Robert Reich had been drawing since a young age, but it wasn't until he started combining writing and illustrations on Substack, that he found a creative trademark
I thought that you had artistic talent when I watched your online sessions before the last Presidential election. I am glad that you are doing the illustrations as I am very visual and they actually are helpful, as well as being fun!
Thank you for this section of "Dear Writer"! I had no idea that Robert Reich, whose articles I have enjoyed for many years, also draws! And I love the cartoons. His advice -- "to bring your personality to your Substack " -- is something I'm exploring right now (as an absolute novice), and the timing of this confirmation is perfect.
Breathe in: writing. Breathe out: drawing. They follow one another naturally. I love and emulate Nishant Jain’s Sneakyart substack for just that reason, in my own work at Road2Elsewhere. The irony: I didn’t even discover that I loved it until after a long career as a words-only guy in the magazine biz. I much prefer where I am now! Thx for that James Thurber. Sorry I ignored your example personally for so long.
I LOVE this. Truly. I am sharing a 7-day on awakening your senses to find Insight and I keep thinking to myself if my sharing is too "ME". But then this personality advice comes in and I feel so much motivated. Thank you again.
Thank you Robert! I used to write a lot more and now I am primarily a visual artist. Most of my work is painting and it is abstract. Recently, I created a line of coloring books and I have been having a tremendously good time in doing so. I saw an interview with one of the creators of Substack the other day and I decided to go for it! I had a great time writing yesterday but I was having a bit of a hard time getting at it today. It was wonderful to listen to you and thank you for sharing! Sometimes we all just need little love. (or a little nudge) PEACE
This is such an encouraging and timely post. The advice to “just do what delights YOU” was especially reassuring (I have a doodle+writing Substack myself). Substack is a great playground for experimenting with communication and trying something off of our usual beaten paths—and isn’t that what creativity is all about?
I love this! I’ve been drawing and painting since I was a kid, but it somehow never occurred to me to illustrate my own newsletter… what a wonderful way to complement a piece!
Thanks for sharing this. I am fairly new to substack but love being able to combine my writing, recipes, and photography all in one place. I also agree about the podcasting feature. I'm starting to add little notes to preface my newsletter - it feels like that extra little bit of connection with my audience. I like to think they're sitting across from me at the dinner table, clinking glasses and having a casual conversation.
"Go with what you’ve been trying to do for as long as you remember. Don’t worry about whether it’s great writing — or even whether it’s writing at all. It’s you, and it tickles you — and that’s enough."
Thanks for these words of encouragement! Made the difference between quiting and accepting tickles as sufficient reward.
Dear Writer: Advice on bringing your unique skills together
I thought that you had artistic talent when I watched your online sessions before the last Presidential election. I am glad that you are doing the illustrations as I am very visual and they actually are helpful, as well as being fun!
Thank you for this section of "Dear Writer"! I had no idea that Robert Reich, whose articles I have enjoyed for many years, also draws! And I love the cartoons. His advice -- "to bring your personality to your Substack " -- is something I'm exploring right now (as an absolute novice), and the timing of this confirmation is perfect.
Like your illustrations very much!
Breathe in: writing. Breathe out: drawing. They follow one another naturally. I love and emulate Nishant Jain’s Sneakyart substack for just that reason, in my own work at Road2Elsewhere. The irony: I didn’t even discover that I loved it until after a long career as a words-only guy in the magazine biz. I much prefer where I am now! Thx for that James Thurber. Sorry I ignored your example personally for so long.
This was a perfect piece for me to read at this point, just when I was considering exploring adding illustrations to my stories... thank you...!! :)
Beautiful illustrations and thanks for sharing your enriching experience.
Wow, I thought at first this was a different Robert Reich. Now I know he's multi-talented.
What do the subscribers appreciate more? The illustrations or the writing behind them?
I LOVE this. Truly. I am sharing a 7-day on awakening your senses to find Insight and I keep thinking to myself if my sharing is too "ME". But then this personality advice comes in and I feel so much motivated. Thank you again.
I am absolutely blown away!!
Thank you, Professor Reich!
Thank you Robert! I used to write a lot more and now I am primarily a visual artist. Most of my work is painting and it is abstract. Recently, I created a line of coloring books and I have been having a tremendously good time in doing so. I saw an interview with one of the creators of Substack the other day and I decided to go for it! I had a great time writing yesterday but I was having a bit of a hard time getting at it today. It was wonderful to listen to you and thank you for sharing! Sometimes we all just need little love. (or a little nudge) PEACE
This is such an encouraging and timely post. The advice to “just do what delights YOU” was especially reassuring (I have a doodle+writing Substack myself). Substack is a great playground for experimenting with communication and trying something off of our usual beaten paths—and isn’t that what creativity is all about?
I love this! I’ve been drawing and painting since I was a kid, but it somehow never occurred to me to illustrate my own newsletter… what a wonderful way to complement a piece!
Thanks for sharing this. I am fairly new to substack but love being able to combine my writing, recipes, and photography all in one place. I also agree about the podcasting feature. I'm starting to add little notes to preface my newsletter - it feels like that extra little bit of connection with my audience. I like to think they're sitting across from me at the dinner table, clinking glasses and having a casual conversation.
It is nice to hear a writer of note talking about combining drawings in a post. I have done so already on Substack - glad I'm not alone. https://steebasso.substack.com/p/on-gilbert-gottfried?s=w
"Go with what you’ve been trying to do for as long as you remember. Don’t worry about whether it’s great writing — or even whether it’s writing at all. It’s you, and it tickles you — and that’s enough."
Thanks for these words of encouragement! Made the difference between quiting and accepting tickles as sufficient reward.