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PODCAST

The Good Ship Illustration

The Good Ship Illustration

Welcome to The Good Ship Illustration - the podcast for illustrators who are quietly working away in their sketchbooks thinking… “is it just me?”…it’s not just you!We’re Helen Stephens, Katie Chappell and Tania Willis - three full-time illustrators from three different corners of the industry (and three different age brackets ). We live in the same seaside town in the UK and started having cuppas and chats… and accidentally became illustration agony aunts.Now we record those chats for you! We answer

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All Episodes

26:03

Identity + rejection: when your illustration work...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/03/13

This week we're dragging ourselves away from our hypothetical gardens and custom urn businesses (lol) to have a proper sofa-chat about the big question: what would you do if you weren't an illustrator? Specifically: Is your identity too wrapped up in your work? What happens when things go quiet on the work front? COMMUNITY IS MAGIC. That is all. Happy listening. p.s. Salty Dog & Pals (Helen & Katie's new picture book) is now available to pre-order and will be in shops from...

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21:10

Instagram Is Not Your Portfolio (PHEW!)

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/03/06

This week we’re wrapped up in some blankets havin' a proper sofa-chat about Instagram. Specificallyyyy: Should your Instagram be your portfolio? What's the difference between a snazzy website folio and the mad addictive world of social media? We also get into showing your human face, illustrators following illustrators, AI-era credibility, and why you absolutely do not owe the algorithm/tech bros your nervous system. Rough timestamps for our timestamp-fans: 00:00 – Blankets ...

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29:47

🍎 Elephantasia (aphantasia) - can you see an apple in...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/02/27

This week we roll headfirst into the interestin' world of aphantasia. It all started with conversations inside Find Your Creative Voice and The Picture Book Course - when Good Shippers were telling us, “I can’t see ANYTHING in my head.” Which sent us down a rabbit hole of aphantasia, imagination. And does everyone experience it the same way? Nope. In this episode, we chat about: What aphantasia isThe “apple test” 🍎Emotional memory vs visual memoryWhy some creatives need reference and others

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33:59

Anna Mac on finding her creative voice (after years...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/02/20

Permission to play can change EVERYTHING! This week we’re chatting to Anna Mac - artist, printmaker, illustrator, product designer, sleep counsellor, mum of twins, and hardcore Good Shipper who's been sailing with us since 2020. In this episode, we talk about scenic creative routes, why permission to play can change everything, creative voice vs paying the bills, and why sometimes felting a jumper is juuuust what your brain needs. Rough timestamps for our timestamp-fans: 00:00 – Intro + cours...

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36:40

Are illustrators doomed… or is this our time to...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/02/13

Here's the audio replay from our AI workshop last week. There are slides too - the full replay with slides is available to watch HERE (but it goes away today. We're putting the workshop inside Find Your Creative Voice: Fly Your Freak Flag.) There's a PDF handout to download there too. Go grab it before it disappears! https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/aiworkshop The audio isn't perfect, but neither are we 😅 🚢 In this episode we cover: Why brands are craving human-made work more tha...

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30:38

Tara Tayyebi Fard on finding her creative voice (and...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/02/06

Pssst, while you're here... On Tuesday 10th February 2026 we're running a live workshop! https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/aiworkshop Standing out in a sea of robots: being an illustrator when AI is everywhere This workshop's perfect for you if you: Call yourself an illustrator, image-maker (or want to)Feel a bit wobbly about AI and what it means for your style and creative workWant to stand out in a sea of slop Know you're brilliant, but struggle to articulate what makes you...

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11:26

Want to know what February’s #WalkToSee prompt is?

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/01/30

Are you joining in with #WalktoSee? In this episode, we chat about how our Helen's hashtag Walk to See started, how it works, (there are basically no rules 😆), and why monthly prompts are muuch gentler on the brain/energy levels than daily prompts. In this episode: 00:00 What Walk to See is 01:30 The only “rule” 02:30 Why the format changed 03:30 How often you actually need to draw 04:30 January’s prompt 05:30 Interpreting “wet” 06:30 Why daily challenges can be a bit much 07:30

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18:32

When you want to work but can’t seem to start

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/01/23

Ahhh this ol' chestnut. You know it. We've aaall been there. You sit down...you need to work. But you get absolutely nowt done. Instead, you do absolutely everything else... then panic-work at the last minute, or just never get round to it. You're not alone! Most illustrators we speak to will have their own weird and wonderful tricks to get into work mode. In this episode, we talk about fear, procrastination, perfectionism, and all the daft (+ useful) ways we trick ourselves into starti...

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17:09

Is copying ever OK in illustration? When does...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/01/16

Let’s talk about the big hairy thing that no one really wants to talk about… copying. In this episode, we discuss inspiration, and how social media has changed things so much for illustrators. Trying on someone else’s illustration hat for too long can derail your creative career. This one’s especially for you if you’ve ever felt like someone's getting a bit toooo inspired by your work, or you've though “Ach, easy peasy. I could do that style!” (And then felt a bit weird about it.) We talk abo...

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24:49

You're invited! Plan your creative year with The Good...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2026/01/09

Sign up for the 2026 planning party HERE: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/planningparty This is a wee replay from last year (with a new intro to tell you the new dates for our planning party) ------------------- Are you raring to set goals, or are you feeling more “no plans, just let me lie down” this year? We chat about: Why some years are for sprinting, and others are for walking.The power of visual goal-setting.How to make goals human-sized, doable, and fun, witho...

