Wanting to be an artist or creative is step one. Following through means investing in learning your craft, but we’ve heard from so many aspiring artists and creatives who feel unsure about where to start and so we’re incredibly grateful to the artists and creatives who’ve agreed to share their stories of how they learned their craft.

Rob Elba

Around four years ago I decided to start a podcast. My only experience with internet broadcasting prior to that was listening to other podcasts. As a musician and lifelong music lover I naturally gravitated towards music podcasts, but many of them left me vaguely dissatisfied. I felt like I could do better. On a whim I enlisted a friend of mine, Barry Stock, and said “Let’s start a music podcast!” We divided up resources and set about learning what was involved, including recording ourselves and editing/publishing the content. Read more>>

Alexis Brown

Writing is an interest/skill that comes naturally to me, I’m able to do it intuitively. It was not only one of my favorite hobbies as a child but it was an outlet and coping mechanism as well. I would take thoughts and feelings that I couldn’t voice to others and I would turn them into poems, songs, and stories. As I grew older I drifted away from it and found other interests such as clothing design and cosmetology, but after being forced into stillness due to the state of the World these last few years, Read more>>

Jenna Bennett

When I was on disability from my teaching job, I was looking for a hobby to fill my time at home. I found an online class for decorating sugar cookies. While I had always been terrible at baking, for some reason sugar cookies just clicked! Those first cookies looked awful, but I took a couple more classes and improved my skills. With cookie decorating, there really isn’t a way to speed up the learning process. Read more>>

Chorizo Rose

My journey creating began when I was 4 years old and I’ve been making art professionally in a multitude of avenues for 5 years now. The combination of 20 years of personal studies and countless projects both privately and professionally in the construction and cinematic industries, gave me a foundation to begin tattooing. Learning to tattoo simply takes practice. Hours of videos, practice line work, books and listening to artists that came before me is the process I took to learn how to tattoo. Read more>>

Morgan Dooley

I first picked up a camera during my freshman year of college. Thinking back, there wasn’t a definite moment where I decided I wanted to be a wedding photographer. Honestly, doing photography professionally didn’t even cross my mind at that point! I’ve always loved to be creative, and my new camera gave me an outlet to do just that. I’d drag my friends out to fields or parks to do photoshoots. Read more>>

Erin Spencer

I have always shown an interest in drawing and creating. I did not, however, pursue art as a career from the beginning. In fact, I graduated from college with a History degree and an unrelated job working at a greenhouse and garden nursery. My interests were all over the place! But I happily stumbled on a friend’s paintings as she held an open house to launch her art career. I left her home that day, turned to my husband, and said, “That’s what I want to do.” I went out the next day and gathered oil painting supplies. I had never painted with oils before, but I knew that was what I wanted to do. Read more>>

Rachael Tamayo

Learning to write- anyone can do that! Grammar, structure, even creating pretty descriptive scenes. But the trick is storytelling. This isn’t something you can really learn- it’s inborn. That’s what I believe anyway. Your born a story teller- that’s the difference between great authors and mediocre ones. Read more>>

Billie Hernandez

I, honestly taught myself what I know for the most part. I’ve always loved creating, be it via drawing, painting, sculpting, sewing, etc. and it’s always been my main avenue to express myself through, given some communication disability I have with ASD and ADHD. Speaking of which: I’ve tried to learn in professional classes back in college, but I’ve never been able to sit and listen to a lecture on topics well. My brain just sort of, shuts off and wanders in those environments no matter how much I’ve tried. Read more>>

Kalendula Rose

I started playing the harp as a child. Back then, I had big dreams and no one yet telling me, “you can’t” . As the years progressed and as people came in and out of my life, I’ve come in contact with people wanting to squelch my ability to hold onto childhood dreams. But, my dreams never died and I’ve always held them close. My musical journey and vision has become more clear, but it’s still something I’m seeking to find in it’s entirety. And who knows, maybe artists and creatives are always seeking. But, I think that’s a beautiful thing. Read more>>

