Do I need loads of followers to get illustration work?

Fancy getting into your business car for a bit? Illustration Business Club doors are open until 9th October 2026, and you get lifetime access, so you can go at your own pace (pudding first, broccoli later). We'd love to have you sailing with us https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/business

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We recorded this podcast LIVE on Instagram on Friday! (So please excuse the audio if it doesn't sound 100%) Anyways, here's the replay. Katie and Helen had a nice 'n' friendly illustration business Q&A, answering your questions as they came flying in. If we missed your question, it's nothing personal! We're doing another live Q&A next Friday too over on our Instagram @thegoodshipillustration so do come along and ask your question again :)  https://www.instagram.com/thegoodshipillustration/

Half-arse is better than no-arse.

Timestamps, for the timestamp fans:

00:00 – Welcome to our live Q&A podcast 01:50 – Should you keep your children's and grown-up work on separate Instagram accounts? 03:15 – Illustration Business Club doors, early birds and payment plans 04:30 – Organising your website when you've got lots of income streams 05:30 – SEO, long-tail keywords and lying down in the middle of the road 08:45 – What are publishers looking for in a portfolio? 12:00 – Do you need a big social media following to get started? 14:00 – Where to start with licensing 17:30 – How to say no when friends want you to illustrate their book 21:45 – Should you approach an agent or go straight to publishers? 23:30 – Instagram is not your portfolio (and half-arse is better than no arse) 25:30 – Does business stuff apply to fine art too? 27:15 – Your creative car and your business car 30:00 – Working for free, "exposure" and being paid in lobsters 30:45 – How do you stay invested in a picture book idea all the way through? 34:00 – Pricey website hosting vs the cheaper option 35:45 – Dealing with the newbie beginner scaries 38:00 – When getting paid makes you tighten up 40:00 – Structuring your days, Helen's birthday card trick and not doing a Father Ted 43:15 – Do the fun thing first (an idiot with momentum always wins)

Links mentioned:

• Illustration Business Club: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/business
• Tania's Good Ship Illustration podcast episode with Margo Tantau on licensing from 2 weeks ago: https://pod.link/1526470404/episode/QnV6enNwcm91dC0xOTgxNTM1Nw
• Anchoring Your Ideas So They Don't Fizzle Out (We looked into this and it's inside the Picture Book Course, not a freebie sorry!) https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/PB
• Good Ship freebies for picture book makers and illustrators: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/freebies
• Louise Lockhart, The Printed Peanut: https://theprintedpeanut.co.uk/
• Jonny Hannah: https://www.instagram.com/darktownresident/
• Catherine Rayner: https://www.catherinerayner.co.uk/
• Jessica Hische's "Should I Work For Free?" flowchart: https://www.creativebloq.com/news/should-you-work-for-free-jessica-hische

Byeeee for now! x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania)

Come and say hello! ✏️ @thegoodshipillustration🌏