📖 Mia Kay - The Backstory!

Hi Everyone!

At the end of almost every post I say something to the extent of "thanks for supporting my art" or "I appreciate you all". It is absolutely true, but recently I've really wanted to give some context to those words. I have had this post saved in my drafts for a long time, and I think I'm ready to share it now.


I thought about recording a video, but I tend to talk ridiculously fast when I get nervous so that probably isn't best either. Despite how talkative I am, I am a very private person! Talking about myself always has me a bit on edge. I know a lengthy text post isn't terribly exciting so thanks for bearing with me.

So here is the Mia Kay Backstory~

A lot of you know that I got my degree in Mechanical Engineering. I graduated in 2019, and have pursued art full-time ever since. But here's the thing. I never dreamed of being an artist. In fact, I have always considered myself a musician more than a visual artist. I can play a lot of different instruments, but piano is my "heart instrument". And more than that, I truly love math and science so engineering was a great fit.

So what happened? How did I even end up here? 

Well, I started getting into 3D printing around 2018 and very quickly I wanted to make my own things to 3D print. I downloaded the first free software I found, Sculptris. After I made my first few sculpts, I wasn't terribly motivated to create for just myself... So I went to a D&D Beyond form and asked if anyone wanted anything. I got an endless supply of awesome requests. I was beyond happy to create for others! It was a perfect win-win. Eventually people asked to leave tips, and Patreon became a thing! The rest is history.

A lot of you know that bit, but it doesn't really answer the question of why I didn't pursue engineering still. Well, the short of it is that I really did not enjoy college. I had a full-ride scholarship that was merit based. Which meant there were many other requirements such as needing to maintain a 3.5 GPA.  The scholarship would cover 8 semesters, which also meant I absolutely needed to finish in 4 years. I never took a semester with less than 18 units. At the most, I took 23 units in one semester. (If you aren't familiar, full-time starts at 12 units)

I also had major imposter syndrome. If you aren't familiar, it essentially means you think you are a "fake" among people who "should" be there and that it is only a matter of time before people notice. This got much worse when I did the math for my GPA my 2nd year. There was no way I was going to keep my 3.5 GPA without some major dedication that I just didn't have in me between my class load and my job. I remember calling my dad late one night crying because I knew I was going to lose my scholarship. (He is awesome by the way, my dad never has put pressure on me to be 'perfect'. That's all me for whatever reason.)

And I was right, I lost my scholarship on my 8th semester. I graduated with a 3.4 GPA. I only had to pay for one semester, but the real damage was mental. I was so ashamed, and it felt like my imposter syndrome was validated. 

Meanwhile, I was sharing my sculpts online. And these complete strangers were just so kind to me. I didn't feel like a fake at all here. Finally, my best was enough. (At this point of writing I'm pretty teared up, another reason why a video would not have worked haha) As an artist, I didn't have to be perfect. People just enjoyed what I made. But in college, my best was never enough. I had zero confidence in my skill as an engineer, and I knew I would have to wrestle with that when I began a job. I loved creating so much, and I felt like ME when creating! It was crystal clear that if there was the slightest chance I could be an artist full-time, I had to try!

So that's the brief of it. There are a lot of other key details, but I don't want this to be a novel. When I say "I appreciate you", I really mean "thank you for accepting my best". I appreciate each one of you so much. I hope this wall of text puts just a little more behind those words. Looking back, I'm sure I would have been just fine as an engineer. But I wouldn't change it! Everyday I get to create for people who appreciate me and my art. What more could I possibly want? 

Thank you,

Mia Kay