Zoe Berman

I think life presents opportunities for continual learning and I hope to never stop learning. That being said, I have benefitted tremendously from the foundation of knowledge I received in music as a child. My parents were very supportive of my early interest in music, allowing me to take piano lessons and dabble in other instruments that piqued my interest over the years. Read more>>

Onaje Taylor

I studied those who were thriving in the career that I wanted to excel in. I studied mainstream and local wardrobe stylists and costumers. I snagged retail jobs where you basically learn customer service and style people of all ages and backgrounds everyday. I volunteered , read and researched and still do. Going to a fashion school may have sped up the learning process but I made my own way and made the best of my resources. Read more>>

Melanie Marshall

As a young artist I knew of only one sculptor and his name is Michelangelo, and so I would go to the library and check out books of his artwork and pour over the images. Then one day when I was 18 I was out and discovered a small school of sculpture in my very own town. I walked right in without hesitation, and they offered me a job as a model. The arrangement was every session I modeled for, I would receive 2 sessions to work on sculpture. So began my apprenticeship with Lynn Forbes, which lasted 6 years. Read more>>

Lutavia Cosplay

I was very fortunate to have my curious nature cultivated and encouraged through art classes and design and programming classes, and my degree in school (Computer Science) sort of harnessed that. I did an undergrad thesis, and it really taught me the value of research: how to search, how to follow threads, where to look, who to ask. I extended that into my cosplay field, and it’s by far the most valuable tool because this field is all about taking what’s been done before–a design–and interpreting it into reality under whatever constraints we choose. The value of being able to discover the name of a technique and search it down to its core is absolutely critical. Read more>>

Laurelei Bent

I learned to sew when I was in high school. I took every home ec class that my school had to offer because I didn’t have a lot of self-confidence and I didn’t think I’d be good at any of the other electives offered. I worked my way through baking and child-rearing, then in my junior year, I landed in fashion design class which was just a rebrand of the sewing portion of home ec. I was hooked. I began small, with things like pillows, placemats, then pajama pants. Before long I was begging my teacher to let me make a dress. Read more>>

Jarret Lemaster

I started narrating before I was a professional because I have 4 kids and I would read to them every night. I read the Narnia series by Lewis and Harry Potter out loud to the kids and realized that I might have a knack for this kind of work and thought I might want to try to get into narration. The truth is I am an actor as well and loved getting into the characters because it would help my boys love the stories. I had some experience in recording because I am also a musician so I just started by going to ACX and looking for projects that interested me. I started auditioning and immediately started to work. Read more>>

Sammy Anzer

There was always freedom in comedy that, as many books I read or classes I took–there was no other teacher besides me. The purpose of stand-up comedy, as I see it, is it learn who you are and what you believe and express it to people who never met you in a way that makes sense and, most importantly, makes people laugh. And no one can do that for you, and that’s something only time and devotion will unveil to you. Read more>>

Sarah Knouse

I received my BFA and MFA degrees in sculpture from Pennsylvania State University and City University of New York Hunter College, respectively. Along the way I was fortunate enough to partake in a two-year period of post-baccalaureate teaching and research at Bucknell University, combined with several artist residency opportunities such as the Virginia Commonwealth University’s summer studio program in Sculpture and Extended Media. Taking part in so many wonderful programs and residencies that value skills of calculated risk-taking and experimentation with diverse media has certainly been a vital part of my education and training. At each of these programs I was taught new sculptural skills such as welding, wood working, figure sculpting, 3D digital design, and more. Read more>>

Enrique Villacreses

I believe that everyone was born with preset talent that had been genetically inherited and the others skills are the ones learned as time passes by with experience. I learned what I do because of my stubbornness to give up, openness to any ideas and possibilities to try something different. That’s what got me pass the long stressfull training to catch up to the other people that were in the field longer that I was. Read more>>