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23:56

You’ll Never Feel Ready. Do It Anyway. An interview...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/12/12

What a treat of an episode! Today we’re chatting with Good Shipper and picture book author–illustrator Amber Au. Amber talks about how drawing became part of her recovery from an eating disorder and how her therapist encouraged her to send her illustration work to her first ever client. Aaand how - in two whirlwind months - she was suddenly winning awards, signing a three-book deal, and being invited to meet editors at Bologna. Whaaa!? What a blimmin' brilliant reminder to do the things. Even...

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28:15

An interview with Lisa Congdon - consistency and...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/12/05

If you're an illustrator with access to the internet and you have eyeballs, you might've seen Lisa Congdon's work. Lisa started blogging her collections and illustrations back in the good ol' days, and even remembers Instagram back when it was good. (Remember that? It was nice, wasn't it?) In this episode, Katie asks Lisa about consistency and how to keep on keepin' on when the world is the way it is. We also meander through topics like ADHD, collections, comparison, agents - whether or not s...

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38:07

How illustrator Jill Calder built a long-lasting...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/11/28

In this episode, our Tania chats with multi award-winning illustrator Jill Calder about 30+ years of illustration, and how she’s explored pretty much the entire “illustration atlas” without losing herself along the way. Stuff we cover: Staying recognisably Jill across 30+ years of illustrationMoving from editorial to corporate to heritage workBuilding a career with both illustration and hand letteringBig, bonkers corporate jobs (including handwriting as other people!)Making the leap into chil...

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21:44

How to stop your illustration style looking generic &...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/11/21

Y'know when you feel like your work is neeearly there… but it's missing a lil something-something? This podcast episode is all about that. Overcoming that. How the heck do you put more humanness into your work? 🧠 What we talk about in this one“Accomplished” isn’t the same as “alive”How generic styles can creep in without us noticingThe danger of trying to look like “a picture book illustrator”Why you need to make work that freaks you out a tiny bit 🤪The power of real memories and

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21:43

We’re good at failing (and you can be too) 🤣 the...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/11/14

This week on The Good Ship Illustration Podcast, we’re chatting all things experiments - we get particularly excited about FAILED experiments. In the words of that there Bob Ross, "we don't make mistakes, we just have happy accidents". 😆 Behind the scenes, Helen gave Tania a haircut just before we recorded this episode. Can you hear Tania's new hair? Timestamps for our timestamp fans: 00:00 – Mmmm new ideas 01:00 – Katie’s “scaling the business” experiment that didn’t work 02:0...

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17:20

What publishers reeeeally want to see in your picture...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/11/07

First, before we jump into the show notes, here's the link to sign up to the Picture Book Pitching Masterclass we've got happening soon! 🗓️ When: 17th of November at 1 pm UK time 💰 Cost: Freeeee 🚢 RSVP here: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/pbpm How do illustrators actually get their picture books published? And what really goes on at Bologna Children’s Book Fair? This episode is all about pitching, portfolios, publishers, and… how we each pronounce the word plaster? ...

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38:34

'If it looks awful, keep going. It’ll work out' - an...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/10/31

This week we’re interviewing another creative for the podcast. Hooray! Catherine Rayner is an award-winning author and illustrator based in Edinburgh, whose books have sold over two million copies and been translated into 35 languages. She’s written and illustrated 25 picture books and collaborated with legends like Julia Donaldson, Michael Morpurgo, and Michael Bond. Winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal (and shortlisted six more times!), Catherine also paints, runs a greetings card and b...

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36:09

'If you keep showing up, you can't NOT get better' -...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/10/24

We've decided to play around a bit and do some INTERVIEWS. Ooooh. First up is artist and YouTuber Sandi Hester, who recently moved from the US into a 100-year-old fixer-upper house in the UK. Katie (gently) grills Sandi about what it’s been like moving country and keeping her creative practice alive through chaos, health challenges, and renovation dust. Sandi shares how painting has become her lifeline, why perfectionism is joy’s worst enemy, and how she’s learned to quiet the “blobbity...

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41:30

A Bologna Book Fair special: 6 Good Shippers were...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/10/17

Hi there, Helen here. This is a special episode of the podcast because we had six of our Good Shippers - that’s people who’ve done our courses - selected as finalists in the Bologna Book Fair Illustrators Exhibition! Which is pretty amazing news. It’s really difficult to be a finalist because the competition is so high. Last year there were 4,374 people who entered, and only 324 were selected to be finalists. So for six of them to be Good Shippers is SO exciting. Now that the fair’s finished,...

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22:23

#WalkToSee is baaack! The hashtag responsible for...

The Good Ship Illustration ·

2025/10/10

Our Helen’s #WalkToSee hashtag on Instagram is baaaack with a new monthly prompt. After seven years of #walktosee there are now over 120,000 drawings on there and counting! In this episode, we chat about Helen’s relaunch of #WalkToSee (with new monthly prompts), drawing from life vs. photos, why small sketchbooks are weirdly hard, aaand rediscovering messy materials and carbon paper. Special guest: an enormous chunk of charcoal. If you'd like a gentle kick up the butt to do some drawing from ...

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