Umm, hello?
MY WORK LOOKS GREAT, WHY AREN'T MORE PEOPLE HIRING ME?
You can be the BEST illustrator in the world, but if you're skipping some of the strategic businessy stuff and marketing, chances are you’re not making as much money from your creative work as you’d like.
"Fully booked"
on your own terms
A steady stream of exciting illustration enquiries that are perfect for you.
A diary set up that works for you and your life/brain/goals.
An income that reflects the incredible work you're creating.
You're easy to trust and super easy to hire.
Being booked up months in advance in a way that feels exciting and spacious?
Yesssss.
You can learn, learn learn til the cows come home
But sometimes accountability's the thing you're missing.
You can try, but it's really hard to give yourself a good haircut. Let me cut your hair (see what's going on in your business).
I've been doing that pattern recognition thing for years and I LOVE unleashing my SEO and Human Design powers for good.
Less is more.
Let's declutter your approach to business.
You've got plenty to get on with without a 12-module doo-dah or a weekly calls. No, no, no.
I'm a big believer in the magic of a monthly laser focused power session (just you and me), so you can frolic through the month with a crystal clear plan of what to do next.
3 months, in my humble opinion, is the perfect amount of time to make BIG changes in your illustration career without totally overwhelming you or burning you out.
Introducing...
The Booked-up Illustrator
Accountability so you really DO THE THINGS.
3 months of 1:1 mentoring - just me and you.
Monthly calls/check-ins to get mega focused and see where you're up to and what we can work on
A strategic portfolio/website review
SEO report - imagine showing up on Google when your dream client searches for the thing you do? It's the magic of search engine optimisation, and I can't wait to share my 7-year obsession with you.
Help with pricing. It's an art and a science - let's be art scientists
Visibility
Very limited spaces, which means you get my best thinking and my full attention when we're together
£595 x 3 months
or £1,785 pay-in-full
Limited to 4 spots per quarter
I’m good at this
but don't just take my word for it
“One hour with Katie has given me such a boost going forwards”
“Katie was friendly and encouraging as well as extremely generous with all her info and experience. One hour with Katie has given me such a boost going forwards - I am so glad I made that 1:1. She helped take the mystery out of a few things. And I didn’t feel daft asking her.”
– Britt
I’m good at this
but don't just take my word for it
"Probably the best course I have ever paid for."
"I love the fact that it was very practical pieces of advice, delivered in a clear way, especially for a non native English speaker like me. (Bonjour !) I have already implemented a lot of changes in my business that I learnt thanks to this course. I would recommend it to anyone new to live illustration / graphic recording."
– Agathe
"I feel warm and fuzzy thinking of having a new online place to call home"
"...even if it’s a ship and I don’t like boats:) This is a brilliant course with everything you need to get started on you journey as a live illustrator, even if you are unsure and doubtful. THANK YOU happy to have been a part of it all."
– Signe-Sanne
"Feeling ALL the feels at reaching the end of the course!"
"In a flipping social media soup of influencers and life coaches and absolute blaggers, The Good Ship is so human and warm, refreshingly frank and fun yet never e-v-e-r dumbed down. I've learned so much. About much way more than just Live Illustration. Thank yooooooou. Forever grateful."
– Kyna
"I've come away with more than I dared hope for!"
"...an encouraging, generous community (that will live on!); - legit confidence boosts and calming tactics - a genuine sense of connection to The Good Ship itself - a spring board to launch back into live illustrating action! Thank you to Katie, the entire Good Ship crew, and fellow illustrators for giving me just the nudge I needed :)"
– Georgina
"You've completely demystified this new illustration field for me!"
"I probably could have learned all this stuff on my own, but it would have taken me years, and lots of mistakes. This class has been like strapping a pair of rocket boosters to my shoes! It helped me get up close to my goal in a fraction of a time it otherwise would have taken me."
– Kirsten
"I genuinely think you have changed the course of my life!"
"This is such a helpful, practical, insightful course. It has given me the confidence to just try it out. I am working on my portfolio and I have done one live event, with another planned this coming weekend. Thank you, Katie! I am so grateful."
– Fiona
"As someone who signed up to the course knowing nothing about live illustration, I now I feel really well equipped to go out there and find myself a gig!"
"The course content, its pacing and the general atmosphere of support and conviviality make for a really great learning environment."
– Ciara
What're we gonna work on together?
Obvs this will be 100% tailored to you and your goals but here's the general gist:
1. Where are you?
You'll work on:
- What's working (let's lean into that)
- What feels overwhelming or bad (less of that)
- Untangling your pile of ideas
1. Where are you?
2. Easy to hire
This bit's all about:
- Improving your website & portfolio
- Getting your messaging nice an' clear
- Building up know-like-trust so clients hop into your inbox like "TAKE MY MONEY, I WANT TO WORK WITH YOU NOW."
2. Easy to hire
3. Visibility!
It's time to:
- Create a system for self-promotion that can survive, even when you get busy (omg)
- Share about your work easily and casually, like you're chatting to a friend
- Finding your dream clients, and lying down in front of them so they trip over you
- Introvert & low-energy marketing methods
3. Visibility!
2. Easy to hire
This bit's all about:
- Improving your website & portfolio
- Getting your messaging nice an' clear
- Building up know-like-trust so clients hop into your inbox like "TAKE MY MONEY, I WANT TO WORK WITH YOU NOW."
2. Easy to hire
3. Visibility!
It's time to:
- Create a system for self-promotion that can survive, even when you get busy (omg)
- Share about your work easily and casually, like you're chatting to a friend
- Finding your dream clients, and lying down in front of them so they trip over you
- Introvert & low-energy marketing methods
3. Visibility!
There's ongoing DM (or voice note if you prefer) support inbetween our sessions, where we can cover the wobbly bits like dealing with rejection, feeling weird about money, taking action when it feels scary and making friends with being uncomfortable. It's a good sign that you're growing.
But wait, there's more!
You've done enough courses.
It's time to get an outside brain on your business. I'll hold up a big mirror and show you the bits where you could make tiny tweaks that transform your entire illustration career. (And life!?)
Human Design and SEO - two of my favourite things - are woven in because I know how blimmin' effective they are when used correctly.
Alongside our 3 x 1:1 sessions together, you also get
2
An in-depth SEO report. I'm drooling. Nothing gets me more excited than helping illustrators rank for keywords and key phrases that their dream clients are searching for.
1
A full Human Design report covering your unique design and how to use that new knowledge to build an illustration career that really works for your energy
Who It's For:
Mid-career illustrators & Graphic recorders / live event illustrators who...
have had some success and want to get more visible and/or earn more
want more dream clients, exciting projects and shiny new opportunities
worry about their pricing, marketing or 'putting themselves out there'
want honest, strategic & constructive feedback
are hankering for a clear plan, and a friendly kick up the bum
are willing to do a bit of work between the sessions
want to up their businessy game
are open-minded - I like to bring a few different tools into our work together and some of 'em are a bit woo :)
Who it's NOT for:
Total beginners with no portfolio
People looking for a portfolio review and nothing else
People who want someone else to do all the work for them
Negative nellies
Illustrators who aren't willing to change anything on their website, portfolio, pricing or the way they promote their work
Hiya, I'm Katie
After 14 years of being an illustrator, (10 spent building my live illustration business), I've drawn for snazzy companies like Adobe, Google, Meta, Netflix and Apple, and I accidentally got so good at marketing that I had to start an agency 😅
I’ve also lectured in illustration up to Masters level, mentored creative businesses for The British Library, and helped thousands of illustrators (6414 at last count) inside The Good Ship Illustration alongside ma pals Helen & Tania.
My favourite thing is helping illustrators figure the business side of their creative career. (Especially if that means adapting it to fit stuff like Being Happy and prioritising the bits that matter. Success doesn't always mean more more more.)
Long story short = I’ve learned lots of stuff the hard way, and I’d love it if you didn't have to figure it out alone.
