Nathan Taylor meeting other Illustrators of the Future winners

"I'm not quite sure what I expected when I got off the plane, but what I found was beyond my highest hopes. I met eleven of the finest artists I have ever known, and they became some of the best friends I've ever had. From the time I got into the airport shuttle with two other contest winners, I felt like I had just been reunited with a lost family.

All of us instantly bonded after knowing each other for only minutes, and that's something that completely blew me away. It wasn't because I'm generally a reclusive person (I'm not), but rather because I don't have any friends who live and breathe art the way I do. So, when I sat down with the other illustrators and we all automatically fell into conversations about inking techniques, preferred mediums, and favorite tools, it's little wonder why I was bouncing with energy all week. The friendships we made were carved out of stone, and my life is so much fuller for it.

The main thing I was hoping to get out of the workshop was insider information on the book illustration industry, and I was astounded by how much knowledge they gave us. Ron and Val Lindahn and Stephen Hickman told us stories from their personal experiences, told us the processes of applying for jobs and how to handle (or be handled) by art directors, and answered all the questions we threw at them with ease. Their intent was to make us a family by the end of the workshops, and we were.

Contest judges Stephen Hickman, Ron Lindahn and Val Lakey Lindahn led the week-long Illustrators of the Future workshop

Contest judges lecturing and reviewing the art portfolios of the winners

What I didn't expect to get out of the workshops was something that I had been lacking for some time: motivation. For the longest time, I've been treading water, artistically, simply drawing and not moving forward to a goal of any sort. On the first day of workshops, Ron quoted Frank Kelly Freas who said, "If you can do anything else besides being an artist, do it." And for the first time in my life, I thought seriously about putting my art on the back burner and focusing on a more stable career as a print-shop owner. I couldn't do it. The very thought of it almost made me cry, so that's when I knew that I couldn't go any other direction. Once I knew there was only one way to go, everything else became clear.

Nathan Taylor presenting his illustration for "The Sword from the Sea" to writer Blake Hutchins

Because of that, more than anything else, I returned to my old life a different man than when I left. Apart from that personal revelation, the week was like being on a pixie-dust roller coaster. I talked with David Brin about modern vs. post-modern architecture, I talked with Kevin J. Anderson about Star Wars, and I listened to Anne McCaffrey from the back of a room full of writers and watched a fellow artist muster the courage to ask the first question. I signed books beside Frederik Pohl, and we talked about the joys of writing. Brian Herbert told me he liked my acceptance speech. I ate, drank, and laughed with a host of literary legends masquerading as ordinary people.

Booksigning at the Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in San Diego

At the awards ceremony, we all got full star treatment including a personal hair and make-up artist, tuxedo, a limo to the swanky Prado restaurant in Balboa Park, lavish meal, and a full gala event put on by Galaxy Press and Author Services, Inc. Words cannot describe the feeling of having everyone's eyes on me as I stepped onto a stage before people who I hold as heroes, and gave a choked speech of thanks. It took everything I had not to break down right there. The award itself is so much more than a pretty mantel piece. It is the dream of nearly every artist: totally objective verification of skill, and my dream was made true that night.

At the awards dinner in San Diego

It's also important to note that, while we are all vying for the coveted Gold Award, we were never competitors. So when Eldar Zakirov was announced as the grand prize winner, there wasn't a single ill thought among us. Each of us knew that each of us deserved the award, and that's something rare to find.

Now, the authors and the illustrators and the fans who all came out were wonderful, but I wouldn't be talking about any of that now if it weren't for the people from Author Services and Galaxy Press. I was swept off my feet with star treatment from the start.

I could go on for pages more about every tiny detail of the week because they were each so vividly etched in my mind as part of an experience that has changed me forever. However, if you'll excuse me, I have some succeeding to do."

The Writers and Illustrators of the Future Winners and Judges, 2006