Thoughts on Illustration

📗 Pre-order Drawing Is Important: tomfroese.com/book⁠
Are you on the cusp of a breakthrough but feeling stuck in creating a stand-out portfolio? In this episode, I break down four mistakes I see struggling artists make when sharing their body of work. This is not about quick “hacks” but a deep dive into the four pillars of illustration excellence: purpose, point of view, substance, and craft. Whether you’re struggling to make work that looks professional, or trying let your humanity shine through, these four focus areas are the tools that will make the biggest difference in your career.

IN THIS EPISODE
Low Purpose vs. Clear Function: Why every project you share on your homepage needs to signal its functional role at a single glance.
The "Operating System" of Style: How to treat your personal values as the underlying system that informs every project, no matter what the subject.
Building Substance without Complexity: Why you should push to make some of your illustrations more complex, but also why even the simplest of illustrations can show a depth of character.
Achieving Media Transcendence: The secret to professional craft where the viewer sees the image before they see the "Procreate brushes" or the software used to make it.
Physical Media Paradigms: Why choosing a physical constraint—like letterpress or collage—is the best way to limit the overwhelming options of digital tools.

EPISODE LINKS
Portfolio References: Check out the work of Klas Fahlen and Olympia Zagnoli to see mastery of craft and media paradigms in action.
⁠https://www.klasfahlen.se/⁠
⁠https://www.olimpiazagnoli.com⁠
Pre-order Bonuses: Pre-order Drawing Is Important to help boost the Amazon rankings and secure a commemorative poster (first 50) or a signed bookplate (first 500).
⁠https://www.tomfroese.com/book⁠
One-on-One Coaching: If you want to pick my brain on these four pillars, book a session.
⁠https://www.tomfroese.com/coaching⁠
The Illustration Department: Mentioning Giuseppe Castellano’s insights on being headed in the right direction.
⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-illustration-department-podcast/id1467711251?i=1000755695311⁠
⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-illustration-department-podcast/id1467711251?i=1000754396715⁠
Today's Action Exercise: The Operating System Paradox Ready to test your point of view? (Become a paid listener on Spotify or Patreon to access today’s “Action on Illustration” prompt).
Tag me on Instagram @mrtomfroese or email me your results!

TOM'S LINKS
Work: ⁠⁠tomfroese.com⁠⁠
Classes: ⁠⁠tomfroese.com/teaching⁠⁠
Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/mrtomfroese⁠⁠

📗 Pre-order Drawing Is Important: tomfroese.com/book

Brandon Campbell (known online as @brandcamp) is a professional illustrator and former designer for Comedy Central and CNN. Brandon joins me to talk about his transition from digital motion graphics back to traditional media, his family legacy in the arts, and his unique "reverse colouring book" concept in his new book, Just Add Line.

In this Episode
The Thrill of the Hunt: We start off discussing our love of thrifting and what we consider the "holy grails" of vintage finds.
A Family Tradition: What it was like growing up with an illustrator dad who drew for Time magazine and Star Wars.
Reversing the Creative Process: The ideas behind Brandon’s new book, Just Add Line, which flips the traditional coloring book on its head.
The Impact of AI: Brandon’s candid non-sugar-coated take on how AI and the current economy are shifting the landscape for professional illustrators.
Mindset Hacks for Better Work: How to trick your brain into having more fun by treating client assignments like personal projects.

Links and Resources
Brandon Campbell’s Website: https://www.brandoncampbell.tv/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandcamp/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brandcamp
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/brandcamp

Work Mentioned
Just Add Line (Rizzoli) - https://www.brandoncampbell.tv/
Birds Eat and Eat and Eat by Ed Emberley
Evelyn Ness (Illustrator)
B. Dylan Hollis (Illustrations by Brandon) - https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/742467/baking-across-america-by-b-dylan-hollis/9780744097603

Help Shape my Future Signature Course!
My big goal this year is to create my first self-hosted course for illustrators. But I can't do it without your help! Please take my 5-minute survey at the following link. As a thank-you, you'll get 20% off the full price of the course when it launches.

Signature Course Survey — ⁠Google Form Link⁠
⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScHIixGnxIA9gLl4WLXtxb4JsTfj5FjU6l1T9Sm0Cv2DjnDWQ/viewform?usp=header⁠

Tom’s Links
Work: ⁠tomfroese.com⁠
Classes: ⁠tomfroese.com/teaching⁠
Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/mrtomfroese⁠

Pre-order Drawing is Important — http://tomfroese.com/book
In this episode, I take on the "myth of artistic looseness." We often envy the "spontaneous" energy of artists like Quentin Blake, but the truth is that looking effortless requires a tone of effort. I dive into why your final illustrations feel "stiff" compared to your sketches and how to bridge that gap through what I call supervised spontaneity and confidence from competence. 

