Fall updates and winter sales
2023 in review, some crazy happenings, and a holiday coupon.
Hello lovely subscribers, and I hope you’re having a nice December so far. I realize it’s been some months since my last update. The truth is, when the going gets tough, the Danielle retreats from social media and goes silent. Sorry about that!
Life’s hard…
The last six months were a bit rough—the last three, particularly so. None of it really has to do with my art, but all of it had a direct impact on how much art was made.
As summer kicked off, something Not Good happened at work. (I can’t elaborate.) This led to a lot of stress and worry about the future of my job and the company.
In September, this led to a decision to take a leap and transition to the new company merging with my old company—including two weeks of onsite training up in Seattle, away from my husband and cats—to keep or improve my benefits and health insurance.
The day after I made the above decision, my husband got laid off. While we know he’ll find something new, and thankfully I can carry him on my insurance, it’s been a discouraging time for us.
In November, after I got back from training, I found out my blood pressure is now sky-high (probably due to points 1-3.) I’m getting it under control but I haven’t felt my best until recently.
This is not meant as a cry for pity—just a friendly reminder to us all, to be kind to each other online and in person. Life seen through social media is heavily curated, and not one of us knows what others are going through behind that screen. We are all fighting private battles. The above are some of mine.
…so here’s a coupon.
It’s not too late to get the nerd in your life (yourself included) a little something for Christmas! Use code NERDYGIFTS to save 20% off my entire shop. A sale or two makes a big difference right now to small businesses and artists like myself.
Okay, onto the fun stuff, enough about my year. (Ugh.)
Cover story.
I was surprised and elated to have not one but TWO artworks selected for cover art! A FAULT ZONE OF MARS is the front cover of the Fall 2023 issue, 'Structure' of Consilience, a digital science/art/poetry journal. FAREWELL TO BENNU appears on the back of The Planetary Society quarterly publication, The Planetary Report, December 2023 issue. (I was so excited to get this in the mail this week! I’ve been waiting for months to talk about it.)
A fun commission!
BATTLE OF YAVIN is my most recent large piece, a commission and Christmas present—I can’t wait to hear about the recipient’s reaction! It was great to pick up my Micron ink pens again, and I have multiple more technical pieces planned, in addition to a slew of more traditional watercolor paintings. There’s a lot in store for 2024!
In the mean time, my best wishes and hopeful thoughts for a cheerful and relaxing holiday season for each of you, and thanks for hanging in through my radio silence!