Meet Annie Rich Thompson

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Annie Rich Thompson. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Annie Rich, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Truthfully, I still experience imposter syndrome regularly. The key is not letting it’s voice impact my efforts as an artist. That can be such a challenge! Spending more time in creative community and fellowship with other artists has helped me grow into my artistic identity and to take up space as an artist myself. I would also say that time and practice in my art forms has helped me overcome worries of being an imposter and to feel more comfortable sharing stories from what I have learned through my art journey with confidence.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I have several art forms I work in regularly, but the longest and most constant artistic pursuit in my life has always been writing. I have worked with a publisher for the first time this year, Walnut Street Publishing, to bring my poetry book “Words of a Magpie” to life, and I am very proud of it. You can find it on their website. I am currently working on a second book with an amazing poet – we are writing it together – and I am very excited about that next adventure. I am also working on a couple of fantasy fiction novels, and I have a dream of publishing them one day.
I am also a watercolor artist, and I illustrated the cover of my book. I paint mostly nature scenes and I have a master’s of entomology, so a lot of my art features insects and the small magic of the natural world.
In the last four years I have honed my photography skills and entered into the world of cosplay – which is short for costume play! I have learned to sew and make fantasy costumes that include elves, fairies, and more, along with some characters you would recognize from popular pop culture content. My amazing and creative friends and I have created photo series that tell stories and capture the magical characters we create by upcycling, sewing, and sourcing parts of our costumes. Cosplay has been one of my favorite ways to create, because one costume may require me to learn ten new skills – from painting to clay modeling to wire work to hand-beading.
Some other art forms I have enjoyed learning are embroidery, collage art, photo editing, modeling, and acrylic painting. I enjoy learning new things and trying new art forms to continue growing as an artist. The biggest hurdle I have had to overcome in my artistic journey is the dichotomy of being a scientist and an artist, and accepting that I don’t have to be just one thing – but can proudly call myself an artist and writer along with the other facets of my interests. If anything, my knowledge of the natural world has influenced my art in many wonderful ways.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

The risk of imperfection has been a huge hurdle I have had to overcome in order to grow and complete projects as an artist. One way I have combatted this is to purposely seek art forms that make you accept imperfection and pivot in it. Watercolor has been an amazing avenue for me – water color paints are hard to control, at least for me. Sometimes they appear on my paper in a different way than I planned in my head, and I have to accept it and adjust my expectations. Sometimes, the result is better than I planned! In writing, I have learned from writing panels I have attended that the most important thing is to let that perfectionism go and JUST-WRITE! Get the first draft down on paper, and go from there. I have made such progress in my writing since I accepted this! I still have a ways to go and get stuck and frustrated, but I have come a long way. I also love how accepting imperfection in art bleeds into the rest of my life in a great way.
My best work is when I decide to tell a story and share parts of myself in it, and be vulnerable. It is such a gift when others connect with what I make because they see themselves in it, or feel what I am trying to convey through photography or writing or painting. Sharing through art is such a meaningful way to connect with community and I find that when I take the risk to be vulnerable in my art that it is very often rewarding and I find growth. I still struggle very much with being vulnerable, but I hope to continue to grow more bold.
Learning to embrace the influences outside of my artistic pursuits and integrate them into my art have been great for my art and for me personally. For a long time I wrestled with whether I was an artist or a scientist, and when I learned to accept both and integrate my science and love of biology into my art, I feel like my art really benefitted and I really benefitted in general. Embracing and playing on the different parts of our lives in our art can be really beautiful.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

Throughout my life, when I am stressed, I write. I have journaled, written poetry, written down my thoughts, or escaped to imaginary places in my novels. Writing is such a healthy way to cope in hard times, and I want to journal more regularly during difficult seasons.
I also look to nature in times I feel overwhelmed. Even a five minute walk outside can calm my mind and help me carry whatever is going on in life and feel inspired. Looking up at the sky, watching tiny insects, all makes me feel connected to the world and feel that my problems are smaller than they so often feel.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @mothprincess.art @annierichthompson.art

Image Credits

Pink & Floral Photo – Self Portrait
Elf photo – Photography by Erin JB White
Mermaid Photo – Photography by Lou Ellen Hartley