Hi everyone, my name is Muntari Glunk, creator, illustrator and independent publisher. I spent my formative years in the field of Art and Design. Mind you, I am talking about the early 1990's when things were a lot simpler, or so they seemed. Computers in the college place were in their infancy and all you really needed to do to be accepted through the doors was to show an ability to draw and an abundance of enthusiasm. Back in those days traditional hand drawing, painting and life class were still an integral part of the criteria.
Ah, the good old days. It seems like an ice age ago, or maybe I am being a tad melodramatic. Anyway, since leaving those fun times behind things did not quite pan out the way I thought they would. Sure, I had dreams and aspirations like everybody else.
In all honesty, I did not really know what I was supposed to do next, I just seemed to drift about in life. Oh dear, what a waste I thought. I got that overwhelming feeling that this was the hand that I was dealt, and those dreams and aspirations were in danger of becoming a distant memory.
As the new millennium dawned, i spent the next 17 years or so working in warehouses and cleaning jobs. My affiliation with drawing was still there in some form and I continued to create numerous characters and stories regardless of my situation.
I reasoned that whatever my circumstances, it was best just to use it as valuable experience. It was not ideal, but I realised deep down that if I wanted to get somewhere in life, achieve something other than working a regular job, then it was a case of rolling my sleeves up and getting stuck in.
Of course, that is easier said than done. Words are one thing, action is another. Do not get me wrong a job is a job, and I met a lot of interesting people over the years because of it. In fact, I did not have to look far for inspiration when it came to creating characters. warehouses attract all sorts of people from all levels of society, you know.
Interestingly, it was around this time that I use to frequent the local gym by my workplace. I happened to be walking past a row of treadmill's that were situated on my left and for some reason I glanced over at the last treadmill in the row. A message in bright red was flashing on its screen. It said, 'do not let your dreams turn into hobbies.' It was a split-second thing, but it was enough to make the hairs on my neck stand on end. The moment was brief, but its impact was immediate. It was time to roll my sleeves up and really get stuck in.
I was fully aware that I was now living in a digital age, and I had to get with the times. Without any doubt, my Achilles heel so to speak, was...Computers, I had a great dislike for them. To put it mildly, I was computer illiterate.
I suppose I hung onto the fact that I was traditionalist and would remain so. Who was I kidding? After my eureka moment in the gym there was only one way forward, and in 2018 I founded Glunk House Publishing Ltd. Instead of taking small steps I had taken giant steps forward, the if's and the but's never really entered into my planning.
So, as crazy as it sounds, I taught myself how to use computers...from scratch. Of course, in hindsight it would have been better had I learned about computers first and then founded Glunk House Publishing Ltd later. Nevertheless, I was undeterred, I had taken a journey into the unknown, but one I intended to see through. In truth I had made plenty of mistakes trying to find my way, but, more importantly I learned from them. My rule was, and still is...learn and progress.
All those years I had thought that I was computer illiterate now seemed quite ridiculous. I became a sponge, I researched, absorbed and applied whether it was mastering design software, formatting books, using distinctive styles of typography or how to draft an original story. Being in the digital age has gifted me limitless possibilities, my introduction to the 'I pad' for example was like nothing I could ever have imagined. It totally changed my way of thinking. And like a sponge I absorbed everything it had to offer, software such as Affinity Design has been a god send.
Here is the thing, at heart I am still a traditionalist, and proud of it. I now except that we live in a digital age where technology is advancing all the time. But that does not mean I cannot have the best of both world's. If someone had told me all those years ago that I would end up running my very own company, designing books on computers and illustrating my creations on an I pad, in all seriousness i would never have believed them.
But here I am today, a little older and a little wiser...achieving those dreams and aspirations.
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