Creative Pursuits

Living the dream: earning a living doing what you love

ByStories & Insights February 13, 2023

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Music Composing & Audio-Post Production is what I survive on. I started my career as a Drummer at the age of 7 & played for some of the leading Bands such as “Fire N Ice” , ” NightBirds” etc. As I kid, I was introduced to movies like Star Wars , Jurassic Park , Omen , Jaws etc and the Background Score of these movies would always attract my attention. Read more>>

Janisse Ray

Thank you for talking about the financial lives of creatives. It’s such an important subject. I have been earning a living for myself and my small family for 25 years now. At first I took side-hustles, such as writing newsletters for government agencies, but after the success of my first book, I was able to make a living mostly from speaking engagements and workshops, often on university campuses, plus income from magazine reporting and from book royalties. Read more>>

Destiny Styles

Yes, I have been lucky enough to have been able to make a full time living off my work. Honestly, I didn’t expect it to come so soon into my career. But it wasn’t easy to begin with, I was working for the bare minimum to and fore free to get my work out there and find clients.. I got beyond lucky to have an area of dedicated clients who are more than happy to share my work and spread kind words.. Read more>>

Milly Figuereo

Yes, I’ve been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. It’s a humble life but, worth it and well-earned. Read more>>

Samantha Moon

I believe that I am making a living in music many levels up from my prior years but not full-time how I would like it to be. To see my band and I grow as a touring band is one of the goals we have for us. Could it be better? things can always be better. I don’t complain about it because I know that my team is working for me and doing all they can and as a singer, I’m working on consistency and much more content. Read more>>

Ariel Cherry

Within the past year, I earned a living solely in graphic design and photography, which I am incredibly thankful for. At first, I focused on photographing portraits and events. When photography became slow, I commissioned illustrations of landscapes and illustrative portraits as a side hustle. My first big break came when a business owner saw my unfinished portfolio and decided to take a risk on me. Read more>>

Kimberly Hill

Ever since I was a kid, I have always wanted to move to DC and work in politics. After graduating from Vanderbilt I worked for my hometown Senator on Capitol Hill then later as a lobbyist. All the while I was helping friends host engagement parties, weddings and baby showers. It was just a hobby business on the side. I found myself faced with a big job change and three children under the age of four. Read more>>

Katie Nelson

I have been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work for the last year. I started really pursuing my creative aspirations when I lost my job in 2020, I had dabbled and dreamed but never found the time to really go for it. I’ve always known I wanted to be an artist but I never knew how I was going to make it happen. I began marketing my talent as a live wedding painter that year. I went back to work in the summer of 2020, and began taking wedding clients. Read more>>

Frank Frances

Yes, I’ve been fortunate enough to make a living using a camera for many years now. I started out after art school working many jobs like being a barista, bartender, art handler, truck driver, and retoucher before landing my first consistent photography job. All while working I was always doing freelance photography and making fine art slowly. Read more>>

Slimm The Ruby

Yes, I have been able to make a complete living from making music and being an influencer. It wasn’t easy at first. It was days when I was making only $20 and then there were days where I was making $2000. It definitely takes determination and perseverance to be able to do that. Some of the major steps I would say is being consistent on social media. The second I started doing that, the money just started coming in. Read more>>

Nicole Lytwyn

Financially, the first couple years were rough. But the first year was really rough. Let’s rewind to that uncomfortable beginning. Read more>>

Mandy Hazell

I feel like anyone who has ever dreamed of making a living off of their art or creative abilities has had a ‘Starving Artist’ phase. What that looks like for each individual will vary. For myself, I always made an effort to sell and promote my artwork. Read more>>

Victoria Rockwell

I have been lucky enough to earn a full-time living from my art work for almost three years! Growing up, people have always been interested in my pieces and I would be commissioned every once in a while. However, I was working for a tech company in Brentwood, TN that ended up “going out of business” due to covid and everyone was let go with no notice. Read more>>

Emory Parker

I graduated from film school in 2017 and was eager to start making money doing what I love. I decided to start my own production company Blue Slate Films with a co-founder that complimented my skills, and we have been able to make a full-time living through photography, video production, and editing ever since. Read more>>

Edward Walker Jr

This is the start of my third year of being a full-time wedding photographer. Ive had my ups and downs on this journey, but I wouldn’t trade them in for anything. I didn’t have a mentor, so everything in my business has been trail and error. But I can truly say that it’s such a blessing to be able to do what I love while providing for my family. Whole Heart Images was created right before the pandemic. Read more>>

Andre White

So, not a lot of people know this but I am ok sharing it now. I was let go from my job at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. It was an extremely low point in my life mentally, emotionally, and professionally. It it one of the times where I can truly say I felt inadequate. Read more>>

Ana Cruz

I have been very fortunate to be able to earn a living from my art for a few years now. I have been training circus for 7 years, starting with hula hoops and fire. I then moved on to learn stilt walking, aerial, walking globe, rola bola, juggling, and other prop manipulation at the Boulder Circus Center, where I have been a youth circus instructor for 5 years. Read more>>

Davion Lyons

Yes, I currently make a full-time living from my creative work, but that was not always the case. Straight out of university, after completing my BA in Digital Media Production, I started working at a marketing agency as a Multimedia Designer. This is where my professional growth started. The more I learned the more I wanted to put my own creative foot forward – this neverending yearning led to Frsh Creative being born. That is not to say the fear of failure has never crossed my mind. Read more>>

Maira Duarte

When I was 17 I was fortunate to be surrounded by beautifully creative people. I had joined a physical theater troop and, although they were older than me, in their 20’s, they invited me to perform with them and shared here and there very valuable advice. My favorite person was Vanessa, she is a painter. She told me once: Don’t ever worry about money, if you do what you love, money will never be a problem. Read more>>

Lacy Elian

I have been very fortunate to make a living as a full-time acrobat and cirque performer for the past decade. Nothing about the journey has been easy or spoon fed. To truly thrive in this industry, it is imperative that you hone multiple skills beyond just your act. International level acrobats (that often started training as children) are sometimes able to survive on single acts; for example, a contortionist that gets hired by a large company such as Cirque du Soleil will not have to do their own marketing, costuming, client relations, etc (for the duration of the contract. Read more>>

Brianna Santana

I have been able to earn a full living from doing nails. I first started working at a nail salon at the age of seventeen, I was barely making any profit, but I continued because I love what I do. It was not from day one, I was always judged based off of how young I looked and was, the major steps that helped me speed up the process was proving to those who didn’t believe in me that I was good at my job, after that word of mouth and recommendations brought tons of clients. Read more>>

Arehely Garcia

I started baking cakes as a junior in High School. I attended Klein Forest High School in Klein, TX. At the time I was working at Allstate, was in drill team and making cakes when I had the chance. I always made cakes as a hobby but never thought I would actually make a living making cakes. Read more>>

 Alan Brockington

I’ve been a creative when I was a little boy. I create and live a life in storytelling. At first, I was a little bit nervous and afraid, but as I warmed up to creativity, I started to feel like I belonged somewhere. Despite all the challenges I faced, I somehow go above and beyond what’s expected of me and it was very, very heartwarming. What really makes me happy is love. And I want to give that love to all creatives in the community. Read more>>