We think the world needs more artists, more creatives and more folks unwilling to spend their days as a cog in a giant corporate machine. We don’t necessarily dislike cogs or machines but we think the world clearly needs more artists and creatives and so we wanted to try to figure out how more artists can make it work financially since this is one of the major obstacles blocking so many artists and creatives from pursuing their art full time. So, we asked folks who have been able to make a full time living through their creative work, how they did it.

Katya, Chris Diaz, Hierro

Yes we make a living making music but would love to be able to focus even more on performing and songwriting. We supplement our income with tours, singing for hire, songwriting for hire and production. Both of our stories are quite different and diverse. Read more>>

Luigi Ciuffetelli

I have been a working Commercial Photographer since the age of 20 and have been for 40 years now. I new at the age of 12 that I wanted to be a photographer, most importantly a Fashion Photographer. I was also always interested in art as a child, drawing and painting, and when I was 12, my older cousin got a camera for Christmas, when I saw it, I was mesmerized. The next Christmas, Read more>>

Hayveyah McGowan

I have been very fortunate with being able to work full-time as a creative. Having multiple skills sets has really been the key to calling myself a full-time artist. With being a graphic designer I am able to have a full time job where I make a living through using my imagination and creativity. Graphic design is a field of work, in my experience, that is and will always be needed. Every product we come in contact with had a designer involved. So the need for design work is always plentiful. Read more>>

TJ Salta

Yes, but it was most certainly not like that from day one. I found my passion for magic at the age of 14. At the time, I was too young to apply for a job. I took it upon myself to visit different businesses and offer my service at their locations. Many of them loved the idea but denied me due to my age. After weeks of trying, my last resort was to offer my services free of charge to a local ice cream shop. Read more>>

Mikaela Shafer

I have been making a living from my creative work for about 6 years now and full-time for the past 3. When people think of creative work, they probably think I paint all day, and I really wish I did, but that’s not it. I make my own hours, work from home, travel, paint, dance, eat when I want, move around, and generally get to flex my creative skills all day without a boss, and that’s success to me. Read more>>

Krista Flamm

Yes my husband and I have been able to earn a full time living off of my creative work for over 10 years now. I started creating pillows and wall decor as a supplimental hobby after my husband was diagnoised with a progessive blindness that led to him losing his career. I never intended it to be a full-time job or living. Read more>>

Jaimie Nagle

It’s difficult to fathom that I have been a full-time artist for almost three years now. I’m able to earn a modest living from selling my work, but I also have a partner who is the main financial provider for our family. This partnership– while financially important–is also deeply rooted in respect and love. This is really the reason why I can do what I do. Read more>>

Malori Maeva

I think a lot of artistic professions and career paths can get a bad reputation as being an inconsistent way to earn a living and afford to live, but I think that can be true for any and every job. When we were building out the systems and processes for Form, we kept financial security top of mind both for myself and for anyone who joined my team. Read more>>

Cobie Cruz

Yes, I’m earning full-time living from my creative work. Before becoming a full-time visual artist, I started my career in advertising as an art director and then became a TV commercial director before starting to paint professionally. In 2000 while I was directing TVCs I started, in between TVC projects, painting with the help of my dad who persuaded and pushed me to paint. And so I did. Read more>>

Jenna Ricciardi

I have been a full-time Content Creator for 5 years now & earn substantially more than I did in my last position as a School Counselor. Every year I have almost doubled my income from the year before, & that is beyond rewarding to see all my hard work paying off. I tried to study the business side of Influencer Marketing before making it something I do full-time, so I could be as prepared as possible for growing in this field. Read more>>

Tom Stahl

I made a conscious decision early in my career that while I would try to earn money from my photography, I would not try to make it my full-time job. I made this decision for a couple of reasons. When I first got into photography, I saw many other full-time photographers struggling to make a living. Many of those who did make it work spent much of their time doing things they didn’t want to do – focusing on commercial versus creative photography, or devoting almost all their time to marketing and promotion instead of creative work. Read more>>

