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.

Bonny Parihar

Honestly, I learnt by practice. I didn’t have a background in the beauty industry, so I started with YouTube tutorials and online forums. At first, everything was slow and clunky, but every mistake taught me something. I’m proud to say that I’m a self taught artist. Read more>>

Raven Zhan

Since I did not go through a BFA program, I did not receive a structured conservatory training in the craft of scenic and lighting design. I will categorize myself as a semi-autodidact.
I have liked to draw since childhood, but never learned it formally. In middle school, I designed posters and bulletin boards, which was my earliest exposure to the idea of “design”. Read more>>

Joshua Hester

Design is something I honed through both practice and formal training—I studied it at university, which gave me a strong foundation in visual thinking and creative problem-solving. Poetry, on the other hand, arrived more instinctively. It began emerging a few years ago as a natural response to experience, and over time, it’s been shaped and refined through life itself, as well as through stepping into the world of spoken word. Read more>>

Fabiola Gironi

I grew up in the suburbs of Milano, constantly drawing, inventing stories, and getting lost in my imagination. My mum describes me as a volcano of ideas as a child.
My parents worked a lot, my mother in logistics, my father as a devoted Shotokan karate teacher. From them, I learned discipline, perseverance, and my love for the visual arts. When they had vacations we visited museums and churches to appreciate architecture, sculptures and paintings that are everywhere in Italy. Read more>>

Gabriel Ford

How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more? I began learning martial arts as a child in California and fell in love with movement and discipline at an early age. That foundation carried me into exploring weapons and performance arts, eventually leading to fire and flow. I’ve spent over two decades refining nunchaku and combining it with dance, theater, and traditional martial techniques to create a style that feels honest to me. Read more>>

Sami Shinn

There is a lot of trial and error when it comes to photography, even more so when you find your niche. I definitely would not consider myself an expert when it comes to the technical sides of cameras or softwares, everything I know now is self taught. I use Canon because that was what was gifted to me when I was a teen, my first camera being a Canon T3i. When starting out, you don’t need the most expensive or newest equipment on the market. Joining a photography club in your local community, watching videos, and participating in photoshoots as a model and a photographer can really help in the learning process. Read more>>

Alyssa Westman

The path that led me to Graphic Design and Creative Direction was anything but linear. Growing up, it felt like there was an expectation to have your career figured out by high school, and once you chose it, you followed a set path. I was always drawing, drawn to the arts, and knew my career would involve creating. At the time, I thought theatre design, specifically costume design, was my future. I studied production design at York University, and also spent a brief time in-between studying Fashion Design at Toronto Metropolitan University. After receiving my degree I worked as an assistant designer in theatre, where I was immersed into a world filled with so much talent and creativity. Read more>>

Libby Rosa

As a kid, I was always creating things—whether it was designing theatrical sets for my hamsters, making elaborate dress-up home videos with friends, drawing, or scrapbooking. I was immersed in the process of making. During my undergraduate studies at UW-Madison, I received more technical training in painting and some ceramics. The painters had access to a small “private” studio, which definitely influenced my choice of concentration. And I loved the immediacy of painting. As an MFA student at Cornell University, I continued painting while also exploring architecture and the spaces my work occupies. Read more>>

Collin Kozola

I just became obsessed with wanting to learn from those who inspire me to be great. If you want to be the best, learn from the best.

Knowing what I know now, I would tell my past self to be a sponge. Learn as much as I could. Absorb what is useful and discard what is not.

I don’t think there’s necessarily a skill that was “essential” but it just comes down to if I want to be a great performer, I got to learn how to perform great. If I want to have great music, I got to learn what I can do to perfect my next record. The biggest skill set you can have is being obsessed with becoming better. Read more>>

Jamie McConnell

How did I learn about Cabinetry? Well, I certainly did not start out wanting to be “The Cabinet Nerd”. That nickname was bestowed upon me by a dear remodeler friend who would always introduce me as her cabinet nerd. To this day, I still ask myself how I got to learn all that I know about cabinetry. Considering how embarrassed I felt during my first interview after design school, when I couldn’t answer the question, “What’s the purpose of a filler?” I would have to say I learned cabinetry by reading the spec (cabinetry specification catalogs) books to find answers, by making mistakes (lots of small and a couple doozies), and being blessed with a patient cabinet installer who allowed me to sit on job-sites with him. Read more>>

Carmen Seantel

I learned to be a voice actor and audiobook narrator by asking questions and connecting with others. It started with a friend of mine who has been an audiobook narrator for several years; she opened my eyes to this career. Then I researched a ton! And with a little sprinkle of hyper fixation I developed some skills and soaked up everything that I could from resources like narratorsroadmap.com, narrator.life, and ACX.com. There were several Facebook Groups centered on ACX which were where my knowledge really blossomed. ACX is a marketplace where authors and publishers can connect with voice talent, engineers and others on the audio production side who are capable of producing a finished audiobook. Oh, and of course, handy dandy YouTube university was key to my progress. Read more>>

James Stone

My earliest memory of realizing that creating comics was an actual craft/job that people did was a combination of collecting Wizard Magazine and seeing the “How to Draw” section, along side the TOP 10 creatives (writers/artist) listings. Seeing the step by step process was eye opening. Also discovering names of indie creators and finding their work at my local library, reading up on them and their journey, and not all stories were the “big rwo” tights and capes variety tales helped open the possibility that it was a real possibility to make comic a reality.with very limited resources. Read more>>

