A Delicious December Newsletter
You can't eat it, but it's got ingredients.
Salutations my dear beans,1
Apparently this post is too long for an email. (I blame all the pictures.) So the best way to read this might be by clicking the ‘view on web’ option.
This newsletter contains:
- Statistical things,
- Information to tempt people into The Scribble Club,
- A Drawing Play-Date with a difference,
- Something from my sketchbook, and
- The Word of the Week.
- And I also added some businessy stuff at the end.
100% natural ingredients. See allergens in bold.
Firstly, for those interested in numbers, here are a few stats after my unusual newsletter last month - you know, the one asking people to unsubscribe?
You may be curious about how many people did what what I asked…
How many subscribers I had before November’s newsletter: 174
How many people unsubscribed since the newsletter: 6
What percentage of subscribers opened it (on Substack or their inbox): 51%
What percentage of subscribers usually open my newsletters: 50% (not much difference there, then.)
And, just in case you’re curious: how many subscribers I have now: 182
Ironically, most of the the people I was targeting (subscribers who never read my newsletter) still neither opened nor unsubscribed, even though I made it pretty clear in the subject line that that’s what they were supposed to do.
Ok, so I do understand that some people just never get around to reading it, even though they do want to.
But to those who did unsubscribe, I don’t know who you are, and you won’t know I’m saying this, but well done. A round of applause, everyone, for those people who took a step towards decluttering their inboxes.
A big thank you to those who took the time to email me or comment on Substack (or in real life). You’re very encouraging and supportive and lovely, and I appreciate every interaction.
I love that I’ve connected a little more with my subscribers and that this is becoming a community-like thingy. To continue along that path, I’ve decided to introduce some of you to one another by lining up a series of interviews for next year. Something to look forward to, eh?
“All-My-Subscribers, this is So-and-So. So-And-So, this is All-My-Subscribers.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.”
(The interviews will be more interesting than that, I promise.)
The Scribble Club?
Last month I told you that I’d launched a paid membership option on Ko-fi: The Scribble Club - a daring adventure for those brave enough to set sail on the wild seas of Picture-Book Illustration. (Now on Substack too, an easier option for some.)
For a bit of clarity:
My newsletter (free) is great for those who want to keep an eye on my illustration adventure, enjoy joining in with my free Drawing Play-Dates, or would like some encouragement in their own drawing journey.
The Scribble Club (£4 per month) is for any of these people:
those who have a deeper interest in illustration specifically,
people curious about picture-book creating, writing or illustrating,
anyone who would like to learn more about drawing and illustration,
beginner illustrators who would like guidance and feedback on their work,
those who feel a bit stuck in their creative life,
people who want to see behind the scenes and look through my sketchbooks,
anyone who just wants to support me because they’re such big fans.
To find out more about what Scribble Club membership entails:
and scroll down to my wonderful list of Scribble Club benefits.
Another thing I did last month was delete my Instagram account. And it feels gooood. If you’re curious, I wrote a whole a blog post about it.
December’s Drawing Play-Date:
The next Drawing Play-Date is taking place on the 16th of December at 1pm GMT.2
For those who don’t know, my Drawing Play-Dates are live video calls where we draw together for fun with no pressure and no judgment.3 Inner-critics are encouraged to stay locked up in a cupboard somewhere, and playfulness, messiness, and silliness are allowed to run rampant.
I’m going to give away the surprise, and tell you that we’ll be adding a bit of craft into the mix this month. We’ll draw little houses on cardboard and make a gingerbread house garland together. (Of course, if you don't want to do the cutting and stringing, you're welcome to just draw the houses.)
If you'd like to join in, make sure you grab these things, or something similar:
- Some scrap cardboard (preferably brown and non-shiny),
- White pens (gel pens or acrylic pens work well),
- A length of string for the garland,
- A good pair of scissors,
- A small hole-punch or awl or something, to make holes in the cardboard.
This call is suitable for all ages and drawing abilities, so do bring children along (with adult supervision, please - think of the scissors and awls!)
If you're feeling festive, bring a favourite Christmas treat to eat, and we can pretend it's a party...
A party where people draw.
My favourite kind.
Something from my sketchbook:
The unusual thing about our village is that, even though it’s in the middle of the English countryside, during holidays and Christmas it is packed with people. This is all because there’s a big outlet centre where they can find big brands at discount prices. Very convenient for Christmas shopping (unless you live here and have to avoid town at all costs until the middle of January).
This means that, whereas previously I could enjoy a relaxed time at our small library4 while my daughter was at gym class on a Wednesday, I am now relegated to a once-empty café to try sip a coffee slowly enough to last the whole hour. And this week my coffee was free, so I got a few more glares than usual from that one unfriendly barista.5
Yes, it’s everyone’s favourite: Word of the Week!
Here’s an uninteresting fact: until yesterday, I thought this was a word I’d made up. Apparently I’m not as original as I’d hoped. You could have read it in the Daily Mail as early as 1973.
pootle: According to the dictionary, it means to move along in a relaxed or leisurely manner. I use it - slightly more specifically - to mean not doing anything of consequence; wasting time.
Let's use it: Before Tabitha received the invitation from the Emperor, she had been merely pootling her life away, but since reading the gold-trimmed missive, she has not wasted a single second. Every moment has been filled to the brim with focused and intense preparations for her new job as Royal Babysitter.
That’s all for this month! Thanks for reading, supporting and enjoying my personal brand of oddness.
Oh, one more thing:
I’ve closed commissions for Christmas, but if you would like any illustrations for 2025, do get in touch via this handy form, or email me: robyn@robynhepburn.com
I’ll be replying to emails and sending out orders until the 20th of December, and will be back again on the 6th of January.
And remember:
My stickers are for sale in the Ko-fi shop.
Membership for The Scribble Club is available on Ko-fi and Substack.
My crafty Drawing Play-Date is taking place on Monday the 16th December.
If you’d like to receive nice free things in the post, do send me your postal address.6
Human beans. I’ve told you this before, but you may not have been here.
Clicking the link is also a quick way to get the time in your timezone.
And no recording, and no replays.
The library’s packed because the locals are trying to avoid the hoards of shoppers.
The rest of them are lovely. It’s just the one girl (pictured) who looks like she’d much rather be working for an undertaker.
I won’t use it for advertising, or share it around, or anything mean like that.
I know I show up in those “unopened’ but that’s because you’re checking right away and not a month or two later when I get round to it,ok?
It was scrumptious, thank you.