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.

Melissa Ellis

I began painting 20 years ago when I was in college at LSU. I always knew I wanted to paint, but was scared to take the leap. Apparently I talked about it a lot, though, so my friends threw me a surprise birthday party and bought me paint, paint brushes, canvases and the easel I still paint on today. They said “you’ve been talking about it, now let’s see you do it”. That was the first step into what was to become my forever art journey. I began painting as a hobby and just something fun for me to do in my free time. I was working as a legal assistant for a custom homebuilder not knowing what I wanted my forever career path to be. Read more>>

Javier Tamez

At first it was very hard to get to practice as much as I could having a regular 9-5 and a family at home but, with every small opportunity around I took advantage of it to grow as an artist whether it was a design a drawing or a painting before I put that on my next tattoo. I believe that everything kinda lined up at the right time because without being a bit older I wouldn’t of put so much effort into growing outside of the job I had for fourteen years. But yes the feeling of having started this a lot earlier would of been better, it still there but I’m here now and that’s what matters. Read more>>

Cassie Berube

Earning a full time living from my creative practice was a journey and started with me valuing myself and my work. I see so many newcomers scared to charge what they’re worth in fear that people won’t buy it or they’re somehow not good enough. It’s an easy struggle to understand as art and being a creative in general is such a personal process. Once you have the confidence and believe in yourself the possibilities are endless. I started small, selling my handmade wares at local artisan and craft markets then worked my way up to juried and higher end shows. Read more>>

Clay Schroeder

Earning your income solely as a creative can be quite the challenge, especially coming out of the pandemic of 2020 – you have to be crafty and adaptable in all aspects. An early understanding and embracement of flexibility has helped me enjoy a diverse career in creative work – from cover bands, commercial music scoring and ADR work, I’ve explored it all. When your plan A isn’t showing enough growth, you have to have the foresight to change it up. This was evident when the lockdown began and I experienced a drastic reduction in my private music teaching. Read more>>

Jim Scott

Being able to earn a full time living wage from being a body modification artist was a major feat. Starting out, no one knows who you are and you don’t have any real experience, so getting someone to trust you and then getting them to pay you for that matter was hard. At first I was literally starving and not making much money so I began doing side jobs to help cover bills. Every ounce of time I had I used to become more knowledgeable and to push myself into doing body modification as a full time job. Eventually through learning and hard work in my trade I am now thriving. Read more>>

Adriana Ramirez

When I first started my side hustle, I was focused on making enough money to provide for my little one on my own. I never thought of the “big picture”, and I sure as heck didn’t have any long-term goals for the business. (Not a great way to “start” a business!) But as things progressed over the years, it became impossible to NOT set goals. The more success you have, the deeper you’re enmeshed with it all, and you eventually have to decide if this is the route you want to keep going down. I have always loved creating new things out of nothing, so I challenged myself every year to reach new goals. Read more>>

Stefan Geissbühler

The first few years I was literally a “starving artist” and I spent my time primarily in the studio producing work, trying to find my voice as an artist, and experimenting with different mediums (i.e. colored pencil, pastels, air brush and water color). Moving to a this country from Switzerland, I also had no idea how to go about showing my work, so I decided to join a local art guild. This helped me to exhibit and sell work at various places, like real estate offices, restaurants, juried group exhibitions, etc. After a few years, I realized that I needed to take the next step and move on. Read more>>

Nathan Hall

In a cruel irony, being laid off from a retail job during the pandemic allowed me to do my creative music and art work full-time for the first time- and my opportunities have grown since then to where I didn’t have to return to hourly work. I was already hustling pretty hard, doing creative work about 30% of the time- which includes teaching music composition part-time, making jewelry part-time, applying to grants and commissions make art, and doing online gigs involving music here and there (there are more than you’d think!). I think I was able to see that that all those creative things are really where I find joy, and that life is short- I better do what I love now. Read more>>

Patric Stillman

In most professions, you learn what you need to know and then get in line to enter into the workforce. As a visual artist, the path to making a full-time living is pretty chaotic. There are so many variables at play and perhaps as many road blocks. All of the successful artists that I know, who may or may not make a living from their art, have a determination to keep going. Somewhere next to the creative spirit there also has to be a level of entrepreneurship. My approach has always been to be as open as I can be about the opportunities that come my way. Read more>>

Ashley Cardenas

After several years and a Pandemic I not only survived – I’ve adapted to the new norms in my career as a Freelance Artist. From Amazon Warehouse worker that helped launch their latest building in Fort Myers to Full-time Freelancer wasn’t accomplished within a day nor a year. Unlike many who sheltered themselves from the Covid outbreak, I went to work to help my community get the supplies they need to their doorstep for 2 years. After a while I felt something was missing – my Art. Upon research and collaborations I’ve worked on a series of massive projects on Upwork! Read more>>