The Secret Ingredient Is How We Mix It All Together

Here's something different. My daughter asked me to do a set of portraits of her two dogs. Not what I've been working on the past few years, but I gave it a shot anyway. Honestly, maybe one of my problems in getting noticed by the publishing industry is that I enjoy both styles of drawing: realistic and cartoon.

I've heard that you need to stick to a certain style in art so people will think of you when they want that style. That makes sense, but, you know what? We are all made up of many parts. We all have little bits of good and bad, male and female, serious and funny inside of us. Some of these traits we want to overcome. Others we mix in with who we are occasionally just to liven things up. That's what makes us truly unique. It's not that I am an older male who tries to be good. It's that I have a tendency towards dry humor and love to watch serious documentaries. It's how we combine our ingredients that makes us each an individual.

I remember a co-worker years ago laughing about her daughter's first attempt at baking. According to the mother, she gathered all the ingredients together, then plopped them all in a pan, stirred and baked. The daughter was heartbroken at the result, but her mother finished her story by laughing, "Everyone knows that baking is all about adding each ingredient at the right time."

And I've known that ever since that day.
 It really was a lot of fun to sit down and draw these. I didn't even mention the thrill of working with pencil on real paper again. I enjoyed this so much that I decided to offer it to other pet owners. So I have a new listing on Etsy! Get your pet immortalized!