers Issue 0
Michael Howe
Well, after a few days of quirky things including a computer simply not wanting to upload to the site, michaelhowearts.com is up and running!
There is still progress to be made: I need to upload a lot more art to each category, and of course keep making art!
Also, I have worked out a new design for my business cards to include this website, as well as my Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter accounts, all in a correct manner. So hopefully traffic will increase.
Have plans for some fun art pieces, including fan art of Rey from Force Awakens, the characters from Jim Butcher’s Aeronaut’s Windlass, and images and comics of my original characters!
Stay tuned!
Well, I now have a website. And this is my first ever blog post. I’m mainly just testing how the website works, and how I want to set it up. So, yeah. This is a filler page. But it could clue you in a little bit to my personality if you read it. But it is also the first post, so don’t try to go back any further in the archives.