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.

Andrea O’Bert

When I was growing up, I always wanted to be an artist. While all of my friends were dreaming of being doctors, lawyers, teachers and scientists, I could never get over wanting to be a painter, sculptor or photographer. But, as I got older and started to feel the pressure to find a “realistic” career path and the idea of the starving artist came into my mind, I began to lose faith that there was any way for me to make a living in the creative industry. In high school and college, I began to dread the “what career do you want to have?” question because I was too scared to tell them I wanted to be an artist. Read more>>

Ellen Bruxvoort | FIBROUS

I took FIBROUS full-time in 2017 after building it alongside my part-time job for two years. At the time, I had a feeling I probably could have gone full-time far sooner than I did, but I also believe in the appropriateness of my timeline and that milestones always come to fruition exactly when they are ready. I think for many people considering a corporate to creative transition, it’s a relatable and scary feeling to leave the safety of the steady paycheck world. But I set a goal that felt practical for me: make as much money with FIBROUS as I was making with my part-time job. Read more>>

Patrick Foley

I had been able to earn a living off of being a 3D artist since I graduated college. At the time, I was doing 50/50 Film and 3D Illustration freelance work. However It wasn’t until about a year after my graduation that I was able to drop the film work all together and focus on what was essentially a much less time-consuming but more profitable career. Read more>>

Dani Parada

I’ve been a full time photographer since 2019 but it wasn’t alway as easy. When you say you want to pursue a career in the arts you always get “the look” and concerned advice from the adults in your life. Older generations aren’t used to seeing everyday people make a living from their hobbies, especially when it’s something intangible like photography. Read more>>

Giovanni Panarello

I have been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. I think that I managed to make It work because I immediately understood the importance of being competitive. In this field, being competitive does not only mean knowing how to draw / make a picture, but also making a picture that is marketable. Therefore, I do believe that each picture should be the result of a study and should respond to the requirements made by the client. Read more>>

Briana Bagwell

I’ve been a full-time performing singer-songwriter and musician since 2010! I had a day job right after graduating college, and I was also trying to play music. I quit that marketing job fairly quickly to dive head first in to performing, because I thought there was no better time that at age 21! I’m so thankful I went all in when I did! Since then, I’ve just “made it work.” I feel like when you HAVE to find a way, if it’s truly your passion and your calling, you simply….find a way! Read more>>

Steve Gamel

I know this sounds cliche, but if you had told me 10 years ago that I’d have a wildly-successful writing and editing business that allowed me to do what I love to do full-time, I’d have told you that you were crazy. I simply didn’t think I had the nerve to put myself out there when it seemed so much easier to collect a steady paycheck by working for someone else. But here I am! So to answer your question, yes, I’ve been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. But it didn’t happen without first taking a massive leap of faith. Read more>>

Mackenzie Dudzik

Yes…and it’s about damn time! Working to create a full-time career as a creative is a job in itself. And let me tell you…it doesn’t happen overnight! I think a lot of people except it to, and are often disappointed when things don’t happen fast enough. But the trick is to go into it for the long-haul. That’s when you win. I started as a part-time content creator, and it wasn’t until about 3-4 years in that I could consider this a full-time career. Read more>>

Joi Bailey

The beginning of my tattoo journey was far from easy. No one told me that tattooing is one of the hardest things to learn how to do. Tbh I’m still trying to figure this out. My tattoo Journey began with my apprenticeship at Dark Age Tattoo Studio in Denton. Apprenticeships are basically an internship. You’re don’t get paid. You get to do all the cleaning, coffee runs and paper work. In return the artists at the shop teach you the craft. They also teach you basic art skills, how to schedule and how to talk to clients. Read more>>

Ocean Lane

Being a full time artist has always been my goal, even as a kid.  My grandfather introduced me to photography at an early age, and I became consumed with it, making each picture more creative than the last.  I realized quickly I had a knack for seeing deeper than first glance, and bringing pictures to life in so many different ways.  I applied to a Tech High School where I enrolled in the Commercial Arts Course.  Read more>>

Brittany Taylor

In 2020, I lost my Dad to cancer. For months, I was mentally in the darkest place I had ever been. I decided to keep my mind busy and started a blog. I remember telling my husband that if I didn’t make $100 by month six, I would give it up. Everyone said it was hard to make money online, so I set super realistic goals. I spent the last $60 I had to my name and created a website. I worked a full-time job and commuted 750 miles a week. It was an easy job but was unfulfilling. I was beyond ready to quit and spent every waking moment I had learning about how to blog, affiliate marketing, social media marketing, and so much more. Read more>>

Mary Alvizures

They say when you become a business owner, you have to absolutely love it 100%. Growing a business can feel like a roller coaster ride – there’s up’s and down’s and even some twists you didn’t even see coming but at the end of the day when all is said and done, you want to feel like “ah, that was amazing – WORTH IT.” Read more>>

Peter Stoltzman

I make a full-time living from music, but that includes a LOT of jobs. Currently I teach at both Colorado State University and University of Denver, teach privately, run a nonprofit (Colorado Music Bridge), play gigs, and teach at summer workshops. I’ve been through many iterations of a music career, from moving to NYC and touring all over the world and making Hip Hop tracks for Warner Bros. in my twenties, to doing a doctoral degree and full-time college teaching in my thirties, to now in my forties starting a nonprofit organization and continuing to perform, record, and teach. Read more>>

