Why Am I Making This?

Defeatist (laudatory) - Why Am I Making This? Issue #31

June 30, 2023

Hey everybody, It’s Julien. Artist. Welcome to June/July/August: the Summer Gauntlet. If you’ve been here for a while—and most of you on the newsletter list...

Newsletter Update! Still figuring it out

March 20, 2023

Hello everyone! Very short update. I believe I said in December that I would be taking a newsletter break in January/maybe February. My time is up now, so I...

2022 wrapped (pottery) - Why Am I Making This? Issue #30

December 27, 2022

Hello hello hello. Last newsletter of the year. It sure has been a year. Your faithful letter-writer is Julien Coyne, an artist, potter, photographer, etc...

Pottery/depths - Why Am I Making This? Issue #29

December 1, 2022

Hello everyone, It’s Julien. Artist who makes pottery, photographs, and other things - but this year, mostly pottery and photographs. First, most important...

It's just a question - Why Am I Making This? Issue #28

October 29, 2022

Hi, It’s me. Well done to anyone who got the Taylor Swift reference in the newsletter title. She had a new album out this month which I liked a lot, which...

Fallow Era - Why Am I Making This? Issue #27

September 28, 2022

Hey there. It’s Julien. Artist as usual. I enjoy the current online trend of saying “I’m in my ______ era”, as though we are all pop stars preparing to...

JOMO - Why Am I Making This? Issue #26

August 29, 2022

Hey everyone, It’s Julien! Artist + photographer + newsletter-writer. These titles are getting abstract, huh? This month, I think that I have finally begun...

Crochet - Why Am I Making This? Issue # 25

July 31, 2022

Hello everyone! It’s Julien. It’s July. July is almost over. Phew. This month, despite doing a lot of fun stuff and having some extraordinarily lovely...

Professional Photographer Playing Umineko & Elden Ring - Why Am I Making This? Issue #24

June 25, 2022

Hello dears, Julien here. Your summertime-sadness photographer and gamer friend. It’s dread season. Feeling the approach of July and August is like standing...

Truly - Why Am I Making This? Issue #23

May 22, 2022

Hello my dear hearts, It’s almost the second anniversary of this newsletter! The general topic of “why am I making this [pottery, painting, photography etc]”...

12 photos from 12 rolls of film - Why Am I Making This? Issue #22

April 28, 2022

Hello dear friends, It’s Julien! You know me. Artist who does a lot of hand-wringing about art in this newsletter. I’m happy to report that my frenzied...

Cycles of Burnout and Puttering - Why Am I Making This? Issue #21

March 31, 2022

Hey everybody! It’s Julien! Your Artist Friend. In case you don’t remember, my last newsletter had a little bit of a cliffhanger in it. I was about to embark...

Pottery and Video Game Plans - Why Am I Making This? Issue #20

February 25, 2022

Hello everyone! It's Julien. You know the drill - artist, potter, game developer, whatever. It’s going to be another short newsletter today. This is because...

Learning How To Rest - Why Am I Making This? Issue #19

January 27, 2022

Good morning gamers! It’s Julien. This is not a gaming newsletter, and if I take a look through my list of subscribers, I would say that significantly less...

Resolve & Memory - Why Am I Making This? Issue #18

December 30, 2021

Hello everyone, and welcome to the end of the year! It’s Julien. Artist, photographer, game developer, etc, writing my final monthly creative-updates...

My bad attitude & a new project - Why Am I Making This? Issue #17

November 26, 2021

Hello everyone! It’s Julien! The artist whose newsletter you subscribe to and receive almost every month. The (wonderful) service I use to send my...

Pottery and nothing else - Why Am I Making This? Issue #16

October 31, 2021

Hey all! It's Julien. An artist. I write this newsletter. You've probably been getting it for a while. I send it every month with updates and, theoretically,...

Is art becoming like a job? Why Am I Making This? Issue #15

September 29, 2021

Hello there! It’s Julien. Artist, photographer, etc, etc. This is my monthly newsletter. I’m here to tell you that September has been tiring. I had multiple...

Photography, lethargy, and new ideas - Why Am I Making This? Issue #14

August 22, 2021

Hey friends! It’s Julien! This is my newsletter! I send it once a month with my creative updates, and since my last newsletter, I’ve been feeling......

Connecting with people about art, also new rugs!!! - Why Am I Making This? Issue #13

July 19, 2021

Hey everyone, How are you doing? It’s Julien, your friend and monthly newsletter-writer. A warm welcome to the handful of new subscribers that have joined! I...

Just film photography in this one - Why Am I Making This? Issue #12

May 28, 2021

Hello there! It’s a bit of an early newsletter this month, and also a slightly short one. I talked last month about feeling some creative burnout, and at the...

Burnout, continued frenzied photography, pottery - Why Am I Making This? Issue #11

April 28, 2021

Hey there! It’s the end of another month! The trees are (finally) blooming, it’s getting warmer outside, the days are longer, and I remain on the struggle...

Catching up & portrait photography mania - Why Am I Making This? Issue #10

March 30, 2021

Hey everyone, Here in Maine, it feels like spring is almost here! Temperatures are usually above freezing and some recent days have been downright warm. Of...

Art classes and extreme craft miscellany - Why Am I Making This? Issue 9

February 28, 2021

Hello friends! It’s nearly the end of February, which means it’s time for another newsletter. It’s Julien writing to you, your Maine-based artist friend. I...

Am I Lazy??? Here's 20 drawings - Why Am I Making This? Issue #8

January 31, 2021

Hey pals, I was on the phone with a friend the other day, talking about art and feeling tired and feeling busy. I kept saying how lazy I felt - about working...

It’s the end of the year! (Inside: A bit of everything, mostly drawing)

December 29, 2020

Hello hello, I have been thinking about this newsletter for a few weeks, wondering if I should do a big roundup of everything I’ve done this year - or...

Crafting and fanart once again - Why Am I Making This, Issue #6

November 20, 2020

Hello friends, Life just won't stop being rough this year, huh? But I don't think anyone really needs to hear anything extra about that. So I'll get right...

All the paintings I've done in 2020 so far - Why Am I Making This, Issue 5

October 23, 2020

Hello everyone. (It’s Julien.) Last newsletter I said I might send you all an annotated list of the paintings I’ve done this year. I’m going to do that now,...

Painting, tired - Why Am I Making This, Issue #4

September 30, 2020

Hello everyone! It’s pretty cold today! I am very happy, or would be if I wasn’t shrouded in a pandemic/politics-generated miasma, feeling somewhat tired and...

Portraits, shipping, ceramics, boredom? - Why Am I Making This, Issue #3

August 29, 2020

Hello lovely people, I’m ecstatic that summer is basically over. While I do enjoy the late light and the things it gives me time to do after work, I’m tired...

Polaroid photography and other film adventures - Why Am I Making This, Issue #2

July 23, 2020

Dear friends, Hello from the sunny shores of my favorite Maine lake! I have been doing my very best to spend as much time as possible at the lake recently,...

Why Am I Making This? Issue 1 - an introduction, ceramics, forming creative habits

June 21, 2020

Hey there! I’m Julien, an artist and dabbler from Maine, USA, and you’re reading the first newsletter in “Why Am I Making This?”, a monthly letter about...