Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy

Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy

Share this post

Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy
Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy
024: How I got my first book deal
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

024: How I got my first book deal

Short answer: I don’t know.

Adam Ming's avatar
Adam Ming
Dec 12, 2022
∙ Paid
19

Share this post

Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy
Ten Minute Artist - Daily Creative Joy
024: How I got my first book deal
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
1
1
Share

📝 How I got my first book deal.

There are two ways to get a book deal as an illustrator.

  1. You think of something and you try to sell it to a publisher.

  2. You be findable, and let them find you.

I’m currently working on the first option in my free time. But before I broke in I worked on option two. Because it is a system rather than a goal approach. I.e it is fully in my capacity to become findable, but it’s dependant on someone else to buy my idea.

Here’s a list of things I did to become findable, and I know that every one of them contributed to getting an email out of the blue one April evening (Morning in London) asking me if I wanted to illustrate a book.

What I did in chronological order.

  1. I became convinced that the best thing I could do with my particular set of skills was to be an illustrator.

  2. I wrote this affirmation 15 times a day; “I Adam Ming am a world-famous cartoonist and illustrator”.

  3. I studied how illustrators spend their days and started adopting their practices immediately.

  4. I took multiple professional courses in illustration, even though I graduated from art school a decade before.

  5. I got Adamming.com and put up my best illustrations. I had 10 pieces

  6. My social bios read: “Knocking on the door of the illustration industry, somebody let me in”

  7. I put work out on social media almost daily and connected with the community of cartoonists and illustrators.

  8. I ‘attended’, virtual comic con, and attended panels related to kids’ comics and illustration.

  9. I sent work out to Agents and Art Directors.

  10. I used the feedback to guide my next steps.

Taking this route took 18 months from intention to signing my first book deal. I cannot imagine a quicker path considering I did not have a portfolio at the time I decided to become an illustrator. I had decided to pursue this course for 10 years regardless of the outcome. I’m grateful that the outcome is now illustrating every day for top publishers.


Subscribe, for an expanded version of the points above…

This post is for paid subscribers

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Adam Ming
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share

Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More