When My Works Don’t Feel Like ‘Me’ Anymore

I started drawing during the pandemic. What I didn't expect was how deeply I would fall in love with it. Pretty quickly, places and cities became my biggest inspiration. 

Ironically, once I started living a nomadic life, constantly moving from place to place, something shifted. I thought being surrounded by all these beautiful, real-life places would pour right into my work, but instead, I could hardly draw. I felt off, disconnected. Projects became harder to finish. I couldn't quite jump into anything with the same excitement as before.

At first, I blamed the lifestyle. Too much movement, not enough quiet. But eventually, I realized it wasn't the travel—it was me. Or rather, it was my creative voice, trying to grow into something new.

The style I had been using—the one that helped me fall in love with illustration in the first place no longer felt like mine. It was like wearing a version of myself that no longer fit. And I hadn't yet figured out what the next version looked like.

This is something we don't talk about enough as creative people: the stage and stucked time in-between. The slow, quiet space between the old style and the one that's still taking shape. It's uncomfortable, even painful at times. But it's also normal. Our work evolves because we evolve.

Once I stopped fighting it and allowed myself to explore again, without pressure or expectations, I started feeling that spark return. New colors, new forms, and new directions began to emerge. It wasn't instant, and it's still ongoing, but now I understand that what I thought was being "stuck" was just the beginning of creative growth.

So if you're in a place where your work doesn't feel like "you" anymore, don't panic. It might just be your voice, asking for more room to grow.

" I will repeat. So if you're in a place where your work doesn't feel like "you" anymore, don't panic. It might just be your voice, asking for more room to grow."

Adlaheid