Wreck This Journey -- It's Coming!

You might recall us giving away a free copy of Wreck This Journal by Keri Smith.

That contest served a purpose -- namely, to get a copy of the book into one of our reader's hot little hands, since starting July 1st, we're going to be off on a marvelous adventure called Wreck This Journey. More specifically, we're going to be vlogging our way through Keri Smith's journal project, and showcasing our favorite bits here on the blog.

But wait, there's more! We want you to be a part of this adventure, not just as silent readers, but with vlogs, pictures, and written responses of your own! We're super excited to see all the cool stuff you create, and feature it here on the blog -- but we can't do it without your help. Here's what you need to do before July 1st.

Step 1) Order Keri Smith's freaking fabulous book. You can buy Wreck This Journal from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Powell's Books, or Indie Bound -- or you can even go to your local independent bookstore and request they order it for you. They do that, you know?

Step 2) Brace yourself for the awesomeness.

Simple, right?

Ladies and Gentlemen, We Have a Winner!

To learn more about the upcoming book club, stay tuned for this Friday's post, or check out last Friday's big reveal.

#SomethingAwesome . . . IT'S HERE!!

How many of you just freaked out because you forgot to enter to win our #something awesome? Don't worry, you still have 24 hours to post #somethingawesome on our Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter to be entered for your chance to win. (Don't worry if you skip reading the rest of this post, we love free stuff too.)

Image from www.joebower.org

That said, I just can't keep a lid on our big surprise any longer -- we're starting a book club!!

No, no, hang on -- it's going to be an awesome book club. Remember Keri Smith? Starting this July, we're going to be vlogging our way through her Wreck This Journal, in a little series we're calling Wreck This Journey. And we want you to be part of it! Kadie and I will take turns posting our own video responses, but what we really want to hear is what you all think of the experience -- and we'll be featuring our favorite Art Abyss community response videos every week here on the blog :).

But first, here's just a taste of what you're getting into:



Yeah, so much love for Keri Smith. In fact, we adore Wreck This Journal so much, that we're giving away a copy of the book to one lucky reader! Wondering how to win it? Go read the start of this post again, and then get to telling us what rocks your world!

We'll be waiting . . . and stay tuned to hear if you won a copy of Wreck This Journal!! We'll announce at midnight tonight :).

The Incredible Keri Smith

WARNING: Extreme fangirling ahead.

Keri Smith. Always Awesome. (Image from kerismith.com)

If the world had a BFF, and that BFF was always trying to make the world sit up and take care of its creative spirit, well, that BFF would probably be Keri Smith.

This kickass author/illustrator/guerilla artist and generally awesome person lives in Vancouver, B.C., and has been rocking the world with her incredible books since 2005. For a complete bio, check out her site. Actually, for a whole lot of awesome, check out her site -- you'll be glad you did.

But what I want to focus on today is what she wrote to one young artist -- yes, she reads and responds to ALL of her fan mail, including the email I sent her (squeee!!!).

It's called Ecstatic Flailing, and these are the choice quotes from it that made my little heart tie itself up in knots before exploding in joy:

(BUT SERIOUSLY FOR REALS GUYS, GO READ THE WHOLE THING, AND THE COMMENTS, BECAUSE DAYUM.)

If we were sitting in the same room I would sit next to you, take your hand in mine, and look straight into your eyes and say, “I know that pressure you speak of very well. The “focus on self-promotion, competitiveness, networking and always attempting to be edgier and smarter than others at all costs”. I have felt that pressure too, still do on occasion. But here is what I know now, that I didn’t know before when I started out… Creating work out of that pressure, doing all of the things that you have been taught by others, and listening to that voice in your head that tells you you need to be better is not what will create that success you are craving. The true work, (meaning the work you are here to do), comes from a completely different place than this.

[… T]he energy that you feel when you are creating is very important and will tell you if you are on the right path. Not that there is only one path, there are many, but I am referring to doing work that fulfills you and brings you “success”, and when I say success I really mean “work that is meaningful to you”, work that is aligned with your ideals

[...] I’m not saying that you won’t have many bad days where you feel incompetent and like you are flailing like a crazy person. As Kurt Vonnegut put it so perfectly, “When I write, I feel like an armless, legless man with a crayon in his mouth.” But at times you will also feel like you are able to leap over tall buildings with great ease if you go directly into that place you spent a lot of time when you were a kid, experimenting and making messes, and playing on the floor.

[...] I hope I have not painted the picture that I have got it all figured out, because that is hardly the case. I am flailing right along with everyone else. But I now do it with as much open energy as I can muster, and I am much better at recognizing what is filling me up and what is sapping me.

You can see why I'm a fan, right? But this is the clincher for me:

[... Y]ou are beautiful, and talented and you have something to say. [...] It doesn’t matter one iota if you are unsure of what it is that you want to say just yet. The more you try to trust the process, the more you will figure it out piece by piece.

BE STILL MY FREAKING HEART. (Did you read the whole thing yet? No?? GO. READ. Now.)

Was I right about the awesomeness? Perhaps --- it certainly is #somethingawesome for me. But I bet there are some other something awesome things out there, that you might want to share. If so, I have some good news for you! There's still time to enter your #somethingawesome to win our something-secret-and-awesome -- and you have until midnight Friday to do it! Read more here, and then get to sending us the stuff that rocks your world!

Yeah, We're Marathoning Arrested Development Too

Happy AD Day from The Art Abyss!! In honor of this very special occasion, we'd like to present something from our own #somethingawesome stash -- the Bluth family in eighteenth century garb. (Those wigs!!!) We'll see you on the other side of the binge -- in the meantime, don't forget to share your own #something awesome on our Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest to enter to win free stuff!

Something Awesome This Way Comes . . .

We're going to be doing something amazing here at The Art Abyss, but I can't tell you about it quite yet. What I can tell you is that I am SO EXCITED about it -- and it's going to make this summer rock, hard.

I know, you're thinking, "Kate, cut it out -- just tell us what you'll be doing already!" But I can't -- I promised Kadie I wouldn't, and anyway, if I told you now there wouldn't be a reason for us to run a week-long contest next week where you win free stuff!!! Yes, free stuff -- and not just any kind of free stuff, tangible free stuff. Like, free stuff that comes wrapped up all pretty and delivered to your very own mailbox, with love, from Kadie and Kate. And next Friday, we're going to announce just exactly what it is we're giving away, and how it's going to help you have the best summer ever.

(DISCLAIMER: Our legal department requires that we mention that we can't actually guarantee that you'll have the best summer ever -- but we can strongly suspect it!)

But there's a catch -- the only people eligible to win this super-cool free something have to come check us out on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest first. Once you're there, post a picture or a link to something that rocks your world, with the hashtag #somethingawesome (yeah, even if it's on Facebook -- just leave it on our wall). If you're on Pinterest or Twitter, be sure to mention @theartabyss somewhere in your post. Then, sit back and enjoy. You can enter as many times as you like -- the only requirement is that each entry has to be something different. Easy enough, right?? We'll pick a winner at random from all the entries -- and announce it Friday at midnight.

So what are you waiting for? Get to work sending awesome stuff our way, and in return, get ready to receive one big ol' beautiful package courtesy of yours truly. See you on the awesome side!