Neil Palmer

Yes, I have. It wasn’t always like that though. Early on in my career just relying on walk-ins, it was hard to budget or save anything. I did not like the, “busy one day and then dead for two” routine. . So I started setting appointments. Every couple of walk-Ins I’d schedule them for a few days out. I just kept doing that until I was getting booked for a couple weeks at a time. Then a month at a time and so on. Read more>>

Gigi Davison

I went from earning my bachelor of science and child development and psychology to working in my field for about four years. I learned that this wasn’t for me and it was highly recommended from friends and family that I pursue the art that I had been doing since I was 18 years old. At 26 I finally took the plunge and went from a 9 to 5 to going to cosmetology school. While I started in Albuquerque New Mexico I ended up getting my education from Paul Mitchell in Los Angeles California. Read more>>

Danielle Williams

I have been able to fully transition to the title Full Time photographer. I made the jump late April when the amount of bookings I was having was exceeding my 8-5 work week. I started by investing in my equipment and skills and education over a period of 4 years or so. Day 1 of my full time did NOT feel like work. I love what I do and the saying is true if you do what you love you will never work a day in your life. Being consistent with marketing and advertising has been a curve ball as social media sometimes can be so exhausting but I am incredibly thankful for making the jump and my life has changed for the better. Read more>>

Whitney Krenek

I began my business in 2014 when my youngest daughter Scarlett was born while living in Shreveport, Louisiana. I was a stay-at-home mother for two years prior but had this internal entrepreneurial drive to begin something of my own. I honestly took baby steps in the beginning. I priced my business low and took every opportunity to learn as much as possible. I flew to see mentors /drove to whatever opportunity possible / watched as many people online as I could. Read more>>

Alexa Acosta

Earning a full time living through my creative work has been eye opening and a life changing experience. My journey started the summer of 2019 at San Diego City College when I enrolled in the manicurist program while having a part time job since the age of 16. I knew I loved doing nails when I couldn’t stop thinking about doing more! I would choose doing nails over anything that was considered “fun” for a 19 year old. I felt as if I finally found the perfect outlet to express my art to the world. Read more>>

Robert Jeffrey II

Since I graduated from college I’d worked as a freelance writer. Whether it was working with news publications like The Atlanta Voice Newspaper, or focusing on more creative-focused projects for clients such as Terminus Media, DC Comics, 133Art, and the Centers for Disease Control, my writing was my side hustle for about seventeen years. For the 9-5 I worked administrative related jobs. These included positions such as working as a data entry specialist and file clerk. Read more>>

Shawn Crystal

Yes, I have been able to make from my art. My childhood dream was to work for Marvel Comics. Along the road to making this dream happen, I earned an MFA in comic book art. I got hired as a college art professor and co-built the comic book program at SCAD Atlanta. I ended up running the department and guiding the curriculum. About 4 years in, I received a call from Marvel comics. Read more>>

Laura Di Lorenzo

I have been very lucky in my career to be able to earn a full-time living by working as a creative artist. When I graduated from college at the New World School of The Arts in Miami with a BFA in theater performance, I moved straight to LA. In LA, I moved in with my writing partner, Mimi Davila, and together we created a web series called “The Chonga Diaries”. It was from there that another friend, Jenny Lorenzo (who’s also from Miami) was working at a latinx focused digital media company called “We Are Mitù” and she reached out to me and asked me if I was interested in working as a content producer there. Read more>>

Ariel Rose

I consider myself extremely lucky to be able to earn a full-time living from performing. But it wasn’t always easy! I have been singing in front of audiences since I was six years old and I was doing it for free up until I turned 18 years old. During the summer between high school and college, my parents told me that I had to get a job so that I had some income coming in. I decided to get a job working at a store in my local mall. Read more>>

Llordel Taylor

My journey to becoming a personal chef was an interesting one. I started out working in restaurants as a chef. Out of culinary school, I thought that was the path I was supposed to be on. In the process, I was able to hone my skills and build up my confidence. I however craved more freedom and creativity in my work. I slowly started doing private engagements here and there and as I was able to build up my reputation and gain referrals. Read more>>

D’Mauri Jones

I have been working as a full time entrepreneur for about 5 years now. It has been a challenge but I wouldn’t change it in the world. I’m still growing as a artist and learning it’s more than the painting. It’s about the backend as well, which is the business aspect. Having to understand your finances and investing wasn’t my focus coming out as a artist honestly. I didn’t know how much I needed to know this aspect of my business. I get up each and everyday and learn on the internet. I research and try to apply to my business, put that percentage in my business each and every day. In order to expand you must invest. Read more>>

Rochell Malay

It took over five years before i started earning a profit and paid myself. I money i made from my business in invested back into my brand. I even had to work a part time job from time to time to support myself and my business until it became profitable. The life of an entrepreneur is not always fun glitter and glam. When people started seeing how passionate I was about my brand and how I not only invested my time and money into building something so great then that’s when they started backing with support. Read more>>