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.

Arielle Isedenu

I learned early on in life that I am a creative. I originally found my voice through singing and I still do. Along my journey, I’ve realized that my creative expression can evolve into different mediums. In college, I pursued a film major out of sheer curiosity. Read more>>

Jade Alexis

3 years after graduating with my BFA concentrating in metals, I am working full time as a ceramic artist and instructor. After college I knew that my heart was not in metal. I have always considered myself a mixed media artist but have had a special love for clay since high school where I took my first set of ceramics courses. Read more>>

Ariana Lovato

I worked for a design build company before I started Honeycomb on my own. I knew it was something I always wanted to do and I didn’t have a lot of savings for it. I worked full time and started moonlighting so I could build a small client network and save money. Read more>>

Fauzan Jam’an

Yes, I have indeed been able to earn a living from my creative work, specifically in logo design. Of course, I can share my journey with you. Before I started as a logo designer, my wife and I ran a laundry and catering business for students. Read more>>

Adam Lenhard

Growing up in Atlanta, Georgia with my parents, older brother and older sister; I bought my first ukulele when I was 16 years old. When I was 17, I bought my first guitar and began teaching myself how to perform on both instruments. Read more>>

Fatima Hendrix

Earning a full time living from my creative work is a daily reminder of how blessed I am . To bring forth a business that utilizes all my strongest suits, so that I can help others, is an incredible achievement. Read more>>

Delia Ibañez

I have been earning 100% of my income from creative work since graduating university in 2020. I am extremely grateful to have made it through the pandemic still involved in the arts sector. Read more>>

Jenna Johnson

What’s interesting about creative work is you can make it as fast or slow paced as you choose. My work has slowed down a bit since having my fourth child, which was by choice. But I am able to make a full-time living doing the work that I love and having my hands in a variety of projects. Read more>>

Cowboy Destroy

We are a punk band, so we didn’t start the band to make money. If you do that, then you better be playing in a tribute band. Rock music is no longer mainstream, so you have to do it cause you love it, not to win a popularity contest. Read more>>

Pamela Moore

I have not been able to make a full time living with my artwork as yet. Art has always been my passion but life kept me from this path earlier. I became a Mom at the age of 20 years old. I obtained a job that turned into a full time 35 year career. Read more>>

Luis Escribano

I’ve been collecting ALIEN for more than 20 years, 7 years ago I ran out of space at home and I decided to move everything to another space next to my house. Read more>>

Demontae Edmonds

Yes, I have been able to earn a living from my full time creative work. At first I was bi-vocational. It seemed like it would never happen that I would be able to solely focus on speaking and writing. Read more>>

Michelle Gore

I have never been able to earn a full-time living from my creative work. It is something that I wish for so much. I have so many projects and ideas that I would like to pursue but I just can’t afford it. I like to think that if I had a larger platform these ideas could become real. Read more>>

Dan Schultz

After graduating from Pensacola Christian College in Florida with a commercial art degree, I worked for two different companies in Colorado for about six years as a graphic designer. I learned pretty early in that career that graphic design wasn’t very fulfilling work for me. Read more>>

Trenton Thomas

I have been fortunate enough to be able to earn a living full-time from a career in music for the past 10yrs. I started out teaching for a year and a half and during that time I began to prepare mentally and financially to make the transition to becoming a full-time artist. Read more>>

Shea Peters

I never imagined I could build a career from home baking, but somehow I made it happen. After years in various bakeries, I decided to stop working for others and believe in myself. At eight months pregnant, I left my job to bake from home, wanting to both care for my new baby and earn an income. Read more>>

Gordon Ball

Sometimes. Yeah. I’ve been broke my whole life so it doesn’t take a lot to keep me happy. When I take a step back and look at what I have going on, I’m pretty surprised I’ve been able to keep my head above water. Read more>>

Jenny Payne & Lucy Hiku

Our reasons for creating our first children’s album weren’t monetary. At the time it was something we both wanted to do not just for ourselves, but for our families. Read more>>

Sulma Pineda

I started my business late 2020 .. I kepted my full time job for two years. Little by little I started getting very busy , where it became hard to maintain both.I decided to take the plunge and go full force with my business. Read more>>

Zeke Zewick

When I embarked on this creative journey, I was a young person just wanting to earn a living doing something that I enjoyed. I really had no clue where I was headed or what would transpire. Read more>>

Sid Grimes

I have always been inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s story of becoming a full-time filmmaker. I heard him speak about the subject on a podcast once. He said that once he sold his first script, he quit every other job he had and dedicated all his time to writing stories and scripts to make his dream of being a filmmaker a priority. Read more>>

Patrick Osteen

At a very young age I developed a love for performing. At a slightly older age I developed an awareness of the impracticality of supporting oneself in the performance industry. Read more>>

Anna Ison

I have always been creative and have known it is my superpower to communicate through visuals. Being first born of immigrant parents though, there was a definite fear that going into the creative field would mean scarcity. Read more>>

Rafael Rosa

I never thought of the dream of being a full-time musician, much less making a living out of it. 26 years later here I am! At age 13 I fell in love with music and the guitar by accident so to speak. I am a self taught musician, the luck of having a neighbor with multiple guitars and having him lend me one is the blessing of my life. Read more>>