🎁 Holiday Survival Kit, Digital Prompt Party Invitation, & a New Year Art Challenge🎄

Hellooooooo!

I just want to say, I’m so happy YOU are here with me on this creative journey! I am very thankful to be an artist and to be able to share my creative experiences. The holidays are upon us and I wanted to give you a digital gift as a token of my humble appreciation!

Plus, I have TWO FREE New Year invitations for you!

Reflecting on 2025…

This year’s final Illoguild Substack topic is “Reflecting and Looking Forward”.

Join us for a FREE LIVE ZOOM on Monday, December 15th at 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM EST for a little chat about what we’ve learned this year and goal setting.

Every year when December rolls around, the holidays take over, traditions make me nostalgic, and I start thinking about time as if it’s resetting in January. It’s as if there is a finish line for my goals this year and a start line for next year. I notice new resolutions bubbling up to give me a big dose of hope.

I think I figured it out... The magic comes from the “collective hope”. The world collectively processing the past year. I’m thinking about our big trip to Disneyland this summer, our new puppy, family milestones, art projects, mastering family recipes, and also wrestling with time. No matter how hard the year was, we celebrate holiday traditions together. Everyone in their own way, but somehow all together. Like a large quilt of grief, love, and well wishes. It’s beautiful, enchanting, and inspiring to me.

Perhaps my heart and mind are in fact re-calibrating during the holiday season.

In 2025, I made a lot of art, taught many art classes, and befriended new people. I’m proud of myself for taking on new types of jobs. For example art editing and directing roles vs. art making roles. I also started some new accountability groups. I learned that an illustration career really is a roller coaster ride with really big highs and plenty of lows. Which is why it helps having different types of creative jobs and a community that gets it.

I also tackled my fear and insecurities head on this year. I’m fascinated by my ability to self sabotage. The more I learn about it the more I understand it and I am able to move past it.

BOOKS:
Awaken Your Genius by Ozan Varol
We Need Your Art by Amie McNee
Stolen Focus by Johann Hari
Color Curious by Ana Bianchi
Let Them by Mel Robbins & Sawyer Robbins
The Mountain is You by Brianna Wiest

PODCASTS:
Good Hang with Amy Poehler

CLASSES/GROUPS:
Make Art That Sells with Lilla Rogers
The Foundry with Margo Tantau

In 2025, I learned that my fear is not something to run from or conquer. I can’t ignore it or dismiss it. It’s more helpful to say, “Oh, hello there! Let’s have a nice chat today.” It’s telling me something important and it’s actually got a really good point to make. I’m attempting to make up my own rules and move all the pieces around in this game of life. There’s no telling what number I’ll spin next. Fear wants me to know I am being a bit reckless. It would be safer just to stay where I am now then to keep moving forward into the unknown.

So, I do my best to repeat these words:

Allowing myself to be vulnerable IS really scary, BUT if I want to achieve my goals and be authentically me – being vulnerable is simply NECESSARY. If my goal is to share my heart, then I can’t do it by hiding it from view. No one is coming to discover me on their own. If my goal is to do BIG creative work, then I can’t keep myself small and hoard my art for myself. I have to shout at the top of the mountain for someone to hear me. I might suffer a thousand rejections and failures, but that’s the game you have to play, to give yourself a chance to win.

So, I know there is a lot going on in December! If you put this prompt off until the last week of the year (during dead/limbo week) that’s totally okay! I’ll send you a little reminder. :)

You’re INVITED to my digital birthday party! Best part of my birthday is that it lands on New Year’s Eve. So, let’s celebrate the old and new year together with an illustration prompt!

This is how you can participate: Draw a character (dressed for a birthday/New Year’s party), follow OntheCreativeRd on Instagram, and share online with these hashtags: #HappyBirthdayCreativeBrenda AND #NewYearsPromptParty2025

Some party ideas: Your character can be an animal, a child version of yourself, or an inanimate object. Your character could be holding a present, holding a balloon, party poppers, fireworks, or eating cake…who knows! Your character can arrive in style, have a background, or just bring themselves. You can use any style of course! It can be collage, line art, or ANYTHING. Everyone is welcome to participate, so make sure to invite all your illustration friends too. I’ll share as many as I can! Let’s have some fun and bring in the new year together :)

Join the party by posting your illustrations from Dec. 29th - 31st :)

Join me on YouTube for 30 days of art warm ups. Just a little creative play, pep talk, and a quick way to start making more art in 2026!

I’ll share more very soon, but for now….make sure to follow On The Creative Road on YouTube and on Instagram!

Download Workbook HERE