We’ve seen way too many talented creatives quit because they couldn’t make it work financially. No doubt, the financial challenges of pursuing a creative or artistic career are daunting, but we felt there wasn’t enough discussion around how to make it work. So, we connected with artists and creatives who’ve been able to earn a full time living from their creative work and asked them to share their stories with our readers.

Kyle Elliott

Earning a full-time living from playing music has definitely been a journey. It wasn’t like that from day one—My first gig was due to me hounding the manager of a small restaurant off the main strip of broadway in Nashville, TN to let me play. I had met the manager from my day time job working in tourism with the said restaurant. After 2 months of asking, someone finally called in sick… So I got the phone call “Can you be here in an hour” so I went. From there I was given 1 show a week making $50/show. Not exactly rolling in it. However, my other job allowed me to make a decent living while playing my one show. After a few months they gave me a few shows per week and things were looking up! Then… Covid. All venues completely shut down and I lost my day time job and my couple gigs a week. Read more>>

Jess

I am a Southern California live wedding artist. I travel to weddings, take reference photos of the couple in the pose of their choice and paint oil on canvas full body portraits including backgrounds. The wedding guests love watching the painting come to life! I start at the wedding and finish painting in my Temecula art studio. I have a Youtube.com channel showing clips of the painting progress and finished works. Read more>>

Ana Novacic

I’m proud to say I earn a full-time living from my creative work, which I attribute to developing both soft and hard skills. As a teenager, I dreamed of being an artist, but I quickly realized that drawing and painting alone wouldn’t sustain a career. Leadership skills, I discovered, were equally crucial. Read more>>

Roger Hall

I received formal training from the Bougie Studio in Minneapolis, MN in the mid 80s (long since closed or changed names I believe) as well as a certification of completion in Commercial Art from the Minneapolis Technology Institute in 1988. Read more>>

Alfred Torregano

Yes, I’ve been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work—and I consider that a blessing and a responsibility. I’ve accomplished many of the dreams I originally set out to achieve as a DJ, but I never stopped dreaming or setting new goals. In fact, reaching those early milestones only made me realize I wasn’t dreaming big enough. Read more>>

Amanda Capello

I didn’t start out with the intention of earning a full-time living from my creative work, I’ve definitely built that path over time. Initially, I was a high school math teacher, which was my full-time career. But when I had my first baby, I decided to stay home and focus on my family. During that time, I picked up my camera again after many years of not using it. Before becoming a teacher, I had been an assistant to my mom, who was also a photographer, so photography had always been a part of my life. Read more>>

Christian McGee

Yes! I’ve worked very hard to build this business (and a few others) over the last 8 years, and I absolutely love my work/life balance and the opportunities I’ve been given. It does get a little frustrating when I visit family members who (every year) ask, “Are you still doing wedding videography?” as if it’s a side hustle or temporary job, haha. Read more>>

Keith C

Earning income to support my way of life has been a challenge worth every moment. It wasn’t always like this though. In the beginning for about 3-4 years, I worked heavily on quantity and learning from others as well as educating myself to be sure this is truly my life purpose. Read more>>

Helen Turner

I am approaching making a living with my art, and I say approaching because they just raised my rent and now I will have to work harder!
You need to fill in the gaps between the magic moments of clients buying a painting off your walls with hard work. Offering commissions is a great way to test your skills and I also teach painting both in the Studio and “en plein aire”, which gets me outside and is quite enjoyable. I also make reproductions of my larger paintings for sale as note cards, prints and calendars. There are also shows to enter but these are more for publicity and the social interaction of your fellow artists. Read more>>

Nathaniel Shaw

I have been largely blessed with making a living as a theatre artist for most of my adult life. That doesn’t mean that I haven’t had to supplement that living with other things, but my primary income has been through the making of theatre and the leading of institutions devoted to the art form. Read more>>

Sam Miller

I have been a full-time comedian for over 3 years now. I believe my success can be attributed just as much to off-stage habits as much as on-stage talent. I have an amazing community, an amazing family, a therapist, and a gym membership (that I actually use). I try to do healthy things that make me uncomfortable. My first year was easier than my second year but my third year was better than those. The success that I’ve had over the last 6 months has been really surprising. It’s not that I haven’t worked hard but it feels exponential. I’ve been sober sixteen years and a lot of my comedy delves into issues like homelessness, addiction, incarceration, and recovery. Read more>>

Jenil Mehta

Making a full-time living from my creative work wasn’t something that happened overnight—it’s been a journey built on persistence, passion, and a deep love for storytelling. I’m currently studying filmmaking at the New York Film Academy, and over the years, I’ve worn many hats—filmmaker, aerial cinematographer, sound mixer, and marketing strategist. Each role taught me something new, and together, they shaped the multidisciplinary artist I am today. Read more>>

Robert Gobelet

Yes. I’ve worked full-time in the film industry in various capacities, whether I was a cinematographer, director, producer, editor, or screenwriter, but my income has fluctuated depending on the projects and opportunities available.

