Podcast Summary: The Good Ship Illustration

Episode: "Nice Illustrator Loneliness & Working from Home"

Date: September 12, 2025
Hosts: Helen Stephens, Katie Chappell, Tania Willis

Episode Overview

This episode delves into a core issue for illustrators: feelings of loneliness and isolation that come with working from home. The Good Ship Illustration hosts—Helen, Katie, and Tania—share their personal experiences in navigating solitude, weighing the pros and cons of creative solitude versus studio camaraderie, and highlight strategies illustrators can use to cultivate connection, whether in-person or online. Listener questions inspire candid conversation and practical wisdom, peppered with humor and warmth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Reality of Solo Work

• Loneliness as an Inevitable Companion
  • Illustrators often work alone, which can feel markedly different from other professions.
  • Studio environments with friends are envied but can come with their own challenges.
  • Helen shares a personal story:

    "I spent 25 years in Hong Kong working in a corridor on my own on an island, and there were no other illustrators around. And I was so lonely that I think that was one of the major reasons to move back, just to be in a world with other people..."
    [00:59]

2. Community and Collaboration

• Finding the Right Community

  • The importance of community, even if sporadic—regular chats and occasional meet-ups can be enough.
  • Tania notes:

    "Community is really important. I really like working from home... but I would go mad if I didn't do other stuff."
    [01:23]

• The Perils and Perks of Shared Studios

  • Many have tried and struggled with shared studios due to distractions and need for privacy.
  • Tensions can arise, even with loved ones (e.g., Tania and her partner Jerry needing separate studios after years of sharing):

    "We just get together to eat. We get together to go for walks, but we're working separately. And it. Oh, it's so much better, I think."
    [02:56]

3. Solitude vs Socializing

• Balancing Solitude and Connection

  • All three hosts agree that the need for solitary creative time is real, but balanced by intentional social interactions.
  • Katie observes:

    "In my mind, I'm like, oh, it's a bit lonely. It'd be nice to be working in the same place as other people. But... I felt really self-conscious. I don't even know why... I felt like my energy wasn't right because it was all wiggly..."
    [04:28]

• Customizing the Workspace

  • Private workflows and the importance of a closing door, both literally and figuratively, for focus and comfort.
  • Tanya jokes:

    "Maybe having a door that closes is the key. Yeah."
    [06:01]

• Tricks to Separate Work from Home

  • Putting everything needed for work in the studio to avoid blurring lines.
  • Katie:

    "Yeah, I've got a big computer at studio and I used to be naughty and bring my iPad home sometimes. Well sometimes I do if I've got a job on and I don't want to go to the studio."
    [10:05]

4. Online Connections — A Double-Edged Sword

• Social Media as a Virtual Water Cooler

  • Instagram and similar platforms can provide community but may feel hollow at times.
  • Katie:

    "Online communities like Instagram, I feel like it's my water cooler... But I think sometimes, because it's weird, you think you're getting community and having a good time, but then afterwards you actually haven't."
    [11:08]

• Forming Real-Life Connections from Online Groups

  • Online leads to offline: Sketch groups, regular Zooms, and illustration challenges help build tangible connections.
  • Helen notes:

    "...all that time that you invest in online, building a kind of online connection, it really does pay off... Even if you only drop the odd question into an Instagram feed, you are ultimately connected with them.”
    [12:43]

• Local Meetups and Sub-Groups

  • The Good Ship's Facebook group has spawned regional meetups and special interest groups, showing the potential for fostering community online and offline.
    [13:15]

5. The Uniqueness of the Illustrator’s Social Life

• “Nice” Loneliness and Selective Socialization

  • The hosts differentiate between negative loneliness and the positive, freeing solitude that creative work can offer, punctuated by chosen social interactions.
  • Katie:

    "Like, it is lonely, but it's nice lonely. And then you get to meet people in between and it's not lonely."
    [16:49]

• Why Some Never Adjust to Group Studios

  • Individual temperament plays a huge role; some never adapt to large, bustling studios, even when young.
  • Tanya:

    "I was no good at that when I was young. Really bad. Couldn't do it."
    [21:10]

6. Communication with Clients and Creative Relationships

• The Role of Zoom and Face-to-Face Connection

  • Video calls humanize collaborators and alleviate the isolation of solely email-based exchanges.