Javan Hamilton

It was winding path. I got my first camcorder in 2001 at the age of 12; my grandfather bought it for me as a Christmas present. I’m also a HUGE fan of the game show “Press Your Luck,” which I had just learned about at the time since it was in reruns on Game Show Network. So I’d build sets of the show using cardboard and Christmas lights, with little green Army men as the contestants. I used my karaoke machine and my uncle’s old keyboard to record a cover version of the theme song—music is also a hobby. I legit had my own little production going on as a middle-schooler in New Orleans. Read more>>

Tierra Fluker

I am always elated to share my expertise with anyone who is curious. I learned the industries I’m in by not charging and helping from a genuine pl;ace in the beginning years: In order to gain experience in a field that a person is interested in,they must humbles themselves and do unpaid interns and volunteer work to gain experience and build a credible portfolio. Read more>>

Michael Bliss

As a child I was always very creative and always used my imagination to create worlds of my own. This was the beginning of my craft. I remember in elementary school my artwork was chosen to be in an art gallery exhibit. I didn’t think my art was that great but the experience of this led me to start believing in myself and my craft. Some of my work is very simple but also very unique. I wouldn’t compare myself to anyone but I do love surrealism and a couple of my favorite artists are Salvador Dali and David Lynch. Two masters of their craft. Read more>>

Fleece & Thank Ewe Fiber Worx (FATEFW)

Fleece & Thank Ewe Fiber Worx is a multi-disciplinary fiber art business run by two women specializing in hand-dyed and hand-spun art yarn as well as finished knit and crochet pieces with our handmade yarn. Carrie Kathryn learned the art of hand-making yarn at Calypso Farm and Ecology Center in Fairbanks, Alaska while participating in the Farmer Training Program in 2017. Being able to learn the skills of hand-dyeing and hand-spinning fiber accelerated CK’s learning process. After leaving Calypso, the most difficult obstacle was finding used tools and saving money for new tools. Read more>>

Jana L Bussanich

How did you learn to do what you do? I am a self-taught watercolorist, painting instructor, and author of Watercolor Technique and Color Theory Essentials: Cultivate an Art Practice that Works for You and Your Art, released in 2021. Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? Two things are true, there are no shortcuts to learning to paint, but there are shortcuts that make possible the likelihood that you’ll learn to paint. The only way to master the discipline of painting is to do it, but the fact that we don’t know how to do it is why many people with the secret wish to learn to paint never start. Read more>>

Kelly Partlow

I began learning macrame five years ago by following a Pinterest tutorial for a plant hanger. I used the cheapest rope I could find (clothesline from the hardware store) and quickly took to it. After that, I evolved to Youtube videos, found some softer rope, and continued to be 100% self-taught. I could feel my dormant summer camp braiding and gimp skills coming to the surface. Read more>>

Sheneese Rohelia

So I learned, and quite honestly still learning to paint by simply doing it. We can want to do something all day and watch people that we feel have mastered the craft, but until we actually put our own action into play, I don’t know if we are truly learning it. When it comes to painting and/or crafting as some would say, I believe trial and error is a great way to learn and besides simply feeling (having passion) that is pretty much what I have done. Knowing what I know now I really don’t feel there is anything I could have really done to speed up my learning process. Read more>>

K Ferguson

Outside of being classically trained I learned a lot from YouTube and Immersing my self In the art. The only thing that would of sped up the process was outside help. The most essential skills I’ve learned would have to being able to engineer yourself. Read more>>

Michael Beitz

When I think about this question of “How did I learn to do what I do?”, I mostly think of “who” I learned from and the many many teachers I’ve been fortunate enough to meet. I also think of those I have not met, but learned of there work and have been influenced by it. I think of my amazing mother, who’s hands have been busy making things for other people her entire life. Aunts and neighbors who would teach me to use a brush or a pencil, and school teachers who recognized that I needed to work creatively. Read more>>