CHAZ iLL

Intro & Background I’m CHAZ iLL, a rapper, singer, and producer from Phoenix, AZ, and music has always been at the core of my life. I got into the industry because I wanted to wake up every day doing something I truly love. Over the years, I’ve developed a unique sound that blends melodic-driven hip-hop with a rock & roll edge. Read more>>

Earl Williams

When I moved from Chicago to Dallas, I had one big problem. I’d left behind a job I loved—a fragrance store in a Chicago mall—and I wasn’t getting the same satisfaction and creative outlet I enjoyed there. I remember feeling stuck and irritated. But surely as I had a problem, I also had a plan to start moving forward in this new city, sparked by a phone call that I didn’t even know I needed. Read more>>

Mandy Howard

I have been painting and drawing for most of my life, but it wasn’t until about two years ago that I learned about the centuries old, endangered craft of fore-edge painting. At the time, I was working at a library, and looking for a creative outlet, when I came across an Instagram reel of the artist Maisie Matilda (maisie_matilda_art) painting the edge of a book with a scene from The Lord of the Rings. I couldn’t believe that there was a career out there that combined my three favorite things: books, painting, and movies. Read more>>

Lindsey Bugbee

1. How did you learn to do what you do? I learned calligraphy through trial and error. Initially, I attempted to use a pointed pen but found it too difficult, so I started with faux calligraphy using regular pens. As I gained confidence, I revisited pointed pen calligraphy and slowly figured out how to achieve thick and thin strokes. At the time, there weren’t many online tutorials available, so I relied on observation, experimentation, and practice. Over time, I improved by creating mail art, sketchbook pages, and taking on small commissions. Eventually, I started sharing my progress on my blog, which led to the creation of calligraphy worksheets, courses, and a thriving business. Read more>>

Lori Laitman

I was born into a family of musicians. I began formal music training at age 5 with piano lessons, and at age 7, I started flute lessons. Until college, my musical life was focused on becoming a professional flutist. Read more>>

Joe Byrne

I began my journey as many do, apprenticing at a tattoo shop only to leave it feeling lost and frustrated.

Reflecting on my experience, I would have spent more time to find a place that offered tattoo education in a structured and comprehensive way. It would have saved me so many years of confusion and struggle.

In the beginning, I thought the most essential skill would be the technique, and although it’s important in order to produce quality work, without a solid— ethical business practice technical skills mean very little. A lot of apprenticeships don’t offer much beyond how to tattoo leaving many artists struggling to make tattoo a profitable career. It can be very difficult to bridge the gap of hobby artist to profitable business ownership. Read more>>

Rod Lara

I began my performing career in the arts of circus. Portraying various characters which were mostly silent.
The art of mime was my first basis into my craft. Learning the techniques of Le Coq & Philipe Gaulier. Creating an inner and outer world that is both invisible and believable. Soon finding that learning mime was the bare structure, There’s so much more to this. Read more>>

Annaliese Jakimides

If I hadn’t moved from a large urban environment to a small town in northern Maine to live off the land—pumping water by hand, growing almost all the family’s food, grinding whole wheat berries to make the flour to bake the bread—I don’t believe I would be a writer or an artist. I certainly would not be the writer and artist I am now, if I were. Read more>>

Jessica Cooper

In cosmetology school, you pretty much just learn the basics when it comes to styling hair, right?! Finger waves, rollers, how to maneuver with a curling iron, blow dryer and brush! I’m so thankful for that training, because without the basics, you certainly cannot be successful! Read more>>

Evannah V

I am Evannah V, a Belizean-American artist whose life and music are a vibrant fusion of cultures, education, and experiences. Roots and Routes: A Journey Through Sound and Story Chicago’s Canvas My artistic journey began in Chicago, attending the Franklin Fine Arts Center and Lincoln Park High School. I further honed my craft at Columbia College Chicago, immersing myself in the city’s dynamic arts scene. Read more>>

Michele Nichols

I’ve always had a passion for performing, whether it’s acting or singing. I learned through a combination of formal training and on-the-job experience. I studied music, theater and film in college and continue to take classes. Working with talented casts and crews on projects like 42, Vice Principals, The Righteous Gemstones, and The Inspectors taught me so much about the craft of acting. Singing came more organically, but studying voice in college helped refine my technique. Working with bands as well as in musical theatre and opera has helped refine my stage presence and learn how to work with tech on stage. Read more>>

Emily Holmes

Being a major creative my whole life, I have always had a hard time “settling” on one thing. Be it an occupation, a hobby, skills, schooling, etc. I began learning jewelry design when I was in elementary school, with silly friendship bracelets and the many knots, adornments and other fun design aspects. From there it quickly branched into miniature clay sculpting, using polymer clay, to hand-sewing, painting, wax-sealing & embossing, garment design and creation to beginning to create reproductions and making my own takes of props & costumes used in many different forms of media that I follow. Read more>>

Hannah Madison-Taylor

When I first began my career, there really wasn’t a specific type of degree at a university, or very many resources that provided a ‘how-to’ guide for what I hoped to do. In the very beginning, a lot of skills and lessons I learned were on the job, and while I was working on projects. Looking back, I would say I think some of the learning process could have been sped up by my joining more professional organizations early on, with access to mentorship programs.I truly believe connecting in with the right people in your field, and finding a few great mentors, can be a game changer for your career goals. Read more>>