"I hadn't drawn for 21 years" an interview with Jo Overend 🐥

Jo Overend is in da house (ship?)

But first, Illustration Business Club is finally OPEN! It's been over a year since we last flung the doors open and we'd love to have you sailing with us! https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/business

Jo is an author-illustrator, an OG Good Shipper, and the author and illustrator of Megaduck (her debut picture book with Walker Books) 🐥

When Jo started out, she hadn't drawn for 21 years. She posted her drawings anyway, eeeeven the ones she didn't like, and sometimes three to five Instagram posts a day (!!!)

Timestamps:

00:00 – Hello Jo (and Megaduck, in giant cardboard cutout form) 00:23 – Megaduck's final artwork is done and handed over to Walker Books 01:03 – Getting final artwork finished alongside full-on childcare 01:56 – Setting the goal of a full colour dummy for Bologna 02:57 – Walking into shops with your prints (terrifying!) and taking the wholesale leap 03:37 – Why rejection is almost never about you 05:46 – Katie's human design corner: give people something to say yes or no to 06:10 – Sending Walker seven more book ideas without waiting for a meeting 07:01 – Posting real things to agents and publishers, and the "is it worth the stamp?" wobble 09:13 – Why genuine, thoughtful post gets remembered 10:10 – Agents and publishers actually WANT your follow-up email 11:42 – Jo's Illustration Business Club experience 12:23 – Getting stocked in her favourite shop, and growing into wholesale 13:12 – Community, competitions, and winning the Picture Hooks mentorship (plus a book deal the same week!) 14:34 – Tania's "friendly stalking" method for finding art directors 15:50 – "Have we met?" How Jo's postcards got there before she did 16:57 – Helen's broccoli theory of being seen 17:25 – The anonymous egg problem, and why a face (or a logo) builds trust 18:29 – Jo's advice for scared, shy, overwhelmed illustrators 19:04 – Not drawing for 21 years, then posting 3 to 5 doodles a day 22:02 – Megaduck news: US in February, UK in March, and Megaduck 2 on the way 23:07 – Trying all the little things: kids' workshops, wholesale and more 24:40 – Keep your radar open 25:16 – Where to find Jo, plus her Substack and Patreon plans

Links mentioned:

• Jo's website: https://www.jooverendillustration.com/• Jo on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joverendillustration/• Jo's Substack: https://jooverendillustration.substack.com/• Megaduck (US edition): https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/835922/megaduck-by-jo-overend-illustrated-by-jo-overend/• Picture Hooks: https://www.picturehooks.org.uk/

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

 p.s. Soooo much of what Jo talks about here ties in v well with what's inside Illustration Business Club. The doors are open right now and we'd love to have you in there with us! https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/business

Come and say hello! ✏️ @thegoodshipillustration🌏 www.thegoodshipillustration.comp.s. We love answering your illustration questions. Click here to submit your question for The Good Ship Illustration Podcast 🎙