  • Helen:

    "If all clients began projects with a zoom and you're like, oh, they are a real person, not just a name on an email, that would make projects better."
    [17:04]

  • Tanya echoes:

    "I really like going to see the publisher at the beginning of a project, then having some zoom calls as it's going along, chatting on WhatsApp, sending pictures of the dogs... I think I'd find it very difficult working from home if the brief came by email and the changes. And it would be really hard."
    [17:42]

• The Danger of Misinterpreting Written Communication

  • Working alone can lead to negative interpretations of brief, neutral, or critical feedback.

  • Katie advises:

    "Assume positive intent."
    [19:50]

  • Tanya expands:

    "Basically your whole life is just the stories you tell yourself about what's happening around you. And that blew my mind because, like the facts are always very boring..."
    [20:24]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Helen: "If this is what it takes to be with other people, I don't think I want it because, A, I can't draw cartoons... So anyway, he called me in and said, come and work in the offices for three months while we redesign the newspapers... But the moment I got there, I could not work with other people present."
  [03:06]

• Tanya: "I just felt as if I was being really... not. My hairdryer would be really noisy for a minute or two and then I'd turn it off and people would chat in. And if one person made a cup of tea, they'd ask everybody else if they wanted before you knew it was a chat. I just couldn't do it."
  [05:33]

• Katie: "It's definitely. Be careful what you wish for, though. Because I was like, oh, I hired an assistant last year and she was local... But I just realized it was just. It was a studio thing again. Like, somebody's in my space. I can't get anything done."
  [14:44]

• Helen: "The answer to studios is just get one with a door."
  [20:59]

• Katie (on client emails): "They're just saying like, hi there, these things need change. And you're like, hi there, these things need change because you are a terrible illustrator. And I hate everything you ever draw..."
  [19:23]

Important Timestamps

• 00:49 — Listener question: How to deal with loneliness working from home
• 02:56 — Decision to separate workspaces at home for the sake of sanity and relationship
• 04:28 — Shared studios and the challenge of working with others in proximity
• 11:08 — The online “water cooler” — pros and cons of online illustrator communities
• 13:26 — Emergence of local and online illustration meetups via Good Ship community
• 17:04 — The power of Zoom for mitigating isolation with clients
• 19:50 — "Assume positive intent" as a mantra for remote communication
• 20:59 — The consensus: studios with doors suit the need for both privacy and proximity to others

Tone & Atmosphere

Witty, warm, honest, and occasionally irreverent, the hosts speak candidly about their struggles and joys, punctuating their advice with personal anecdotes and laughter. Their camaraderie shines, illustrating how even industry veterans wrestle with the balance between independence and connection.

Summary Takeaways

• Loneliness is common among home-working illustrators, but can also be enjoyed as positive solitude.
• Deliberate social connection—online or offline—matters, but not all forms are created equal.
• Personal work habits should guide workspace choices: privacy, flexibility, and selective socializing trump trends.
• Online communities help but can also leave one feeling emotionally undernourished unless action leads to real connection.
• Communication with clients and colleagues is richer with face-to-face (even virtual) interaction.
• Assume positive intent in correspondence to avoid misreading feedback and spiraling into self-doubt.
• Ultimately, there’s no single answer—the key is knowing yourself, your needs, and what setup lets your creativity flourish.

For illustrators: You are not alone in your solitude. Find (or create) the touchpoints that make your process both productive and fulfilling—whether that’s a studio with a door, a DM on Instagram, or walking the dog and chatting with the neighbor.