Arts
**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 your questions about confidence, tricky clients, pricing your work, creative block, picture books, publishing, and everything in between.

✨ New episodes every Friday. ✨

Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and do send us your questions!

P.s. Fancy some freebies? Head to **thegoodshipillustration.com** for colour workshops, picture book templates, and other treats.

Byeeee for now!

x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania)

🚢🚢🚢

Latest Episodes:

Tara Tayyebi Fard on finding her creative voice (and illustration career) after 10 years of being an architect Feb 06, 2026

Show notes

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 work
Want to stand out in a sea of slop
Know you're brilliant, but struggle to articulate what makes you different
Are ready to stop worrying and start being more unapologetically YOU.

Let’s get weirder, eh? 🤖

------------------------------------

OK! On with the show(notes)!

"Unfortunately, I was good at maths."
-Tara Tayyebi Fard

Tara is a Persian illustrator, humorist, architect and violinist currently based in Belgium.
She grew up reading stories, playing music, keeping a stack of diaries, and offending people by drawing them all fat.
Tara spent most of her adult life studying and working in architecture, and has been whining about it ever since. She now holds a masters degree from Amsterdam School of Art, which she happily keeps in the depths of her wardrobe.
In 2023, Tara jumped aboard the Good Ship Illustration, rediscovered her love for drawing and gradually started her career as an illustrator. Two years later, she signed with her agent, Lucie at Luddington Creative; working on picture books, doing commissions, live event illustration and making personal work.

Tara pivoted to a career in illustration after 10 years of being an architect.

In this episode, we chat to Good Shipper Tara about finding her creative voice, why being properly herself is what led to her dream clients, why being unsuccessful can be weirdly freeing, aaaaand **deep breath** how consistency and creative jealousy can be big flashing neon signs to help you figure out what you DO want to do.

Rough timestamps for our timestamp-fans:

00:00 – Intro + free workshop mention
02:00 – Architecture → illustration pivot moment
05:00 – Childhood clues + diaries + sketchbooks
08:00 – Being annoyed = excellent character research
09:00 – 60 weeks of Substack and what that builds
10:00 – Illustration loneliness vs illustration community reality
12:00 – Making work when the world feels a bit bleak
14:00 – Commission hamster wheel vs personal work
15:00 – Dream clients happen when you show your actual personality
17:00 – The “what you love / what you’re good at / what pays” overlap
19:00 – Planning for creative brains (menus > rigid schedules)
23:00 – Creative jealousy = useful information, not failure
26:00 – The regret test (8-year-old you vs 80-year-old you)
27:00 – Can illustrators make money? Also: you can be bad at any career 😌

Stuff mentioned:

Tara's Substack: https://substack.com/@tarastimeout
Tara's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tara.tekentafel
Tara's website: https://www.taratayyebifard.com/

Good Ship Illustration Monthly Numbers Tracker (freebie)
https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/numbers

Come fly your freak flag with us!
We're MEGA EXCITED to get started on a shiny new live round and shower you in brand new bonuses, including co-working every 2 weeks, and monthly live Q&A calls:

FIND YOUR CREATIVE VOICE:
https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/freakflag

Come and say hello!
✏️ @thegoodshipillustration
🌏 www.thegoodshipillustration.com
p.s. We love answering your illustration questions. Click here to submit your question for The Good Ship Illustration Podcast 🎙

Want to know what February’s #WalkToSee prompt is? Jan 30, 2026

Show notes

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 Community stuff
08:30 Being seen on Instagram
09:30 Sharing / being shared
10:30 Drawing in the rain
11:30 Drawing in the dark
13:30 Walk to See GIFs
14:30 How to get a gold star
15:30 Imperfect drawings

How to join in:
Draw something from life <-- that's the only rule!
Take a photo.
Share it on Instagram using #WalkToSeeWet to join in with February's walk to see!

Byeeee for now!
x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania) 🚢✨

When you want to work but can’t seem to start Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

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 starting anyhoo.

Rough timestamps for our timestamp-fans:
00:00 – Bribery
02:00 – Fear & perfectionism
03:00 – The 20-minute rule
04:00 – Drip drip drip
05:00 – Warming up still counts!
06:30 – Calling it “the bad version”
07:30 – Drafts & sleeping on it
08:30 – Why big projects feel terrifying
09:30 – HAVE FUN OR ELSE
11:00 – Tell the logical bit of your brain to shhhhh
12:30 – Tricks for focus that work
14:00 – You like drawing, remember? 😅
15:00 – Keeping the life in your work
16:30 – Spread yourself aboot (don't put too much pressure on one bit of work)
17:30 – Your tricks - please share what helps YOU!

We are nosy. We want to hear what helps you concentrate and get some creative work done.

