We were lucky to catch up with Mallory Sillavan recently and have shared our conversation below.

Mallory, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I’ve always loved art ever since I was little. I always wanted to be an artist, but I wasn’t aware it was a “professional” job at the time.

My dad used to paint and I grew up looking at his work and being amazed. My mom and I always made little cute crafts together, so i’ve always been around art and creative spaces.

I was obsessed with unicorns and horses (still kind of am) and so I drew them all the time. I used to draw them with butt faces though, and one day I guess my mom got sick of the faces and sat me down in front of my unicorn poster and made me draw it better. That may sound semi harsh, but I remember I was never upset about that. I’ve always appreciated it because it helped me get a lot better and I stopped drawing horses with butt faces.

Later on in life when I was a teenager, my brother introduced me to Japanese anime. Anime kind of lit a fire in me and my art passions. I never knew you could draw for a living, so I wanted to immediately become an anime artist. I began drawing the characters from the shows I watched. I couldn’t go anywhere without paper and pencil. It’s all I did. I was known in high school as “that girl that draws all the time.” I would even draw during my classes and on notes. Drawing was just a very consistent part of my life.

When I started applying for colleges, I was told by professors that drawing anime was not a profession and I couldn’t pursue it (at least in the states). I kind of resigned and just opted for graphic designer. So I followed that career path and graduated with a BFA in digital art and design. Don’t get me wrong, I like graphic design, but it’s not my passion. It can be fun, but it’s just not the same as drawing anime characters and comics. I went through some tough times in my personal life for awhile and gave up drawing for 2-4 years or so. In that time I met my best friend and we got married not long afterwards.
I didn’t start drawing anime again until we went to our first comic con together in 2014, where he greatly encouraged me to draw at them. We didn’t know you could sell your art at comic cons. I was too insecure and said my art wasn’t good enough. He consistently encouraged me and kept kindly pushing and guiding me to consider selling my art. He helped me get my first iPad, and I started drawing so much more.

In May 2018, I finally had a number of art pieces I felt were good enough to sell. I was blown away at how much I sold and how many people loved my artwork. This inspired me to make more art and attend more comic cons as a vendor. I started with only 13 prints and now I have around 50-60. I technically sell enough to make this my full time profession, but I still currently work as a graphic designer for a company remotely and do comic cons any weekend we can!

Mallory, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have to stay disciplined with my practice and draw as often as possible. I feel drawing is all about practice and you can lose it if you don’t maintain it. I usually don’t like to draw unless I’m inspired by something: music, other art, anime, movies, video games, etc. So I can get kind of stressed when I’m not inspired and I know I need to draw, but it’s important to maintain a healthy balance so you don’t suffer from burn out.

I usually have commissions opened, and this can help when I feel stuck and don’t know what to draw. I offer commissions starting around $50 and the price can increase if it includes more than one character, if a background is needed, or depending on how detailed it is.
I sell a variety of print sizes: 11×17, 4×6, 8.5×11, and 5.5×8.5. I sell 11×17 prints in holographic as well.

It’s really inspiring when a customer gets their commission and is completely in love with what I’ve drawn for them. It never gets old. Honestly, even when I have customers buy my prints at comic cons, it’s so reassuring. Tons of people have complimented my art style during the cons, which really helps because I find myself doubting my art and its style at times.

My husband and I run my art business, MallyJanks, and we make a good team. Customer service is a critical detail and we always try our best to give great customer service. We also always do deals at cons, like buy 2 holographic prints get 2 regular prints free. This deal in particular has worked super well for us. We print everything from home aside from the holographic prints, which are sent off and printed offsite. So, if there are a lot of regular prints that need to be restocked before the next con, things can get quite busy.

One of my favorite things about what I do, is when I draw an original character or something completely made up from my own head, and a customer completely gushes over it. It’s really gratifying to have a character or something you put your whole heart into be appreciated and loved by someone else. Art is cool like that, when it inspires other people in all sorts of different ways. I’m glad I get to be a part of that.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I was 15 and entering high school my brother died in a car crash. He inspired me to draw and get into basically any geeky thing that ever existed. After losing someone so important to me so suddenly, it took its toll on me throughout the next few years. Drawing in high school got me through some of it, but when I was in college, I didn’t have as many distractions and I didn’t draw as much, and depression became this constant companion of mine. I would draw every now and then, but nothing like I was before his passing. I didn’t start to seriously pursue drawing anime again until I married my husband, like I mentioned earlier.

Honestly, since then I still often struggle with waves of depression. Sometimes they hit really hard and it’s tough for me to do anything. Some days I completely ignore my drawing time. I used to feel guilty for not drawing and sometimes I still do. I feel like if I’m not drawing, I’m not practicing or being productive. I’m wasting my time and life away. Those thought patterns pop up a lot, but I realize now it’s just something I have to sit with and keep working through. Things usually end up back on track. It’s okay to slow down and take time for yourself.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Oh yeah. I grew up with slow dial up internet, before YouTube (that makes me feel old). I would have loved to have been able to just spend my time after middle school and high school watching tutorials and learning all I can. I feel like it’s so much easier to learn and soak up information when you’re younger. That’s not to say you can’t learn as you age, but it’s a lot easier when you don’t have a full time job or adult responsibilities to get in the way of that.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mallyjanks.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mallyjanks/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/100046663851378/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/in/mallory-sillavan-3086646a
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/mallyjanks
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mallyjanks9294
• Other: TikTok — https://www.tiktok.com/@mallyjanks Hive — mallyjanks