Sometimes when you watch a t.v. show, right at the beginning they have a brief recap to remind viewers what’s already happened and set up what’s coming next. (Previously on Nicolas Cage Match, 2 Nicks enter the ring, but only one will push the limits to be crowned increasingly bizarre and exhausting to watch.)
Since we’ve recently had a bunch of folks join this weekly blog bandwagon, it seemed like a good time to have a recap on how we got here and what this blog is all about.
My name is Rebecca Gallagher and I work full-time as an audiobook narrator, with a side hustle as a visual artist. My husband Dean, who is also an audiobook narrator #smallworld, works with me to make all the things happen or gently tell me to let an idea go.
Prior to audio being our full-time gig, we worked together as a 2-person graphic design company for 20 years. SIDENOTE: Yes, we do realize a high percentage of people would find working with their spouse to be an untenable situation, and of that group many report that, for them, the only end result of working with a spouse would be the demise of one or both individuals. And now back to our story, already in progress…
In 2017, I started a 2-year challenge of creating & posting new lettering artwork every day. The gist of that experience is summed up in an article I wrote for the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA). Click here to read. During that challenge is when I started this blog to document my experience of being a self-employed artist.
Because I know for a fact that EVERYONE is creative, along the way I like to sprinkle in some encouragement for you to pursue that thing which keeps bubbling to the surface of your mind. Just to clarify, artistic and creative are not the same thing. Not everyone is artistic, but every person in the world is creative. It’s just a matter of whether they are intentional about how they use it or not.
At any given time, I’ll share some goals I’m working towards in both my audio and visual work. Like the time I flew out to New Jersey for a meeting with Audible, which just so happened to be when we started including an audio file for these posts. For those multi-taskers in the group, instead of reading, you can listen while you are driving to work, walking the dog or getting that morning coffee going.
As a firm believer that art is more than just pretty pictures, in 2019 after the midterm election, in recognition of the historic number of women being elected to Congress, I used my powers for good and created a t-shirt to celebrate this record number. I documented the entire journey of calling every female serving in Congress to ask if they would like a shirt, writing a note, prepping, packaging and finally mailing the shirts. In the end, I sent 50 shirts to Washington. (Click the image to see that final post)
Periodically I ask for a little audience participation, cuz if it wasn’t for you this would just be me talking to myself, which always makes Dean a little uncomfortable. Which brings us to the latest topic I need your input on. Earlier this year I shared that I got my artwork published in the latest Typism book. Once you have received your physical copy, the folks at Typism encourage artists to post a “Typism Selfie” with their page in the book. Here are my options:
Whichever one gets the most votes will be the one I post on my Instagram for dozens of people to see (#true) with the potential for Typism to repost and introduce me to a much wider audience. Reply to this email and let me know which one grabs you (or maybe politely taps your shoulder) as the image to go down in history as the final visual on my Typism 8 journey.
These highlights pretty well capture the gist of who I am and what I’m about. So if you have any interest in being mildly entertained while following the journey of a gal who is building some things, then you are in the right place.
If not, no worries, click that unsubscribe and I wish you well. Until next time, keep creating and connecting!
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