My name is Rune Spaans, and I am a 33 years old graphic artist from Norway. I was born and grew up in northern Norway, in the very small town of Brønnøysund. I now live in Oslo together with my beautiful Cecilie. I have been drawing for as long as I can remember. I began doing some very crude computer graphics when our family bought a Commodore 64 in 1985. Some years later we got an Amiga, and later on a PC. By that time I was also doing 3D graphics. Some of my illustration work caught the attention of a computer games company in Oslo. And in 1994 I decided to move into the 'big' city to make a living for myself. And that's where I've been till now. When I'm not sitting in front of the computer screen, I try to spend time with my friends. I don't eat fish. Here is a small list of tips on inspiration that I want to share with you. Most of these could be filed under "common sense" and should be very obvious, but I think these things can never be repeated enough. I hope they can be useful to you.
Claim ownership to your work.
Nothing can ruin your inspiration more than being a drone, without any creative input in the work you do. It's important that you get to inject some of your ideas and thoughts in your work. And it follows, if you are the creative supervisor or director, it's important that you let people working under you make their own decisions. Using micro-management is acting over-protective, in a very demeaning and seemingly neurotic way. Even though they may not always be the best decisions, at least they are your own. By knowing that you are actually making a difference, you will grow creatively, and as a result stay inspired.
Don't sit up late nights fighting problems.
Too many late nights struggling with some drawing detail, render bug or other problem is destructive. Leave early, get some time away from the screen. Then your mind will be more relaxed and better suited to solve whatever you're up against. Too many late nights banging your head against problems will eat you up inside out. If this means losing a deadline or milestone, so be it. There's more to life than milestones. It's more important that you have energy to work, than for you to reach every single deadline.
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