While I have made a living off my creative work at times, it hasn’t always been consistent, which is common in the independent film world. Read more>>

Richard Satava

I have been incredibly fortunate to have earned a living from glassblowing for well over 50 years. At the beginning it was a lot of making glass and then piling it up in my car and making trips to local galleries/gift stores and longer trips to the bigger cities near me. After that word of mouth took hold and doing big craft shows in places like Baltimore and Philadelphia, gave me the exposure to grow my business, expand my glass shop and increase my output. Also as my business grew, my art developed in different ways. Starting out creating designs in the 70’s in the art nouveau technique, which many artists were doing, I eventually expanded my designs to be more nature based like landscape scenes, floral, and petroglyph designs in perfume bottles, paperweights, and vases. Read more>>

Sarah Shelton

Yes, I’ve been fortunate to earn a full-time living from my creative work—but it was definitely a journey, not an overnight success.

I’ve been a creative since I was a kid, even before I realized that’s what it was. I was always writing stories, journaling, and dreaming up ideas. I used to sling newspapers off my bike in the early mornings and then spend the afternoons reading and writing. That love of storytelling led me to get my degree in journalism, and I started out writing for a local paper. That gave me a strong foundation in communicating clearly and understanding the power of narrative—skills I still use every single day. Read more>>

Zoe Esser

I am lucky to say that I can and am earning a full-time living from my creative work!

Zoe’s Journey: At the age of 12 I stumbled into the film industry. A community program that I was a part of, Mayor’s Youth Task Force*, in South Saint Paul. We were asked by our local broadcasting station, NDC-4/TownSquare Television, if we wanted to fill some dead air they had with an informational show that listed a bit about the events we had coming up and host local celebrities and guests that hit our theme for that week/month. With the help of the local station employees we all got to learn how to set up a studio, how to light a studio, how to run a live broadcast, editing, etc. Read more>>

Jackie Fawn

I am currently living from my art full time for the last 3-4 years during these strange political times.

Day one: I was a 21 year old just graduated from college. I worked for Panera for a few years living off of their near expired meats and sandwiches that had been made wrong. They were gonna throw it all out and I was a hungry young person. Read more>>

Joshua Andres

Yes! I consider myself very fortunate to make a living as a composer, conductor, and educator. For the past 11 years, I’ve dedicated my life to music, and my journey has been anything but ordinary.

I grew up in Sandusky, OH, a small town on Lake Erie. Music was a part of my life from an early age—my parents signed me up for guitar lessons at five, and later, I picked up the trumpet in middle school. I continued playing both instruments throughout high school, but I initially pursued a different path, enrolling as a chemistry major at the University of Toledo. That changed when a college roommate’s friend introduced me to songwriting and composition. That moment sparked something in me, ultimately leading me to change my major to digital music. Read more>>

Tracy Barbutes

I am an independent photojournalist, writer and licensed FAA drone pilot, and I love what I do! All of my income is derived from work as a photographer and writer, with much of my revenue coming from editorial assignments. I was on staff with news organizations for several years, though I’ve spent most of my career as a freelancer. I am fortunate to be based near one of Yosemite National Park’s entrances, and I’m grateful for this sacred space, and to the original caretakers, the Sierra Miwok, Ahwahneechee, Mono and Paiute peoples. Read more>>

Stacey Lucas

I absolutely feel I could have sped up the process if I knew then what I know now, but I do not have any regrets.

In 2008 I started to look at my life, my finances, my job and was constantly hearing from others that I “had arrived” since I had a house, the car, the job, a 401k. I looked great on paper. But something in my soul felt a yearning to create a more intentional life, to learn more and grow more, so I left my last corporate job in 2009, bought a purple van and traveled around the east coast, landing in Asheville, NC. I have a thousand trials and tales between then and now, but the common denominator in all situations is that I have learned to trust my intuition and myself. Read more>>

Jasianna Ortiz

I remember when I first started braiding while being in cosmetology school, I was working three jobs. I was working at Target, Supercuts, and braiding on the side in the back room of a nail salon. Thankfully, I do still live with my mom so it was a little easier for me to slowly start cutting off the extra jobs in transition into a full-time entrepreneur. As of today, I’ve been braiding full-time for about three years and there has definitely tough days–or months really. Read more>>

