5 Productivity Hacks to - Draw Digitally on a Regular Basis

Developing your skills as a digital artist can be a challenging task. Juggling work, commissions, and university is often exhausting, leaving you with little or no time for your digital drawing practice. There are times when reaching your goals is more unfeasible than traveling to Pluto and back at the speed of light, but hey! All frontiers are challenged with a bit of determination and proper tools.

1. Grow Your Practice With Habit Trackers

Digital drawing is all about habit. You will progress faster as an artist if you turn your practice into a regular activity. You may squint at the thought of squeezing your creativity into a calendar slot, but it is a vital step towards making your progress a real thing. This is where productivity apps may come in handy. Since most of us are smartphone users (iOS or Android-based), it is easy to find an app that will let you stay on top of the commitments you made to yourself without taking away all the fun. The one that works for me is Habit Tracker (iOS), as it offers a clear layout and sound notifications reminding me of the practices I need to maintain. On top of that, I am able to track my progress and determine my efficiency.

2. Get Yourself a Paper Planner

If a slightly rough paper texture is what keeps you grounded, opt for a diary/planner that will keep your schedule in check. However, finding a proper one is crucial for your development: its aesthetics and practical layout need to match with your personality, and, with the abundant choices book stores offer you, it can be a daunting task. Buying a diary/planner “for looks only” is counterproductive as you would not dare defile it with your ugly handwriting ; so is acquiring one with an over-complicated or uninspiring layout. Therefore, make sure that a diary/planner of your choice has a proper balance of aesthetics and usability — being a tool that helps you fulfill your goals instead of being a burden that will further discourage you from your practice.

3. Take Your Sketchbook (and Use It) Everywhere

Do you spend a lot of time on a train or a bus? Having a pocket-size sketchbook may become a blessing in this situation. Usually boring and unproductive, a 40-minute commute to work or school may be turned into a creative studio time. A cheap Kmart sketchbook and a few drawing tools will do the trick! You will have a perfect opportunity to practice poses, sketches and even draw some imaginary creatures modeled on your fellow commuters. Drawing regularly in your sketchbook will give you a chance to make a few doodles with some non-digital tools allowing you to practice with a different medium altogether! And guess what? Thanks to your sketches you will be able to trace your progress more effectively and, in some cases, find inspiration for your digital works!

4. Take Time For Time Off

Creativity, no matter the medium, can be draining. Spending a lot of time in front of the monitor just to get the colors right will be taxing on your eyes, shoulders, spine, etc. A few aches in your neck or those persistent wrist problems will tell you it’s not just mundane physio babble. Although periods of uninterrupted work are essential for your progress, it is equally important to wind down and relax your stiff muscles. To do this effectively, you can use a Pomodoro Technique. A combination of work slots and break times (e.g. 60 minutes of work followed by 15 minutes of break), Pomodoro will give rhythm to your work while helping you regain some of your lost energy. Apart from obvious health benefits, your practice will get a proper structure giving you the blissful feeling of staying in control of your time and progress.

Pomodoro apps I find helpful are:

• Pomofocus (available via a browser)
• Yet Another Pomodoro Application -YAPA — for Windows users
• Pomodoro — Focus Timer (iOS)

5. Find an Online School With an Active Community

Conjuring epic characters and mind-blowing environments out of your stylus is a dream of many aspiring artists. At the same time, finding that inner drive to pursue it on your own is, at times, challenging if not completely insurmountable. If you feel you cannot progress effectively in isolation, signing up for a budget-friendly online course can be a U-turn in your development. The best comprehensive (and beginner-friendly) courses I took in the past have been released by Paintable.cc, Evenant or Character Art School. Not only did I find their content informative, but their student communities are also quite encouraging and highly motivating. If you crave direct mentor support while still learning in a virtual space, consider an online school, such as CG Spectrum which offers an array of courses aimed at developing skills in the fields of concept art, animation and VFX. On top of that, you will become a member of their thriving student community that will help you perfect your craft in the direction you ultimately want to follow.

Further reading:

10 Tips for Artists to Increase Their Productivity

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