What Do I Do All Day ?

Hello there, everyone.

Sometimes I wonder if people question how I conduct my working day. Well, I can tell you one thing straight off: It's not all champagne and skittles !

Anyway this here blog is a general run through of a typical working day. Obviously, some days are different to others (as are some of the commissions), but this is as close to a daily working timetable as I can give you. Here goes...

6:00AM: Wake up !! I get up; get washed and dressed (civvies for me) and then walk the dog. Then it's home; coffee and breakfast. I get on with the washing up and put together my lunch; and load up my bag with whatever else I need for the day ahead.

8:00AM: It's on the bus to Bristol where I rent a co-share studio-space in a converted office block called Hamilton House.

10:00AM: I settle in, make a coffee, have a chat with my fellow media-types and review that day's work load. If I'm in the middle of a job with a looming deadline, then I'll launch straight into it; but if I have the luxury of an ongoing job like a comic book or graphic novel, then I'll take some time to warm-up by sketching in my small sketchbook - usually some wild, loose sci-fi/horror stuff. And then I get to work proper: I put my earphones in and listen to podcasts about pop-culture which really helps me focus.

12:30/1:00PM: LUNCH. I try to take a proper, hour-long lunch break and get away from the drawing-desk (a lot easier in the warmer months !). I'll bring in something from home like a sandwich or some leftovers which I can heat up in the kitchen, or - if I'm feeling really flush - I can have lunch in one of hundreds of cafes and bistros all over the centre of Bristol !

2:00PM: Back to it. This is when I get really intensely focused, and work for as long as I can or need to. I continue to listen to podcasts etc and get into 'The Zone'.

5/6:00PM: I down tools - I've probably done as much as I can on the project I'm working on; or I've simply hit a creative wall and burned out ! It happens to the best of us. Having a studio space means I can just leave everything as it is and get my coat on; say cheerio and walk out the door. Hopefully, I've produced enough to feel accomplished and fulfilled. If so, I get a bounce in my step as I walk to the bus station.

6 + PM: On the bus - decompress and reflect. Then, home to settle in for the evening. Then the day - as far as I'm concerned - is done. Now that I don't work from home anymore, I feel that actually coming home is so much more enjoyable and rewarding. I can actually switch off the 'artist-brain' and be a regular, domesticated Pickles !

Well, folks. That's pretty much it ! Until next blog......