Melissa Estudillo

I’ve always loved dancing ever since I was a kid and it always came naturally to me. My mom was a dancer when she was young so it makes sense that I am one too. I grew up performing in school talent shows and homecoming assembly performances. I’ve always wanted to learn in a dance class growing up but I didn’t know where to go so I never went. I didn’t officially start training in classes until 2018 after I moved to LA for college. I went to a class every week and even when I ended up moving back to Denver, I still took classes all the time. Read more>>

Gfire Mayo

I started singing at age 3. I continued in choir starting at age 10 through college. I started taking opera voice lessons at age 14. By age 15 I was singing in a band. At college I actually started making money singing in a wedding band. After college, I toured around with some cover bands before landing in Austin and getting serious about being a singer/songwriter. Read more>>

Colleen Brent

“Anything worth doing well is worth doing poorly at first.” – Ray Congdon It’s mildly hilarious to look back at some of my first photographs and see just how awful they were, but it’s through those first awful photographs that I continued to learn the craft of photography. Academically, I studied psychology and music. It wasn’t until my junior year of university that I took any art classes, 3D design and intro to drawing, and the only reason for taking those classes was a to prerequisites for photography classes. Read more>>

Hannah Rosenblum

I started working in social media marketing while studying journalism during my undergrad. At the time, social media courses and degrees didn’t exist yet, so I learned how to do everything myself through trial and error. I really honed in on my social media skills after college during internships and at my first jobs. I don’t think there is anything I could have done to speed up my learning process because social media is constantly changing so I still never stop learning. In this industry, it’s imperative to be flexible and adaptable to change because it WILL happen. Read more>>

Jhonathan Rodriguez

I learned most of my skills in photography from high school when I chose it as my major but even before then I was toying with what photography was. Knowing what I know now, I would’ve pushed myself more to take pictures of others or events to have built more and stronger relationships with others so I could’ve pushed my boundaries further than what they were back then. The most essential skills to photography itself is knowing beforehand what your objective to the shoot is and already having the idea of how you’ll edit the photo before/during taking the photos. Read more>>

Michelle Robertson

There is so much to learn in the photography industry from; the camera itself and the mechanics, photography terms, editing, software, pay structure, and more. When I started taking photos I had very little knowledge of photography and all the aspects of shooting and editing. During my first shoot with a friend to test out my camera, I knew there were some things I was going to have to learn to stand out and find my own creative style. Read more>>

Devonte Howard

For working behind professional production field for 7 plus years now, I have learned so much throughout my experiences. I started learning what I do as a videographer at Dubiski Career high school and Dallas College in TV media program where they showed us students the basics behind the scene production and video editing. From there, I started to fall in love through the process by the creativity and somehow I knew I wanted to implement it to my own success. Since I have started my business as a professional, Read more>>

Caroline Smith

I hadn’t thought much of becoming an editor or going into publishing at any point in my educational career. I had an inclination to write, but that was mostly just for myself. One day, I saw a friend of mine doing a sample edit on a manuscript, by hand. Red proofreading marks everywhere. I asked her what she was doing and she told me she was a publishing and printing arts minor and this was an assignment for one of her classes. I was immediately intrigued. I learned more about the program and almost immediately switched my minor from religion to publishing and printing arts. Read more>>

Trenell Foster

I learned to write stories at an early age in school and it was something I always enjoyed doing. It was my love for story writing that made me first want to try my hand at script writing and directing. Another thing that helped me was being a student of the art, not in the sense that I went to film school, but I did watch a lot of films and tv. I found myself not only watching these films but then trying to figure out how it was done. There’s no better teacher than experience, so I put a lot of time and effort into watching others that were in positions I wanted to be in but I also found really good mentors in the industry. Read more>>

Dylan Tran.

When I got into photography and videography I watch many youtube videos of people traveling and going on crazy adventures learning how to edit, film, color grade, and everything to become like them one-day creating things that I wanted to do. After learning what I know now, what I could’ve done to speed up the process was to be consistent in my craft and challenge myself to do better showing what’s the difference between me and other creators. The most essential skills are learning how to use your exposer, aperture, and iso on a camera. Read more>>