Often there is no book or course to learn how to do what you want to do – so how artists and creatives overcome such challenges? How have some of the most talented artists and creatives in the community managed to learn their craft?

Aaron Donahue

As an actor, you only get to perform when you are given a role to do so. We audition endlessly and only ever get a fraction of the roles to try out for. Read more>>

Nayeli Knudsen

When I first began doing typewriter poetry back in 2014, I was driven by the idea of story and the unique journey of every person. Read more>>

Mickey Roberts

I am probably in the minority on this one in that I do not personally find that I am learning a craft at all. Oftentimes I am making it up as I go along. Read more>>

MJ Gomez

I started pursuing poetry seriously in freshman year of university—what kickstarted my growth was developing a genuine love for the craft, then honing that love into a natural work process. Read more>>

Shaun Hettinger

I didn’t go to school for Music. I had the hardest time deciding between majoring in Art or Music, and Art won that battle. But as soon as I was immersed in Art classes and projects, Music became my creative outlet escape – I started my first of many rock bands. Read more>>

Zach

My grandmother introduced me to sewing and I gained the love for fashion in the 6th grade. I actually wanted to become a fashion stylist first. Read more>>

Ken Ramos

Growing up I loved watching behind the scenes extras from movies like Lord Of The Rings, Star Wars and any old horror movies. I got really into seeing how they would create practical effects and gore makeup in those films, and for a while I wanted to get in to that part of the process. Read more>>

Kelsea Corley

I have always been the type of person who likes to keep busy. When I was young, my grandmother would crochet and she would give me a hook and some yarn and I would make the longest chains (which is all I knew how to make at the time). Read more>>

Pratibha Singh

As they say “Every cloud has a silver lining “. When I arrived in US, I got mixed feelings. There were lot of challenges and of course the opportunities. Read more>>

Dylan Paulini

I mean it I’m sure it’s possible to learn it from scratch but I think that to some extent at least you have to have an instinct for it, you have to know what makes a shot look cool or beautiful in terms of the framing, Read more>>

Landon Stark

I got my first Magic kit when I was about five years old. Like every little kid, we play with magic tricks and then move on to more exciting things like sports or literally anything else, but magic really stuck with me. Read more>>

And The Animal

We learned to create our unique Cinematic Electro-pop sound by embracing our diverse cultural and musical backgrounds, bringing our own influences to the table to blend elements of various genres and styles. Read more>>

Sophie Telegadis

I grew up acting in New York so that has been instilled within me since childhood, I am now in Los Angelos continuing on that craft while kickstarting my career in music simultaneously. Read more>>

Mary Perrine

I learned to read when I was three, because I had an older sister who wanted to be a teacher. She was also very bossy. I learned to write when I was four because my mom taught me to use my imagination. Read more>>

Seth Smith

After leaving the University of Kansas I had a degree in Painting. But in all honesty, I learned very little about HOW to paint. I think that is one misconception about art school, or at least my experience. Read more>>

Calvin Bauer

As far as being an instrumentalist, my mom signed me up for classical piano lessons as a young kid. That really translated to every other instrument I learned. Read more>>

Kim Ross and Zeb Ross

Kim Ross, Director/Founder of the J Creek Cloggers, learned her craft of flat-footing from her dad at a young age. Kim is from Snowflake, VA, part of Scott County, VA. Dance and music were a large part of her life, Read more>>

Katherine Kincaid

Most people assume you can either sing or you can’t. Though we are blessed with natural talent and some people are more inclined to sing well than others, becoming an opera singer requires an incredible amount of training, hard work, and discipline. Read more>>

Valerie & Matt Molnar & Spahr

Matt’s background is in sculpture and Val’s is in painting. Both of us taught at a university for a decade before deciding to leave academia and our installation based studio practice. Read more>>

Meena Khayami

I have been taking photos since I was a child. My dad would always bring a camera to family vacations and events. Once we started being active in sports, he would bring them to different sporting events and take photos while we would play and perform. Read more>>

Andy James White

Just by experimenting and trying to create. I would also read some art books to see what I could pick up on and apply something new. I was always trying to emulate what I liked so I would just try things. Read more>>

Hannah Albert

I learned wire wrapping by teaching myself and watching many videos and tutorials online. Something I think that could have helped my learning process was having in-person/on hands help and instruction. Read more>>

Roxanne Casas

I learned the basics of ceramics at CSU Channel Islands. I realized I wanted to pursue a career with ceramics a couple years after transferring from Ventura College to CSUCI in 2016. Read more>>

Greg Hammontree

The learning process is an amazing thing. I love the idea of learning “fast”, but really the fastest way to learn is to study the right information first! Read more>>

Eric Senich

Learning your craft is one of those things that once you start learning, you never stop. There’s never a time when I feel like I’ve learned it all. Read more>>

Sasha Casta

When I first started photography, I wanted to mentor under every photographer who’s work resonated with me. I wanted to marinate in their creative wisdom and hope to absorb their insight and ability to create powerful images. Read more>>

Kelly Phipps

My journey of learning has woven among many disciplines, and I’ve been fortunate to have some wonderful teachers. I initially taught myself how to draw as a youth, and when I was about 20 years old, Read more>>

Ishjon Hawkins

I learn to produce instrumentals at the age of 15, from a childhood friend who taught me. I feel like if I had purchased a studio earlier. I would be further along in my career. Read more>>

Emma Cormarie

Growing up, I was a very introverted and shy girl. I struggled socially, and escaped through writing, drawing, and watching as many movies as I could. Read more>>

Stephen Wing

The only way to learn how to write is by reading. I made it through college by picking courses that required reading — fiction, mostly, pleasure reading for me. Read more>>