Meet Notquiteicarus

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

NotQuiteIcarus, thank you so much for taking the time to share your lessons learned with us and we’re sure your wisdom will help many. So, one question that comes up often and that we’re hoping you can shed some light on is keeping creativity alive over long stretches – how do you keep your creativity alive?

My art is extremely important to me- having a creative outlet is absolutely necessary, especially when things are tough in other aspects of my life. I find that if I go too long without making something, I get ‘cosplayer withdrawl’ and get jittery, which is funny to me. But even still, sometimes I do get burnt out- It’s easy to when you have a lot of projects on your plate. Stepping back and working on something small and simple for a bit is a great way to keep yourself creatively active when you don’t have the energy to devote to a larger project. Running out of inspiration is also a problem I’ve faced- but my friends in the cosplay and maker community are always sure to construct these amazing things that inspire me to create more. I’ve found that every time I enter a cosplay competition, afterwards I’m always blown away by the incredible builds that won and so, so inspired and motivated to work on my own stuff. It’s all about keeping that spark going.

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

My main passion is competetive cosplay- creating the costumes themselves and entering competitions at local and out of state conventions. You should see me at most big Atlanta cons, like DragonCon, MomoCon, Anime Weekend Atlanta, ATL Comicon, etc., as well as some smaller ones around the area.

My second biggest hobby is content creation! I create mainly on TikTok and Instagram, and as of writing this have a combined audience of about 160k (which is honestly insane, it blows my mind to think about.) I mainly make cosplay skits and gaming content, and it’s an awesome little community- we have a good time. I also have a Discord server that’s basically a little space for cosplayers to share WIP photos, finished cosplays, and advice/tips, as well as just hang out and make friends who are into the same nerdy stuff. A lot of Legend of Zelda, stuff like that.

I do have several super exciting upcoming projects planned- I’m preparing to stream on Twitch in the future, which you should totally check out (subtle plug). I’m also producing and acting in a LoZ fanfilm that is currently in pre-production and planned to release sometime in 2026-2027.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Honestly, my top three would probably be:

“Eh, I can probably do that”: This gene is how I do literally everything. Sometimes you just have to give something a shot and see how it works out. Confidence and fluid creativity are key!

Having a ‘jack of all trades’ background: Before I started cosplay, I already had experience in visual art, music, acting, and many other creative areas. I was always a very hyper and very creative kid, and I’ve found it was super easy to translate those skills. If you’re looking to grow creatively, the best advice I can give is to try EVERYTHING and practice till your hands fall off.

Practice, practice, practice. The more you practice your art, the better you will be. I know it doesn’t sound fun, and you want to be good at it NOW- trust me, I understand. But it’s the only way to improve and grow.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

Absolutely! I’m definitely looking for people to work with. I want to branch out and begin doing more types of things, both online and not. Some of the people and organizations I’m looking to collaborate with are:

-Other cosplayers
-Magazines like this one
-Character companies who are looking for a Link
-Artists
-Gaming creators
-Photographers
-Gaming companies

And so many others! It’s rare that I’ll turn down a collaboration request, no matter how out there. My email is always in my Linktree.

Contact Info:

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