Byeeee for now!
x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania) 🚢✨

Is copying ever OK in illustration? When does inspiration turn into plagiarism? 👀✏️ Jan 16, 2026

Show notes

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 about:

Why illustrators now mostly look at other illustrators for inspiration (and why that’s tricky)
How social media has changed taste, trends, and originality
The danger of trend-based work and being easily replaceable
What actually makes a personal creative voice memorable
Why copying someone’s style can feel successful… until it doesn’t
Rebecca Green, ethics
Being inspired vs copying and where that line really is
Don't sand off all of your personality!
Typos, wonkiness, we luv 'em
A human made the work
What to do if you think you’ve been copied (or fear you have)
Authenticity 4eva

Byeeee for now!
x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania) 🚢✨

You're invited! Plan your creative year with The Good Ship Illustration Jan 09, 2026

Show notes

This is a wee replay from last year (with a new intro to tell you the new dates for our planning party)

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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, without freaking yourself out.

Here's a Good Ship permission slip to do your 2026 goal-setting in a way that works for your brain/energy-levels/life.

Get your space on the 2026 planning party HERE: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com/planningparty

You’ll Never Feel Ready. Do It Anyway. An interview with Good Shipper Amber Au. Dec 12, 2025

Show notes

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 when you don't feel "ready".

In this episode we cover:

How Amber rediscovered drawing through her food diary
Why starting with your local community can snowball into big opportunities
How to survive mixed feedback
Competitions, and finding your people
Being a self-taught illustrator
Discipline, rest, and cultural expectations
Picture books, packaging, and branching out into multiple income streams
Amber's Bologna experience… including editors fangirling over her work (!)

Rough Timestamps

00:00 – Introducing Amber and her illustration journey
01:00 – Awards, exhibitions, and feeling overwhelmed
02:00 – From nutritionist → illustrator → private tutor → illustrator again
03:00 – Using a food diary as a creative lifeline
04:00 – Getting encouraged to approach her first client
05:00 – Community, grassroots beginnings, and early work in Hong Kong
06:00 – Entering competitions and the door-opening magic that followed
07:00 – The leap from self-taught to picture book maker
08:00 – Finding a clear voice without formal training
09:00 – Discipline, rest, and the cultural pressure to always “do more”
10:00 – Blue Tomato beginnings
11:00 – Mixed reviews, conflicting opinions, and staying true to your vision
13:00 – Bologna meetings and signing with Little Tiger
15:00 – Knowing which advice is actually useful
17:00 – Copying as learning vs developing your own voice
18:00 – Style influences: Hong Kong comics, European picture books, texture, mark-making
19:00 – Procreate, iPad life, and her work habits
20:00 – Diversifying income: packaging, food illustration, prints
21:00 – New opportunities, restaurants, markets, and thinking strategically
22:00 – Picture books, nonfiction, and future plans
23:00 – Final encouragement: “You’ll never feel ready. Do it anyway.”

Links & things mentioned

Amber’s blog: The Pencil Bakery
Bologna Children’s Book Fair (We're going to be there in 2026 - we've booked a stand! Come and say hello if you're visiting Bologna.)
Inkling Agency
Little Tiger Press
Blue Tomato (Amber’s upcoming book)

p.s. We have a little rest at this time of year, so the podcast is having a rest too. We'll be back in January! 🎁

An interview with Lisa Congdon - consistency and finding your creative voice Dec 05, 2025

Show notes

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 she has one - and last but not least, daily projects that change everythinggg.

In this episode we cover:

Ceramic mushroom collection 👀
The “messy middle” bit of being an illustrator
How consistency has served her well
Surviving financially in the early years
Why not being a perfectionist was her secret super power
Instagram in 2025
How to know when to work with an agent
The magical domino effect of following excitement
Squishing comparison and staying in your own lane

Very rough timestamps in case you want to skip to a certain bit

00:00 – Welcoming Lisa! How a decade of calendars sparked the consistency conversation
01:00 – Hyperfocus, collecting tigers, cycling five times a week, and going “all in”
02:30 – Early days: Etsy, commissions, pet portraits, and figuring out a style
04:00 – Most illustrators quit
05:30 – ADHD, Capricorn energy, and learning to be organised
07:00 – Posting imperfect work online and why it mattered
08:30 – Sharing finances, getting an agent, and diversifying income streams
10:00 – “A Collection A Day” and the power of daily projects
11:00 – Agents: when they help, when they don’t, and how pricing works
13:00 – The hardest job she’s ever done and how her agent stepped in
14:00 – Instagram then vs. Instagram now
16:00 – Why video doesn’t light her up
18:00 – The comparison trap (yes, even Lisa feels it!)
20:00 – Following your gut over the algorithm
21:00 – The daily project that led to a bestselling book
24:00 – Chronicle Books, chance encounters, and the magic of just...showing up!?
26:00 – The domino effect of doing what excites you
27:00 – Human Design chat 👀
28:00 – Byeee Lisa

Links for this episode:

Lisa Congdon: https://lisacongdon.com
Lisa's Books: https://www.chroniclebooks.com
Follow Lisa on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisacongdon

How illustrator Jill Calder built a long-lasting creative career (without losing her voice) Nov 28, 2025

Show notes

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 illustration
Moving from editorial to corporate to heritage work
Building a career with both illustration and hand lettering
Big, bonkers corporate jobs (including handwriting as other people!)
Making the leap into children’s books later in her career
The reality of nonfiction vs fiction picture books (time, fees, and headspace)
Colour palettes, maps and Google Earth “walks” for picture atlases
Working with Jackie Kay on Coorie Doon and handling deeply emotional text
Bringing wild, playful colour to I Love You Every Color
Keeping energy and looseness in final artwork
What Jill’s working on now – including a brand new picture book with Gecko Press

Rough Timestamps

00:00 – Tania introduces Jill and why she’s a Good Ship favourite
02:30 – Early days: art school, editorial work and the 90s newspaper scene
05:00 – “By chance, someone took a risk on me…” – moving into design & corporate jobs
07:30 – Becoming “the handwriting person”
11:30 – The wildest job ever
15:00 – Champagne, iPads and the very fancy side of ad agency work
16:30 – Exhibition days, analogue work and why looseness matters
18:00 – Stumbling into children’s nonfiction with Robert the Bruce
21:00 – Picture atlases, strict colour palettes and Google Earth walks
22:30 – Nonfiction vs fiction picture books – fees, length and workload
26:00 – Collaborating with Jackie Kay on Coorie Doon and illustrating big feelings
29:30 – I Love You Every Colour – an illustrator’s dream text
31:30 – Two very different books in one year: soft dreamland vs riot of colour
33:30 – Handling emotion, light and character across spreads
34:30 – New project: Cass and the Beast for Gecko Press
35:30 – Keeping rough energy in final artwork (and managing the stress of it!)
37:00 – Where Jill pops up inside Good Ship courses and Facebook groups

Stuff we mentioned

Jill Calder – illustration, lettering and books
Find Your Creative Voice – Fly Your Freak Flag (Good Ship course)
The Picture Book Course (Good Ship course)
Robert the Bruce – nonfiction picture book
Coorie Doon – written by Jackie Kay, illustrated by Jill Calder
I Love You Every Colour – written by Carolyn Rose, illustrated by Jill Calder
Upcoming: Cass and the Beast – written by Clare Mabey, illustrated by Jill Calder (Gecko Press)

Byeeee for now!

x The Good Ship Illustration (Helen, Katie & Tania)

How to stop your illustration style looking generic & blah Nov 21, 2025

Show notes

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 noticing
The 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 emotions
Ideas that stick: why some stories stay with us
How character, tension, and contradiction shape good storytelling
Letting your real obsessions lead the way 🐌
Yessss, research in bookshops is absolutely definitely part of the job

🕰️ Timestamps

00:00 – Aaccomplished work with no heart
01:00 – “Picture book style” stereotypes and why they’re dangerous
02:00 – Generic vs personal: how to tell the difference
03:00 – Making work that stops an art director mid-scroll
04:00 – Emotion in drawings (and penguins)
05:00 – True stories - using your real life
06:00 – The Nissen Hut
07:30 – Sticky ideas
09:00 – Plots built on tiny universal moments
10:00 – A “Smile in the Mind”
11:00 – Writing craft: thesis / antithesis / synthesis
13:00 – Character dynamics and why Bernard is… Bernard 🦆
14:00 – Films to study (hello, Groundhog Day)
15:00 – How Helen learned to write
16:00 – Why sitting in a bookshop absolutely counts as work
17:00 – Picture books now vs the 90s
18:00 – Jill Calder, Libby VanderPloeg, and holding onto your voice
20:00 – Don’t perform
21:00 – Honesty wins

🔗 Stuff & People Wot We Mentioned

A Smile in the Mind - Tania's design book recommendation by Beryl McAlhone & David Stuart
Made to Stick (the kidney-harvesting myth book Katie mentioned!) - Chip & Dan Heath
Groundhog Day - film
Jill Calder: https://jillcalder.com
Libby VanderPloeg: https://libbyvanderploeg.com
Emily Howorth-Booth’s writing workshops that Helen loves
Good Ship Illustration courses: https://www.thegoodshipillustration.com

We’re good at failing (and you can be too) 🤣 the power of experiments Nov 14, 2025

Show notes

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
02:00 – Undoing things that aren’t fun anymore
03:00 – Helen’s new plan
05:00 – Tania’s in the boot of the car
06:00 – Helen’s failed online school visits experiment
08:00 – Moving from digital art back to paper
09:00 – Helen’s Substack paywall experiment (inspired by Blindboy)
12:00 – The birth of The Good Ship Illustration 🚢
13:00 – Haircuts
14:00 – Art Club’s accidental success
15:00 – Why experiments matter (and how to run one properly)
18:00 – Creative defiance and why being told what to do ruins everything 😂
20:00 – From accidental experiments to a whole career

Links & Stuff We Mentioned: