Frequently Asked Questions

Can I hire you to design my project?

Sorry, no. I’m unavailable for any contract, side-project, or full-time roles for the forseeable future. I’ll post on Twitter and update this status if the situation ever changes.

Do you consider yourself a designer or developer?

Both. I find the distinction between the two fields necessary on the macro scale of our whole industry, but fairly irrelevant on the micro scale of an individual making things in the world.

I starting learning HTML at 12 because I wanted to figure out how to layout a bunch of Neopets images in a table format. Development skills have always been a necessary tool in my design process. You can’t divorce the creation from the medium.

What tools do you use to illustrate?

Primarily my brain and upper body limbs. With a little help from Procreate on an iPad Pro. I do a little color and brightness editing in Photoshop as well, but it’s a pretty minor step.

I’m betting want more information than that, so I wrote a whole post called What App is That? for you.

Do you have any resources or advice for someone who wants to get started with making illustrations?

Plenty. Have a look at the Resources page for a collection of courses, learning platforms, and books I personally recommend.

You might also want to read my essay series on Drawing Invisible Programming Concepts

That said, I no longer work as an illustrator. I spent four years working professionally in illustration (2015-2019) before moving into an art direction and product design role. I’m not a great source of advice on ‘making it’ as an illustrator, since that’s not something I want to do.

I want prints of your illustrations. Can I buy prints from you or print them myself?

You can indeed print any images you find here for your own personal use!

The image quality on the garden notes and twitter is low for printing (72dpi). But if you join my email list I send out high-quality, downloadable versions on there (300dpi – big enough to print on the side of a wall if you so desire).

I’m not fan of the carbon emissions involved in printing, storing, and shipping these from a central location. So if you want professional prints I suggest finding a local printer near you and sending them the high-res files.

How would you describe your work?

I think about this too much, but I would shelve everything I do under the banner of visual explanations. This conveniently vague term includes everything from illustrated notes and essays to interface design.

What I don’t make:

• Comics - Comics tell a narrative story over time. I mostly explain non-narrative topics and explore ideas atemporarily out of time. They share a lot of comic-like qualities though, and I’ve spent countless hours studying & stealing techniques from comic artists like Will Eisner , Nick Sousanis , and Scott McCloud .
• Infographics - Infographics have a particular aesthetic that makes my eyes bleed. While technically these do communicate information through graphics, the word infographic comes with visual baggage. And I would like to run very, very far away from it.
• Sketchnotes - If we define ‘sketchnotes’ as true sketches – unrefined, unplanned visual scribbles – my work doesn’t fit. They’re far more crafted and planned than stream-of-consciousness sketches drawn in one fell swoop.