Boost your creativity with a side hustle!

Every professional I know understands the frustration of getting stuck in their chosen area of expertise.  It is a cruel paradox that in order to advance your career, it is necessary to specialize, but in doing so you may also discover that years of dedication to your specialty have left you feeling a bit bored.  What to do?  Branch out!  If you're a designer, polish up your artistic skills!  You may not find someone to give you a paying project in another creative niche, but you can make a nice side hustle out of it if you're willing to give up a little of your spare time. 

Today's post is my current side hustle.  I long time friend of mine wrote a simple children's book, and she asked me if I could provide the illustrations.  Perfect opportunity to sharpen my sketching skills, have some fun in the evenings, and who knows?  Maybe the book will sell and I'll end up making a bit of extra cash!  If not, it will still be a fun and rewarding experience.  The book will ultimately consist of 15 illustrations.  This one will appear in the middle.  I started with some rough sketches to capture the author's writing, did some research online to figure out a style, and experimented with color and lighting in Photoshop and Autodesk Sketchbook on a Wacom Cintiq monitor.  What do you think?