Motivation can be a hard thing for artists to keep in sight. But here you will find three easy tips to help you keep a positive mindset and thrive as an artist. Firstly, learn about how to keep things in perspective. Secondly, learn how to get inspiration from fellow artists. Thirdly, learn why doing something is better than nothing when it comes to art.

Before diving into the main tips of this article, here are a few phrases to help artists keep motivation. These sayings help me keep positive and creative, so I hope they can be uplifting for you too:

• Discipline, not motivation. (To me, this means you can still create even if you do not feel like it.)
• Excuses are easy to manufacture, and hard to sell. (Similar to the saying above, this saying just means stop making excuses and just create!)
• “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 (I believe there are good things in store for your life and for your art as well.)

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Tips on Finding Motivation for Artists

1. Keep Things in Perspective

The first step to being a motivated artist is to keep things in perspective. Do not let worldly worries impact your creativity. Instead, know that your current trials will pass. For example, if you are short on money for art supplies, be hopeful that you can save up for them over time. Similarly, if you have health issues affecting your ability to create, have hope that you may recover. Another example is if you are not feeling very good at art to know that you will improve in time. In this same vein, try not to worry about art block, a lack of time to create, or stressful life events.

Personally, the first several months of this year have been a terrible string of trials for me as an artist. I try to avoid being negative online about these sorts of things. However, the past few months were kinda straining for me. I had a bunch of annoying issues affecting my ability to create. As well, my Apple Pencil randomly broke down for the third time, taking time away from me being able to draw.

But rather than let negative things demotivate me, I have kept on working on my comic during this time. And even though I have not been able to devote as much time to my comic as I would like, I do not let this get me down. Instead, I try to keep hopeful that things will go better in the future. And I hope other artists can use this strategy to keep motivation as well.

In summary, when it comes to temporary issues affecting your creativity, keep joyful in the fact that these issues will resolve themselves with time.

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2. Get Inspiration from Fellow Artists

A second tactic to help artists get motivation is to get inspiration from one another. For example, keep up with your favorite artists on social media and be inspired by what they create. However, do not play the comparison game or be jealous of other artists. Instead, live vicariously through their wonderful creations. Likewise, take joy in the beauty they create. Similarly, listen to other artists for helpful insight and art tips.

Personally, I was unable to work on my comic as much as I would have liked these past few months. However, following other artists online gave me motivation to keeping drawing my comic. Watching others be creative is contagious. It makes me want to create as well. And so, I was able to discipline myself to work on my comic as much as I could.

Additionally, if you are a comic artist, you may enjoy the inspirational videos listed below. They are advice from a very kind comic creator I like to listen to on YouTube, Henrike. She gives advice to comic creators so they can gain motivation and progress with their comics. In the videos listed below, she gives some specific tips on staying motivated even when you are unable to create:

When a comic artists can’t create webcomics

How to keep creating when you have limited energy + exciting announcement

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3. Doing Something Is Better than Nothing

A final tip to gain motivation as an artist is to simply keep creating. For instance, for artists lacking confidence, do not let your lack of drawing abilities discourage you. Instead, keep practicing and you can improve. Likewise, for artists with little time to draw, do not stop drawing altogether. Instead, draw as much as you have time for, and the minutes will add up by the end of the week.

Similarly, if your health does not allow you to draw, just do what you can manage. Even if your hand is injured, you can still work on art. For example, you can still read tutorials, work on color theory, or do sketches with your non-dominant hand.

Furthermore, if you just are not feeling creative, try mixing things up. Change up your workspace or workflow. Put on a new playlist or podcast as background noise to keep you concentrated. In other words, it is better to do something, than nothing.

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How I Use These Tips & an Update on My Comic

As mentioned above, there were a lot of days this year that I could not work on my comic, Kindred Not. However, using the tips above I have not let myself become too demotivated. Instead, I tried to draw as much as I could. I am guilty of ghosting on social media though. Sorry about that, hehe.

However, I am still making progress on Kindred Not. It is just coming along very slowly. The good news is I have moved out of the preproduction phase and started drawing pages! The bad news is I have been completing pages at a very slow rate. Accordingly, I do not expect the comic to be released for a long while. But eventually I will build up a big enough buffer to allow for a steady stream of comic episodes to be released.

I wish I could output faster, but I am doing my best. And time does not matter to me regarding this comic. I am very dedicated to making it, no matter how long it takes. So, even though sometimes I go through a period of not updating my social media often, I am still making progress on Kindred Not, and it will release eventually. So yay, for that!

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Hope This Helps Artists Regain Motivation!

My dear fellow artists, keep at your art! Whether you are a professional or a hobbyist, I believe in you! And I believe you will find motivation using the three tips in this article: keep things in perspective, get inspiration from fellow artists, and do something rather than nothing.

Do you struggle with motivation when it comes to art? Share why below. Also, subscribe for more articles like this and to follow my art! Furthermore, check out these related articles:

Art Block Is Annoying – Here Are Ideas to Beat it Fast

Productivity for Artists – How to Achieve Your Art Goals

*Update: Kindred Not Comic has now launched. Read Episode 1 of Kindred Not now.