Sabbatical Woes
An existential crisis, lost wallet & food poisoning all in one go!
Lol, my break is going great. Thank you for asking. I am totally normal about it.
I’ll probably be fine, I assume this existential dread is probably routine for everybody taking some sort of break because of burn out. If you’re new here, I promise I’m not always this emo. I’ve just been burnt out from working on books so I’m supposed to be in my rest and relaxation era but apparently I can’t even do that??? Bleurgh…
I’ve just been watching a lot of Love Island USA and replaying Tears of the Kingdom. Rot my brain!! Let’s go!
Anyways, that’s all for now I guess.
P.S. This newsletter was inspired by Hallie Bateman’s recent hand drawn newsletters. I’ve been feeling bored of making newsletter comics on my iPad so I went to the stationery store to get some cheap supplies and paper which I used for this post. It turned out to be a fun and chill way to make something that doesn’t feel so prim and proper. Thanks Hallie!
What a clusterbiff all at once! So sorry you're going through this.
If it helps - this is totally normal to feel in burn out. I've been freelance since 2011 and also am AuDHD (so pattern recognition) and the amount of times I have seen a VERY successful and talented illustrator burn out and go through this exact thing over the years - can't even count (it has also happened to me).
I totally get it - the drive, the hunger to succeed, work takes over most other things, then you burn out... You'll find your new balance and your body will thank you for it - you're already doing amazing going to the gym and stuff! You're not a loser, you're a burnt out bb and we humans are on this earth to liiiive not just work, though it is very hard to get out of that mindset, but it either comes on its own or our body forces us to (I was hospitalised in 2020 for stress related things). Sometimes it takes more than one wake-up call haha. But - keep going, keep resting, and keep making cute comics (but only if you have capacity!) cos health and happiness really is all that matters at the end of the day :) x
I loved how your hand-drawn & collaged newsletter looked but so sorry it's been a rough go for you 😠I hope you can find some true rest and peace soon!!