Meet Mary Bellamy

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mary Bellamy a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Mary, so great to have you on the platform. There’s so much we want to ask you, but let’s start with the topic of self-care. Do you do anything for self-care and if so, do you think it’s had a meaningful impact on your effectiveness?
Work-life balance was something that I really struggled with for a long time. Growing up with a pretty intense drive to work and keep creating things I used to end up working far too hard and for too long. It resulted in a lot of burnout and frustration. While I did create a lot of work, I felt I was missing out on other things. So, I took a look at what were the things I most wanted to do and the things that didn’t really serve me. While I like creating stories, drawing graphic novels takes a really long time, months of my life, and in the end, I realized that I needed to take better care of myself.

I started eating better, resting more, and getting out of the house. It started as just walking around the block when things got stressful or I just couldn’t focus. Then I realized that the area I was living in wasn’t great for my mental health and I started to fly out of the state to get some rest and socialize with friends. I started to hike and explore the area. It was safer and I felt happier. Baking and trying new recipes was also fun. I started doing fun little crafts or projects that didn’t have any monetary gains. Other times I rested, read books, or took drives out in the country.

Self-care can look different for everyone. From therapy, to meditation, to putting up boundaries they are all helpful things. I decided to organize and purge items I didn’t really need anymore. A clean workspace is a happy one. I started to explore other things like voice acting and writing prose. Being able to step away from work might mean that I don’t make as many products or projects but I’m happier than I was when I only focused on work.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I am an artist, writer, and creator. My brand is all about creating art, graphic novels, and stories that are about embracing girls, much like myself, who don’t necessarily fit into the mainstream guidelines. I want to normalize it being OK for girls to be weird, funny, and strong. They deserve to be seen so I wanted to write positive stories about that kind of girl and inspire them to be their unique selves. I have two main graphic novel series as of now. Faux Facts – The Truth Can Be Strange! Is about a group of lovable oddballs that go through some strange supernatural hi-jinks as a result of a former friend freeing a chaotic entity while at the same time trying to hold onto their friendships. I wanted to portray friendships that aren’t always perfect and that don’t necessarily last forever and to represent the idea that it’s okay. My other series is Ah Heck!! The Angel Chronicles is about a wayward girl who finds herself in the middle of a program to save borderline souls, but in a program set in Heck where to most hope seems lost.

Outside of comics and pitching stories to studios, my artwork is my best-known form of expression. My art style is a hodgepodge of Western American styles influenced by Disney, Warner Bros, and 80’s cartoons with a dash of the Eastern anime and video game aesthetic with an indie twist. I love to draw cute, colorful characters and sometimes I make merchandise for them. My Zorilita Guardian Dolls was an exclusive San Diego Comic-Con toy line that won the third coolest indie toy awards on Syfy in 2018. That was a great moment for me.

My latest project is creating artwork for a series of tabletop games and RPG games for the My Little Pony: Adventures in Equestria games with Renegade Game Studios and covers for the IDW Publishing My Little Pony comic series. I also work as a colorist and assistant for some DC Comics projects like the upcoming Barkham Assylum and Shazaam Thundercrack! In the past, I’ve drawn thousands of sketch cards for various trading card sets with licensed properties such as Marvel, DC Comics, Steven Universe, Adventure Time, Ghostbusters, and more. I am always eager to work on new projects especially those that love bright colors, cute characters, and fun ideas.

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?
Resilience is very important. Can you bounce back from rejection after rejection? Can you handle the harsh criticism you might face? Let’s face it, while creating art can be very fun, there is a lot of rejection. Sometimes it’s because your work isn’t good enough or at the right level. You will need to be objective and look for the truth in those critiques and then do the work to level up. Other times you’re timing is off. A show was just greenlit with a similar concept your work is ahead of its time or the market crashes and your merchandise isn’t moving. Can you accept the idea that you may have to abandon an idea or go a different route? Can you come up with new ideas? Use your desire and drive to keep bouncing back.

Be open to learning new things. There will always be shifts in technology like new software or tools like digital tablets and the like. Times change and being tied to one way of doing things will limit your ability to get work. If you need to know a certain software to get a job, then it’s a good idea to learn it. All studios will have different requirements. It’s best not to lose a job because of something that can be fixed with a little extra work. If social media is required to have a presence online look into the best ways of utilizing them to advertise your work. There is always something new to learn.

The final thing is to know who you are. What are the things you value? What sort of projects align with what you believe in? Is what the job is offering worth the trade-off if it goes against what you stand for? Obviously, this will be unique for everyone but it’s worth looking into so that there isn’t any regret in the future over any decisions you might make. It can also help you navigate the waters of rejection.

Take some time and write out lists of what you want to do, the things that it takes to do them, and the paths to get there. You may find that you can’t do some things or you may have to break some items down into smaller goals. It’s also helpful to have a dry-erase board to write your goals and be able to check them off when you complete them. It can also help to take some time and meditate, journal, or talk to your peers and get their feedback as well.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
Let’s face it. One of the biggest issues a creative can face is burnout and feeling overwhelmed. In a world full of rejection, creating under pressure, a changing marketplace, and uncertain times it can be very hard to keep the drive to keep moving and creating It’s very easy to give in to pressure and feel like quitting. It’s a natural thing to find yourself coming face to face with the thought that you might not create something for a long time.

The first thing that a person needs to do is acknowledge that it’s impossible to be creative, every day and all the time. We aren’t machines and that’s ok. The next thing to do is to take a step back and analyze what you want and what you ultimately need. Is the career you’re in the right one? Is this the place you want to be? Maybe there’s a need to pivot into another field or one that runs alongside it. And of course, another important step could be to ultimately take a step back and do something else. In my case, when I can’t write or create new art I take hikes through parks and nature trails, taking photos along the way. I bake cakes, cookies, and other desserts. Sometimes I decide to completely reorganize my office and other times I customize dolls.

To further this point, it’s also a good idea to unplug from social media as much as possible as it can be a big hit to your mental health. By stepping away and doing things that have no need for perfection or competition with others I find my creative spark ends up coming back. It’s also important to know that this is different for everyone. Sometimes you might only need a week or two off others it’s far longer. There is no wrong answer. Everyone’s situation is unique, so it’s best not to compare yourself to anyone else as much as humanly possible.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
All photos and artwork are Copyright Mary Bellamy 2023

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