More Imposter Syndrome and an Idea

I've been really thinking about moving forward with more books. I have a personal goal that I'm working toward and I'm making slow but consistent progress. When I think about who I want to be like (when I grow up? does that apply here?) it is a mix between Richard Scarry and Jackie Morris. 

Here's how: I want to be like Jackie Morris in that she seems to choose what projects to work on in ways that bring her joy. She seems to sincerely enjoy everything that she does. Each piece she shares has some kind of purpose. This applies to her personal art and to her illustrations. I like that. 

This perception has encouraged me NOT to market any skill as an illustrator or artists to authors and to close my commissions. I want to move forward with more intentional art and I want to work on projects and in a style that I enjoy. I don't want to do something because I have to do it. I want the freedom of being able to move from project to project. 

I want to be like Richard Scarry in creating a world where my little creatures come together (sometimes). 

I've been working on a story about a little hippo (named Hercule) and then began to work on a little ferret (named Finnegan) and love the way these two little individuals have really come to life. There's an entire world of these fantastic little animals out there, and I want them to come together (the Wonderful World of Wylie?) occasionally with some appearances. I've been thinking about Finnegan's story, for instance, and want Hercule in the background. If Hercule has other books maybe Finnegan - and others - will make an appearance there. 

I don't think these two goals are unrealistic. In fact, I love them. I love the idea of only picking projects I sincerely want to work on - and that might mean that they're mostly mine - and working to build a little world where my favorite small animals live. I love storytelling. I love creating tales for children. It's something that I've always wanted to do and now I am doing it. And maybe if I talk about it enough and share it enough other people will find it too.