Elizabeth Jancewicz and Eric Stevenson are the consummate “creators.” Elizabeth is a painter, illustrator, and comics creator. Eric is a musician, singer, and writer.
Since 2010, they’ve been supporting themselves entirely from their creative work. They tour all over the USA as the band Pocket Vinyl since 2010. They’ve released over 100 songs, played over 1100 shows, and made a documentary about small touring bands called “Drive. Play. Sleep.”
Elizabeth also creates the popular, semi-autobiographical Instagram webcomic about their lives called “The Touring Test.” One of the stories she’s told in her webcomic is how they broke the world record for playing a show in every state in the fastest amount of time. She and Eric collaborated to turn that into the graphic novel How To Completely Lose Your Mind.
In a candid conversation with Kids Comics Studio, Elizabeth and Eric share their experiences navigating how to make a living as a creative.
Creativity as a Grind, Not a Moment of Arrival
From the outset, Eric and Elizabeth emphasize that creative success is a process, not a singular moment of achievement.
“We often think of success as like an ‘endpoint,’” Eric notes, “but success is actually just continuing.”
Eric describes watching a Taylor Swift documentary, and the moment she learned one of her albums hadn’t been nominated for a Grammy. Rather than react with anger or frustration, “she was just kind of like, ‘Okay… I just have to do better,’” Eric says.
This moment, Eric explains, encapsulates the reality of creative work: success is not an “achievement” but more of an attitude; it’s something that demands ongoing, continuous effort.
Eric and Elizabeth stress that persistence is the closest thing to “a formula for success.”
“The best way to guarantee that something will ‘hit’ is that you just keep going,” Eric explains.
Whatever you’re working on, the key is to keep producing new work, even when external validation isn’t there.
Joy in the Process
Another way to put this is the idea that the act of creating itself must be what is most fulfilling.
“The best part of my day,” Elizabeth shares, “is creating. Coming up with new things to put on the page, and the act of actually inking the pages.”
Financial support of some kind is necessary to sustain creative work. But they describe financial success as “frosting”—a bonus rather than the main goal. For anyone seeking a sustainable creative life, the joy must come from the process. External success is unpredictable, and ultimately not a deep source of creative momentum.
Overcoming the Fear of Starting
One of the most relatable themes they discuss is the difficulty of starting new projects.
“It’s like sticker anxiety,” Eric explains in a deadpan. “You get a cool sticker, and you think, where am I gonna put this? And then you end up holding onto it for twenty years.”
Have you ever hesitated to use a sticker because you want to save it for the perfect spot?
Or… had a hard time starting a project, because you’re not sure your attempts will live up to what you envision in your head?
Elizabeth shares the fears she had before starting her webcomic.
“I didn’t have my art style ready yet,” she admits, “I wanted to perfect my art style before I started.”
But both she and Eric emphasized that perfection is IMPOSSIBLE. “Your art style is going to change,” she says.
Like a lot of comics creators, she is a huge Calvin & Hobbes fan. But if you look at the Calvin & Hobbes comics from the beginning and compare them to the later years, she explains, you can see how much Bill Watterson’s art evolved over time.
Their advice is simple: just start! Allow your work to grow with you, rather than waiting to feel “ready.”
Waiting for Inspiration is a Trap
Eric quotes the painter Chuck Close:
“‘Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.’”
Waiting for the perfect idea or a sudden burst of creativity can lead to paralysis.
“If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain,” Eric warned, “you are not going to make an awful lot of work.”
Instead, they advocate for creating regularly, even when you have no idea how you’re going to create anything.
Eric shared his own strategy: “I sometimes give myself 30 days, and every day I write something—a chord progression, a lyric, something on the piano.” This practice-based approach often results in unexpected treasure.
“The best stuff comes out of the process itself.”
“Burn the Boats”
The realities of sustaining a creative life also involve financial sacrifice, which they address head-on.
They describe adopting a “burn the boats” mindset—eliminating a “Plan B” and committing fully to their creative work.
This approach might not work for everyone. “It all comes down to what you’re willing to sacrifice,” Eric says.
For Eric and Elizabeth, it’s meant living with less, cutting back on expenses, and choosing a simpler lifestyle. Over time, they found that reducing consumption made them feel happier.
“The less you buy, the less you want,” Eric notes.
The Art of Asking for Help
Perhaps one of the most valuable insights Elizabeth and Eric share is the importance of asking for help.
They admit that it was difficult at first to launch a Patreon, because it felt uncomfortable to ask people to support them financially. However, they soon realized that many fans were eager to contribute. “So many people were excited to support us!” Elizabeth says.
This realization helped them embrace platforms like Kickstarter, where community support became a vital part of their overall income.
They also mention overcoming cultural resistance to asking for help.
Citing Amanda Palmer’s book The Art of Asking, they encourage you to ask for assistance from your communities, whether through crowdfunding or personal networks.
“It’s not even about humility,” Eric explains, “it’s just realizing that no one is an island. Everything’s connected.”
A Creative Life Built on Connection
Ultimately, Elizabeth and Eric’s message is one of interconnectedness. Although they have been creating together for over thirteen years, they emphasize that their success is not theirs alone.
“It’s us… and several thousand people!” Eric says. “Fans, friends, and family who have supported us and helped us stay alive.”
Their talk offers a roadmap for anyone navigating a creative path:
- It’s hard work. There is no getting around that.
- Find joy in the process.
- Recognize the fear of starting, and just do it.
- Don’t hesitate to ask for help.
As Eric puts it, “You need to convince your brain, ‘Oh yeah, this is fun!’”
If you’re interested in connecting with Eric and Elizabeth, follow their comic on Instagram at @thetouringtest. And buy a copy of their fabulous book, How To Completely Lose Your Mind.
If you’d like to watch their full workshop, check out Kids Comics Studio. It’s our membership program for creators who are serious about leveling up. If you’re looking for accountability, live feedback on your work, connections with fellow writers and artists – plus in-depth workshops on all aspects of comics craft – it’s perfect for you.
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