In a perfect world, I would have a little writing bungalow nestled in the trees like Neil Gaiman (and 1/50 of his talent) In a perfect world, I would never have to stay up late or get up insanely early to get anything done. In a perfect world, I would never get sick, the coffee […]
Why do we believe we aren’t good enough to create our art? Maybe it’s because we keep telling ourselves the same stupid lies over and over again… It’s time to stop screwing around. Let’s face it, we don’t have enough time to create without constantly sabotaging ourselves in the process. We are filled up to our […]
Are you a “Professional” Artist? I’m not talking about if you have a corporate sponsorship or whether or not you are earning the big bucks. I’m not even talking about quitting your day job, if you have one, and living on ramen noodles and Starbucks (because even if you’re poor you still need your Cafe […]
by: Chey Rasmussen For my whole life, I’ve wanted to create something amazing. Things I loved growing up like The Legend of Zelda, Harry Potter, and Disney cartoons inspired my young mind and caused me to dream big. Human beings made these awesome things; maybe I could too! As creative people, expressing ourselves effectively and making […]
You don’t need 8 hours a day to be a creative artist “I just don’t have enough time to be creative.” This is something people tell me all the time. They feel as if they never have enough time to really focus on their creative projects, which is certainly something I understand. Although, I have a feeling that […]
“O, beware, my lord, of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster which doth mock The meat it feeds on.” ~William Shakespeare Jealous much? Let’s face it, now that almost every artist and their creative brother are online showing off their handiwork, it’s easier than ever to become jealous of … their artwork/writing/music their sales their […]
Do you remember happy? We’re not talking about positive thinking or grinning-like-an-idiot kind of happy, we’re talking about the kind of happy that makes you smile when you put your head on your pillow at night. That subtle feeling of contentment. That feeling like you’ve added something unique to the creative conversation that day. Maybe […]
What the funk?! Sometimes we get tired of trying. We get tired of constantly falling behind, knowing that we’ll never catch up. We don’t know if we’re heading in the right direction, and we’re not even sure if we have the energy to get up and deal with any of it for one more day. Sometimes we find […]
by: Kevin Chung If you want to be a creative artist today, having a website for your art is an absolute MUST. This includes artists who sell most of their work through art fairs or in galleries. Websites let you share your art with an audience beyond the confines of where you live. They also allow […]
Creativity isn’t just for creating stuff. Being a creative artist is about more than just creating a bunch of stuff that other people may or may not care about. Simply the act of creating has a way of changing us and affecting areas of our lives that are far beyond our creative practice. Creativity can teach us how […]
By Thea Fiore-Bloom, PhD Have you ever squandered a free day on strange, unimportant activities? I have. When I finish a writing project, I grant myself an open day. Twelve potential-filled hours lay before me to accomplish something epic. I often end up blowing every one of those hours on dumb stuff I can’t remember. […]
So what happened?! Do you remember when you just loved to create? Do you remember that feeling of being lost inside your imagination while the rest of the world dropped away? When exactly did you lose that? When did creating your art become something less than it was supposed to be? As creative artists, we […]
By Suzanne V Paddock Often creative artists are asked to donate their skills or their work for the sole compensation of exposure. While well intentioned, few of those situations can seem like real opportunities and many times, unfortunately, are more of a benefit for the person seeking the free work. A studio tour, however, can […]
Getting started is hard. The beginning of almost any project is almost always overwhelming. We’re excited to get moving, but at the same time, we don’t have any idea where to start. So we put it off. Instead, we focus on figuring it all out. We read some books, check out some blog posts, maybe […]
by: Kevin Chung As artists we live in fear “You might as well give up.” “You’ll never make a living as an artist.” “Being an artist is a great job if you want to starve.” These words have been ingrained in our thoughts for what seems like forever, but it wasn’t always that way. “That’s such a wonderful […]
by: Betsy Conlan I am the queen of indecision. In fact, before I figured out how to handle this struggle, I spent years stuck in indecisiveness and uncertainty. While I frequently waffled about which glaze and technique to use to finish a new clay tile, there was an even bigger decision to be made. I […]
I’ve got nothing How many times have you sat down in front of your computer to work on your latest blog post or writing project only to discover that you’ve got nothing to say. I know it’s happened to me, and it’s probably happened to you. In fact the only people who never get writer’s block […]
For whatever reason, when I was growing up, I never seemed to enjoy the same things that everyone else around me did. It wasn’t until college that I really started to learn about some of the differences between having an introverted and extroverted personality. At the time, I just assumed that I was weird, and […]
#1 Self-Doubt (What if I’m not good enough?) This is probably the number one fear of any creative professional. After all, we are not creating necessities but luxuries for the most part. As much as our art enriches our life and the lives of others, it remains something that we (at least as consumers) could […]
by: Lois Sapare Working as a creative artist and getting to do what you love as a career can both be a blessing and a curse. Not many people get to do what they love and have it become their livelihood for the rest of their lives. However, behind the “We do what we love!” […]
by: Amanda Truscott There’s a myth out there that stops a lot of people from creating things: the tortured genius, working feverishly in his squalid apartment while the muse whispers in his ear, which she does because he’s special… He’s talented. Jack Kerouac, the story goes, banged out his great American novel, On The Road, […]
by: Vicky Rubin Many artists feel difficulties with motivation and focus. We all want to get to the studio as we were meant to do. But no matter how important making art is to us, we can easily settle into a habit of putting it off. Digital distractions are especially lethal. There’s always email, Facebook, […]
by: Millie Swaby-Pritchard Taking your Creativity on the Road As a student who constantly travels around on trains, taxis and buses initially I was stumped as to how I could take all my art supplies with me wherever I wanted to go. Initially, I was lazy and just thought ‘I can work when I’m at home’ […]
We are all broken Our online world is filled with photoshopped avatars, self-serving social media updates, and perfectly timed press releases that are often far more myth than reality. Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly something to be said for putting your best foot forward, but there is also something to be said for revealing your flaws, […]
Perils of perfect As much as we would like to convince ourselves otherwise, perfectionism is not about having high standards or a keen eye for detail. Instead it’s like pretty much everything else we do that screws up our creative life— it’s really about dealing with our fears and trying to protect our fragile ego. […]
We long for connection, guidance, and encouragement from other artists. Although these things may make our creative journey easier, they won’t necessarily make us any better. Creative isolation I didn’t know any writers growing up. In my neighborhood, we didn’t have some wise eccentric neighbor who was a writer. There was no role model, […]
Whether you are a writer, a painter, or any other type of creative artist you know that your life and your art are constantly evolving. Like any other journey this one has a beginning, a middle, and an end (so to speak) and each stage comes with its own set of rewards and potential pitfalls. The courage to […]
by: JoAnneh Nagler Can we really have it both ways? Here’s the thing: artists are sensitive creatures. Starving and struggling does not, in the end, work for us. It’s like running too much electricity through already delicate circuits. It doesn’t help us focus on our art, or our creative inspiration. We think—from years of being fed […]