IN THIS EPISODE
• Three observations about artistic looseness
• How to build "chaos" into a repeatable process. 
• The Take-Two-ness of Glenn Gould: Why the best work happens in the studio, not live. 
• Why even pros like Sir Quentin Blake struggle with achieving looseness.
• The Exercise: A three-stage drawing challenge to help you unlock creative freedom in your drawings.
EPISODE LINKS
• Quentin Blake shares about his artistic neurosis in "How I draw" — https://quentinblake.com/about-drawing/how-i-draw
• Glenn Gould Poster (Tom Froese, for Polaris Prize) — https://www.tomfroese.com/work/polaris-music-prize-glenn-gould
• Glenn Gould's "Take-Two-Ness" — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BachTheGoldberg_Variations_(Glenn_Gould_album)

HOW TO SUPPORT
You can support Thoughts on Illustration by:
• Sharing this episode with a friend
• Leaving a comment
• Leaving a rating or review on Apple Podcasts
• Following the show / subscribing to this channel
• Becoming a paid supporter here or on Patreon — ⁠https://patreon.com/tomfroese⁠

FIND ME ELSEWHERE
• Website — https://www.tomfroese.com
• Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/mrtomfroese
• Daily Drawings — https://www.instagram.com/drawingisimportant

CREDITS
Music and cues by Mark Allan Falk — https://linktr.ee/semiathletic

DRAWING IS IMPORTANT — NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER
My new book, Drawing Is Important, is your guide to making drawing a meaningful daily habit. Through stories, insights, and exercises, it helps you draw more often—with less pressure and more joy. Available 7 April 2026 — Pre-order now! The first 500 orders get a free hand-signed book plate! Look for "get pre-order prizes" after clicking the link.
Pre-order Drawing is Important — http://tomfroese.com/book

Pre-order Drawing is Important: ⁠⁠https://geni.us/DrawingisImportant⁠

Mike Lowery is an internationally recognized picture book illustrator and author, as well as fellow teacher and daily drawer. Mike joins me to talk about the business of illustration, finding his style, the impact of AI on the illustration industry, keeping a sketchbook habit, and using social media for illustrators.

In this Episode
The business of illustration: The difference between making art for its own sake and making art that actually does something.
Finding Mike’s style: How an art director’s preference for Mike’s sketches over his “final art” style redefined his whole approach.
AI and the industry: Mike’s hesitantly-offered but well-considered assessment on AI’s impact on illustration today.
Daily Drawing Practice: Mike’s advice for keeping a sketchbook, whether on the daily or on the road.

This conversation covers some of the big shifts of 2025-2026 in the illustration industry, but also goes into super-practical, hands-on tips that will make a difference in your illustration practice today.

Links and Resources
Mike Lowry’s Website: https://www.mikelowery.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikelowrystudio 
Free E-book: Instagram for Illustrators (Scroll all the way down) — https://www.mikelowery.com/classes 
Work Mentioned: 
Random Illustrated Facts- https://www.mikelowery.com/random-illustrated-facts
No Sam series - https://www.mikelowery.com/portfolio/nosam

Help Shape my Future Signature Course!
My big goal this year is to create my first self-hosted course for illustrators. But I can't do it without your help! Please take my 5-minute survey at the following link. As a thank-you, you'll get 20% off the full price of the course when it launches.

Signature Course Survey — ⁠Google Form Link⁠ ⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScHIixGnxIA9gLl4WLXtxb4JsTfj5FjU6l1T9Sm0Cv2DjnDWQ/viewform?usp=header⁠

Tom’s Links
Work: ⁠tomfroese.com⁠
Classes: ⁠tomfroese.com/teaching⁠
Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/mrtomfroese⁠

Get your FREE Illustration Training Plan Worksheet (PDF) — https://www.tomfroese.com/freetrainingplan

"It’s a marathon, not a sprint"—but what does that actually mean for your creative career? In this episode, Tom looks back at his biggest insights from 2025 and explains why trying to "do it all" is the fastest way to stall your progress.
Using his experience as an ultramarathoner, Tom shares how to apply a training framework to your illustration practice to ensure you're building "functional strength" rather than just busy work.
The Danger of Dabbling: Why multiple professional roles create competing interests.

Training Blocks: How standard timelines help you build progressive fitness in your art.

Functional Strength: Identifying which habits support your main goal and which ones undermine it.

The Power of One: Why 2026 is the year of doing one thing exceptionally well.

[Download] FREE Illustration Training Plan Worksheet

[Read] 2025: The Year in Review (Substack)

[Listen] The One Big Shift for Social Media in 2026

I’m building a new signature course for illustrators and I need your input. Take this 5-minute survey to help me build it, and get 20% off at launch!👉 Take the Survey Here