We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mimi Gonzales a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Mimi, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
Last time we spoke, I was still working a full time job & also making/ selling art on the side like a maniac for the last 10 yrs. I hit a crossroad to find another job that would likely take up all my time again or take the plunge to finally make art a full time gig. Consulted with the hubby who would have a more steady income & I have now ended 16 years of retail to create art all day & sell at conventions & markets! We are back to living paycheck to paycheck, or rather market to market(?), sorta scraping by, being more conscious of spending, but so much better & happier now!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Everyone knows me as Mimi. I have been drawing all my life & decided to start selling my artwork 10+ yrs ago to prove a point that my art wasn’t sellable but was quickly proven very wrong. I mainly create video game, anime, & pop culture artwork through traditional means, using all sorts of media- pencil, charcoal, acrylics, watercolor, marker- there’s a lot to play with. I’ve branched out to painting tote bags and making stationary items like notepads & bookmarks with skills I learned working at a print shop. My goal in life is to create nerdy arts & crafts that people can see & use everyday. I love knowing someone is using a Metroid notepad in their office or a Pyramid Head bookmark holding a place in a textbook. When I see so many people using my tote bags at a convention, casually walking around, like no big deal- it makes my day! Just knowing my art brought some amount of joy to someone’s life is the best feeling.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
I’m not gonna lie, leaving retail & doing art full time was/is a steep learning curve. Before, I was so pressed for time to make every minute at home count- prepping multiple canvases & bags at once, to be ready for the next available time to continue a project. I had to unlearn stuffing a week’s worth of work into a day from years of multitasking. Although, the first week flew by preparing for a convention in Corpus so I didn’t notice a difference at first. With no 9-5 to stop me, I was on workaholic mode for days making new things, sleeping very minimally- zero awareness of time. After the con was when everything slowed down & started hitting me- the exhaustion of burning myself out at both ends for years, sleeping more than 5 hrs was really weird, & I had a lot of time by myself which led to overthinking & a bit of depression.
It’s been 3 months & I feel a lot more adjusted. I try (sometimes) to spread everything throughout the week, like painting backgrounds on Monday, then continuing the rest on Tuesday. My biggest problem now is that with all the time available, I am drawing nonstop! The ideas just keep coming & I gotta jot them down before I forget! I do give myself a stopping point before the kids get outta school, carry out mom duties & then may or may not continue working the rest of the day. It depends how invested I am on a piece! LOL!.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
I have followed cosplayer, Kamui Cosplay, for years. She does amazing video game costumes & tutorials & I can relate to the stories about starting her cosplays back before tutorials, youtube, & support groups were a thing of reference. Anyway, a while back she posted a story showing off the first costume she ever made (a moogle!) & the costumes she does now. She explained how she turned a hobby to a career by making a name for herself through her creations, earning money through her tutorial books (which are amazing btw!), & transitioning to being a full time cosplayer. It didn’t look easy but it was very inspiring. I had never seriously considered art as a way to support myself or my family. But seeing how seriously Kamui believed in herself to go that far hit me hard. It really got me thinking, not many people get the chance to turn what they love into a job, why waste my chance if I could actually do this? My husband has been pushing me to do this for years, so when my job started going south, I decided that was my jumping point. Even though my husband is still working, I wanted to keep up with my half of the bills & grocery shopping. I have amazing support with friends & family telling me about mini markets & mini cons around town to jump on. I’m definitely hustling, definitely anxious if I’ll make ends meet & pay for future events to continue this course, but I can honestly say I’m happily stressed on my own terms.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/mimiluvbug
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mimiluvbug1/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mimiluvbug1
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Mimiluvbug1
- Other: https://www.teepublic.com/user/mimiluvbug
Image Credits
All photos courtesy of Mimiluvbug