EXTRA KETCHUP

I’ve been blessed enough to make a full-time living from my creative work but definitely has not been easy. When I started to work on the brand back in 2017 I came into the game with a simple idea to represent a form of truth. From the prospective that I saw it in. Coming from NYC it’s hard to stay on task with everything you wish to create and also find a way to support yourself and be able to live in such an expensive city. Read more>>

Emily Grimes

Hi I have worked in the medical industry for 7 years, I went into hospital pharmacy right out of high school. There I mixed IV compounded drugs/ chemo for patients all over the hospital. During my time in pharmacy I was saving money to put myself through a Dental assisting program. I spent three and a half years in dentistry. During all this I was running a small business/hobby that was keeping me busier then I imagined. Read more>>

Ali Ghassan

Of course, but the process was a challenge. It came through sincere hard work in order to achieve it. I had to have patience, perseverance, persistence, and adherence to achieving the dream. It was not like that from the beginning. Since I am from Iraq and Iraq was under an economic blockade, people think about bread and not about luxury things such as art. That comes after a country’s situation is economically and politically stable, that is. Read more>>

Bre Khounphinith

So I started as a makeup artist in 2012, doing it part time because I was a full time hairstylist. But with the help of social media, instagram to be exact. Makeup took over and became my full time job. I became sought out no only in my city of Las Vegas, but amongst celebrities as well. I stopped doing hair and became a full time makeup artist in early 2016. I definitely believe better yet l know that wonders of Instagram helped move my professional career as makeup artist. Read more>>

Bill Hickey

I had no formal art training prior to launching my art career. ( I don’t suggest anybody do what I did) I started making art in approximately 2015, getting to the breakeven point 6 months later. I started with image transfers after Banksy came to NYC to do his “better out than in” show. During that month long show, he had an old man selling his originals in Central Park for $60. Living in Brooklyn, I was never going to be in that area, but I had this sudden urge to have a Banksy. Therefore, for some strange reason, Read more>>

Lashawn “Suga Ray” Marston

Yes, I’m fortunate to have been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. It was not always like this. It’s been an incredibly challenging, yet oh so rewarding journey thus far. Let me break it down for you. When I first changed my life in 2008 and committed to being a more positive human, and tapping more fully into my creative side, I had no idea how I would make it. Read more>>

Rob Williams

I knew I wanted to get into voice-over work as soon as I recorded my first project back in 1984. It was a presentation for Mac Tools. Soon after I first got into radio, a local video producer stopped by the radio station in Washington Court House, and asked if anyone would be interested in auditioning for this project. I did so and got the job and from then on I was hooked. For most of my nearly 40 years in radio, Read more>>

Michael LoCicero

I do not yet earn a full-time living from my creative work. However, it’s the ultimate goal in terms of my career. The end result isn’t fame or fortune, it’s being successful enough that I’m able to do what I love full time. Read more>>

Albertus Joseph

Got fired from my part time job in 2012 and decided to be a full time Artist from that day since. Read more>>

Mariana Magnani

Ive been able to make a living out of my art by tattooing and selling my art work as prints, originals, and merchandise. It hasn’t always been easy, but I think it it important to grow organically and to conserve and cultivate one’s unique style despite coming trends and expectations. People who value your work will find you inevitably. Read more>>

Katherine DuBois

I don’t know a lot of people who make a full-time living from creative work alone. I’m not sure that’s the right goal. Most of the artists I know are multi-hyphenates. Painter and teacher, performer and bartender, writer and administrator. The idea that this makes them less successful is toxic in two ways. Firstly, it feeds into a societal value that artists are only true artists if they are only artists. Read more>>

Jess Magee

Becoming a professional creative has been a natural progression throughout my life and I’m very lucky to be able to earn a full-time living doing what I love. My parents enveloped me in music, art and culture growing up. They exposed me to the vast world of creativity and fostered a deep love of the arts, especially music. Read more>>

Amanda Byrd

I currently do not earn a full-time living. That’s definitely my goal (though I doube it can be done with only 7 books available.) The first major milestone is a toss-up between clicking “publish” and getting my frist review. Reviews are a lot harder to get, whereas clicking “publish” is more a matter of deciding to just go for it. Read more>>