Beginning on October 1st, I’ll be making daily drawings (or paintings or collages or whatever) in response to a list of prompts. It’s been almost 8 years since I started this biannual practice (Drawtober in October and Sketchuary in February). In my mind, these daily drawings aren’t “my work”; they’re just art I make…and love…and think about constantly. The more I do these daily drawings, the more I realize these months are the most reliably consistent studio time I give myself. It’s part of why I keep returning to the practice; otherwise, I’ll defer to grading, laundry, doom scrolling, and on– anything but the hard work of getting my butt in the studio long enough for things to develop and grow.
I like to say these drawings are a way to work out ideas for larger pieces, but often they are the work themselves. Many of them will be in my upcoming show at ETSU’s Slocumb Galleries.
Anyway, all of this is more fun together. If you’re interested in drawing along, the prompts are listed below. I share my daily work on Instagram because I like the public accountability (and the dopamine hits from “likes” and comments), but you don’t have to post work to participate. Some helpful advice for those who’ve not done this before: keep it small and simple. A sub-theme (like collage or plants) or sticking to one type of media (like markers on post-its, for example) can help manage and simplify the process. Isn’t it wonderful and counterintuitive, the way restrictions and parameters can help creativity loosen and flow?
DRAWTOBER 2026 PROMPTS
- thaw
- notion
- shaft
- monitor
- flock
- beam
- spindle
- creek
- aggregate
- turn
- skin
- proof
- keystone
- stem
- heave
- veil
- drive
- stock
- milli-
- crest
- steam
- pile
- swollen
- grain
- render
- spline
- can
- erode
- egg sack
- branch
- over
I hear hashtags are not a thing anymore (#RIPhashtags), but I still use them on posts. If you’re so inclined, here are two I use during this month:
#drawEveryDay
#Drawtober
Let’s go.
