September 22, 2020

A team that sits together, ships together

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from building software it’s that the designers and engineers need to sit together. They need to talk together, design together, build together, test together, iterate together. In every software project I’ve ever worked on, when this happens, so does magic. The work is more creative, more efficient, more beautiful to look at, and it works better. Unless designers and engineers are in direct contact with one another, every day, for the life of the project, the output will never be as good as it can be.

Turns out it’s true for co-creators of picture books, too.

Other observations
September 29, 2026

I feel like drawing flowers

When you feel like drawing flowers, but someone will pay you to draw monkeys, what comes first?

September 8, 2026

No shortcuts

You may be able to find a tool or technique to make a process or drawing more efficient. A digital camera show the photographer the result of their work quicker than a film camera, but it doesn’t make the photo better or the photographer more competent. One still needs to understand tone, colour and composition… Continue reading No shortcuts

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