Happy new year!

Gorgeous, gorgeous girls survive 2025! Ladies, gentlemen, and other treasured guests, here we are on the other side.

As you may or may not know, I had a quest for 2025. After burning my candle at both ends in regards to my art career for so long with what was starting to feel like less-than-likely chances of success, I came to an ultimatum with myself at what was the most burnt-out and frustrated I had ever been:

Try as hard as I can for one more year,
and if it doesn’t work out, I pivot.

Here’s how it went! But don’t worry: this story has a happy ending.

The 10-Year Theory
(and the Year of Trying)

Chappell Roan first released a song in 2014. You don’t need to be a fan of the singer to appreciate what I’m about to tell you, but here’s the song, “Die Young,” in case you’d like to hear it.

It’s certainly very different than the pop princess’ current style, with its Tumblr-aesthetified lack of saturation and throaty sadness. However, it’s still her earliest release, posted to a now-extinct YouTube channel with the artist’s actual name instead of her now-popular stage persona.

Skip a few chapters: Roan is picked up by Universal Records, which lets her go during a pandemic, after she moves to California to start her superstar career.

The career doesn’t come.

Roan, Circa 2021, Playing a pride event for roughly 50 people in a park.

The following video shows Roan performing her final single released under UMG, “Pink Pony Club,” both in 2021 and 2024.

And here is a photo of Roan performing the same song in 2024.

Roan, 2024, singing Pink Pony Club to a crowd of roughly 100,000 at Lollapallooza.

Even if you didn’t watch the video, the contrast is clear. What happened?

Well, several things. Pink Pony Club became a Pride anthem and smash hit. Her album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, grew to popularity with hits like “Hot to Go” and “Femininominon,” (which was actually supposed to be the name of the album, but was decided to be too difficult to pronounce for laymen).

Anyway, to resist the temptation to digress any further, I’ll get to my point. Sure, there were some other factors which lead to her success, but there is one notable figure: it had been ten years.

And remember: “it takes ten years to become an overnight success.”

There are plenty of other examples of this, many of which I came across while doing the research for this newsletter! I wasn’t familiar with Nicky Reardon’s work before now, but he’s video creator who has done a series of videos about this very phenomenon on social media. This is the one about Chappell Roan, if you’d like to learn even more.

But how does this relate to me?

Copic Marker drawing, circa August 2014.

I signed up for my very first market in 2014. A craft fair at my old middle school. I was a freshman in high school at this point, and made a bunch of original drawings, cards, and bookmarks to sell. I drew double-sided illustrations of Anna and Elsa, (the new, popular Disney princesses) and had them printed and laminated at Staples.

My display was a foam tri-fold board with all my products carefully balanced on thumbtacks. I would go on to start posting drawing videos to YouTube two years later, after carefully filming, editing, and saving “practice” videos that would never see the light of day.

This year, I tabled at six events, live-drew at one, and painted one window.

Live drawing at Forward Fest 2025!

I created volunteer work for Queerlective, the adult education program at my local library, and am currently getting involved with my local community theatre group!

I got to create work for clients, organizations, and hang my work in five different locations this year, three of which have it in stock currently!

It paid off!!!

Now, granted, is this update a whole lot of puffery while I indulge in some year-end gratefulness? Perhaps. But I am truly grateful to have the opportunity to be working with such wonderful clients, who allow me to create the work I want to see in the world.

The opportunities that are reaching me now would have blown that fourteen-year-old version of me’s mind.

I am more thankful than ever that despite the difficulties of the year, I’ve made it to a period of abundance and opportunity. In some ways, it may be how you look at it that provides the skew, but I am lucky that even with all this in mind, my work reached out. It reached you.

And while the journey hasn’t been easy, what I can say is this: I am certainly glad to be here. I’m surrounded by people who support my journey and my work; who want to see me succeed. I do believe that we are all lucky in that we haven’t met all the people who will love us yet, I am very happy to report that I have met so many of mine.

Truly, if you’re here, you have supported me and my work in ways I will never truly be able to pay back. Thank you.

So, what is my point? While I’m not sure that the ten-year theory actually holds real scientific merit, I do know (pardon my French!) that us creative types to need some time to fuck around and find out. What works, what doesn’t, how to do it, how to build and audience, and to give ourselves long enough for the people who matter to actually start finding our work.

Giving people a map to us.

Thank you for taking the time to find me.

Studio Updates

We had a secret Santa at work, and I was an even secret-ier Santa because one of my coworkers had me create this illustration of her gift recipient (and her daughter). This was very fun to make!

I then created a Princess Bubblegum painting to accompany the Marceline I had done the previous week, both available now at Totally Tea and Coffee in Concord, NH through Queerlective.

Bonnibell....

I also created two new underpaintings as a part of my apprenticeship, and have started talking to a few clients about some exciting new work!

Outside the Studio

I have new work in Two Moons! For those of you who remember my Hamlet piece, I have a print of it in a gorgeous restored antique frame.

Did I remember how large said frame is before going in to hang it up?

Absolutely not. Someone please buy my giant baby so I can get my space back on this wall!

Totally Tea and Coffee, Concord NH

SHIRTS ARE IN!!!

New(I was a little excited in the store, couldn’t you tell?)

Of course my mom had to get one while we were there (I would have gotten one too, if my courtesy copy wasn’t already coming in the mail!).

These are available in person at Totally Tea in Concord or online through Queerlective, here.

Alsooo I can’t say anything quite yet BUT there are some big events in the works as well. Much to come!

Et Cetera

Sometimes we have to remember to put the multi-hyphenate in multi-hyphenate-powerhouse!!

Whether that’s trying to make someone’s experience at my day job extra special…

thank YOU!!

Deciding I DO really want to try acting…

Or reminding myself that I do know how to write a damn good essay, both here and for a cause.

I also make a delicious cheeseboard.

Something about this year feels better, but I know it’s really just me, starting from a better place this time. Feeling like you’re crazy? Burnt-out, tired of it all and willing to throw in one last push?

I hope it's not as much of an inferno as I got, but I hope that after the smoke clears, you’re as happy to be exactly where you are as I am— and just as excited to see what comes next.

As for the energy for 2026?

Let’s call it much less Hamlet/Ellen Hutter/sad girl time, much more Miss Piggy/Sharpay Evans/name another wonderfully eccentric and accomplished woman of the arts. No more being doomed by the narrative— I’m writing a happier ending :)

Yours, in sincerity as always,

Alex

(aka Alexandra Kate Art)


Further Reading/Works Cited

Chappell Roan Wiki
CNN Article on Roan’s Rise to Fame