Announcement! Rachael's Corner 🎨✍🏻📚🌈☕️

My new monthly newsletter

Hello my wonderful readers! If you’ve been following along with my writing on Substack so far, you’ll know that I’ve got into a bit of a rhythm of posting two pieces of writing per month. One article shares raw—sometimes personal— writing that focuses on my life and work experiences, whilst the other is usually an informative, paid piece which shares behind the scenes work from past illustration projects, including valuable insights from my time working as a professional children’s book illustrator so far. I hope you’ve been thoroughly enjoying it all! It’s been extremely cathartic and rewarding for me personally, and I feel as though I’ve jumped over a huge hurdle in pushing myself out of my comfort zone. So much so, that I now feel like I can confidently call myself a writer (gasp!). And I have the 220+ people who have subscribed to The Art of Being Real to thank for helping me believe that my writing is really worth something. Yes, that includes YOU who are reading this right now! I really do appreciate every single one of you. It’s seemingly proof that self-belief, and a little bit of belief from others, can take you to truly wonderful places.

The more I’ve been writing, the more I’ve been wanting to share all about the ins and outs of what I actually get up to on a monthly basis. Sometimes it can be hard to share client work when it all has to be hush-hush until cover reveals and publication day, but life has recently shifted for me. This has allowed me to produce work for myself again, and I feel like I’ve finally found inspiration for my own creativity for the first time in forever. To be honest, I’m super eager to share it with you! This would also include fun titbits about the things I’ve loved doing throughout my month, perhaps any delicious food I’ve come across, music and podcasts I’ve been listening to, nature scenes I’ve come across, things I’ve been inspired by… and of course, books I’ve been reading! I plan for my newsletter writing to be more cosy, wholesome and even more personable.

‘Rachael’s Corner’ will aim to go live on the 1st of each month, and will share reflections on the previous month, including hopes and plans for the weeks ahead. For now, I will be replacing this with my usual free post in order to manage the writing workload. However, I still have a-million-and-one topics that I’m dying to write about, so if I ever get the chance, I’ll try to squeeze in an extra free post every so often.

My publication The Art of Being Real is all about honesty, and life can get super stacked up with balancing deadlines, personal projects, part time jobs, side hustles, wet laundry sitting in the washing machine… you know how it goes. So, I am committed to doing my absolute best to provide you with written content on the dates I’ve mentioned. However! Like most creatives online, I am currently a one-man-band (wouldn’t it be super cool to have your own team?! Future goals!) and there may be occasions where life gets on top of me, so I’m eager to be really transparent and disclaim that I may not always hit those dates bang on. What I can promise, is that I’ll always let you know about it if I’m behind, and when you can expect my next post to go live. Does that sound like a good deal to you? I hope so! Keep following my Substack page, or get more ‘instant’ updates by following my Instagram page. That’s where lots of the good stuff happens, and it’s where the brand of Rachael Dean all began! I love a good chat too, so don’t be shy if you’d like to reach out about anything! My friends will tell you I’m quite the gabber.

Instagram: @rachaeldeanillustration

I’m so excited for this ever-so-slight shift in my publication— truly combining my illustration, my daily life, and my love for writing all in one article. I’m sure I’ll learn even more things about myself along the way, and hopefully it’ll connect me with even more people here on substack! Please never hesitate to reach out, leave a comment, or simply just ‘like’ anything you enjoy reading over here. Every little interaction paves a beautiful road to a more connected community. One that I’m eager to grow and keep getting to know better if I can!

Thank you for reading this announcement, for your incredible support, and for allowing me to invite you into my cosy and creative little world. Sending love and hugs to you all (or just a friendly smile for those who aren’t huggers!) Keep an eye out for my very first newsletter landing in your inbox this Saturday at 8:00 AM! Ciao for now! ♥️

Yours,
Rachael x