Siobhaen Zgela

I have always felt like I didn’t fit in. That there was no where I belonged. I started getting into punk music and art. I took that and expanded with being a hair stylist. I can look the way I want and create the hair I love. I get to meet others that are similar minded to me and accept me for me. I created my one place where I belong and I can pay my bills with it. I started cosmetology school in my twenties but have always done hair. With getting into punk music I would play with different colors and styles on me and my friends. Same with being the front women of my band, All Thicc. Playing in a punk band with a bunch of amazing women is such a badass accomplishment.. Read more>>

Rene Benton

Finding your footing so to speak is the most important thing. My primary desire was to be a working/touring musician NOT a recording artist . That ( recording artist part) came organically. As I stating finding your footing meaning as a singer or musician do you find satisfaction in NOT being the main attraction or, do feel you MUST be the main attraction? That is the first step . From the beginning I had to have a grip on multiple genres. That being said ; it comes down to do you want to play in a lot of genres or just one.? I chose at least having somewhat of a feel for mainstream genres of music. After all of that I made myself available through various networks of people at let it roll from there. Read more>>

Daniel DelVecchio

Yes, I’ve been able to make a full-time living from music, but it was a gradual process. I started taking guitar lessons at eight years old and was playing in bands by seventh grade, but it wasn’t until I turned 18 that I made the decision to pursue music as a career.

Early on, I was focused on my original band while taking temporary jobs to support myself. At the same time, I was writing, performing, and building a presence in the local music scene. When one of my day jobs ended, I saw it as an opportunity to transition into music full-time. I started taking on session work and giving private lessons, eventually working with music programs similar to School of Rock, where I taught both individual students and groups. Read more>>

Melissa Campbell

It turned out I had nothing left to lose. In 2018, I started my Instagram account for fun. In 2019, I shared my ideas with my mom, who always encouraged me to keep them up. On November 8, 2019, my mom passed away from a quick battle with Stage 4 liver and pancreatic cancer. In 2020, we entered COVID times, and the world shut down. What ended up taking place in this fog of survival was a genuine curiosity for living to the fullest, bringing joy to all that resonated with my content. Read more>>

Diarmuid Kelly

Thankfully I have been able to earn a full time living from my artwork but I have definitely went the long way about it. It took me a long time to decide if this profession was a sensible career choice for me. That being said I had always stayed very active as an amateur artist, placing well in juried Art competitions with professional artists. Being visible is important as an artist. I do regret not being been more competitive on an international level. Had I received formal training as an artist I think I would have seen the pitfalls quicker on the business end of being a full time artist. I would highly recommend taking a course in business studies for anyone wishing to follow the artist career path. We are in sales afterall. Read more>>

Josh Weidner

After the pandemic ended, I found a mentor to help me learn some things that would help my business to grow. After working with him for a couple of years, I was able to build my business up into a really lucrative side business and last year, I was able to take the leap and go full-time.

The biggest things that helped me achieve this goal were having a group of like-minded people there to help keep me motivated and also not being afraid to invest in my business. Investing in good marketing materials, software, coaching, anything. If you can see how learning the skill, acquiring the software, or getting the help will lead to more leads, a better close rate, or a higher price, you should probably invest in it sooner rather than later. Read more>>

Robbie Edwards

I felt like I was standing at unpredictable road when I first started to take photographymore serious. Just my camera and ambition and absolutely no GPS—just a calling that this is where I’m meant to be. That’s how my journey into full-time creativity began. From day one, I knew that even if photography never brought in another dime, I would still create. It’s more than a career—it’s self-care, storytelling, and a lifelong love affair with capturing the world through my lens. Read more>>

Rhianon Paige

My journey began with my mother, who started coaching online 15 years ago. She introduced me to the world of online business, which would become the foundation of my career. During the summer after my first year at Parsons, I needed to earn some money before my sophomore year. My mom, in her kindness and foresight, offered me a position as her virtual assistant. This opportunity not only provided me with income but also opened doors I couldn’t have imagined at the time. Read more>>

Temria Airmet

I’ve been able to earn a full-time living as a dancer, choreographer, and dance educator for the past decade. To be honest, I don’t think I could make a living in the creative field of dance if I wasn’t able to work competitively in all three of those fields. Originally, I wanted to just be a dancer but the more training I did the more I learned how vast and expressive the dance world really was. I began to fall in love with teaching and I really started to find my voice as a creator and artist through choreography. My love and passion for dance turned into my purpose with the discovery of teaching and choreography and within this knowledge I’ve been able to create a world that fuels my creativity and ultimately, pays me. Read more>>