Earning that first dollar is incredibly special and a moment many never forget. We asked some very talented creatives from the community to tell u s the story of the first dollar they earned from their creative works.

Deja Cain

Over the years, I have released a slew of songs, including several singles, and an EP. As of recently, I was finally able to generate revenue from my streams. Because of how well my listeners were streaming my music, I was able to be rewarded with a paycheck, which was amazing. Read more>>

Amy Heitman

The first dollar I ever earned as a creative was in sixth grade. I had entered a watercolor still life painting of a few apples on a plate in our school fine arts festival and received a letter from our principal asking if they could purchase the painting to hang in the hallway as part of a new gallery. I was so excited and honored to have someone value something I’d created. Read more>>

Elena Prohnitchi

The first time I got paid to do what I love was one of the best feelings I ever had. I still sometimes sit down on the couch in the evening and think of how grateful I am to be paid to do what I truly love. Read more>>

Nikoteenie

It was an exciting and scary time when I first generated revenue from my creative work. It was the year 2020 and we all wore a specific accessory. All jokes aside, masks were a necessity and at the beginning of the pandemic they were hard to come by. I began to sell cloth masks that I sewed and embroidered with custom designs. Read more>>

Eli Zemper

I don’t know if it is the FIRST dollar I earned as a creative, but it’s the first dollar I earned after I decided to make the jump from being a high school teacher (what I’ve done for the last 26 years) to helping people address their mental health by offering clay workshops. We live in a rural area and don’t have access to an art center, so creative programming is limited. Read more>>

Jenna Trethewey

I earned my first dollar about a month after I started creating jewelry. I figured out the painstaking Etsy platform & listed some earrings. I had no idea what I was doing & was totally afraid. But, my newly adopted motto “Do It Afraid” was whispering to me so I did it. Read more>>

James Miille

My first dollar with my art was also the first moment that I realized I could use my experience with photography in the form I wanted to: making inspiring, mystical, vibrant fine art portraits, rather than pivoting to a career in advertising or wedding photography. Read more>>

Herbert Mallory

I earned my first paid gig of $20.00 with my homeboy from elementary school. He used to host open mics called The Cleanse, and has been doing it for maybe 2 years before my show. But despite that, we were his first actual Rap act, we being myself and SaintRuss, who’s also from Baltimore. To say the least, we were excited as well as anxious to get the show moving. Read more>>

Keith Montgomery

My first sale off my services was a friend from the neighborhood. I started teaching myself how to do graphic design and wanted to design my own products. Andre asked me to produced a flyer for his event he was having and it was shared over 900 times on Social Media. I Advertised it a few times on the net and he ended up being my first customer. From there, everyone wanted a flyer/logo. Read more>>

Toryn Avery

The initial way that I sold my pottery was at the farmers market in my hometown; I’ll never forget my first one. I had officially started my business that week, but hadn’t set up any social media yet, so it was just by word of mouth that anyone knew about Opal Ceramics. So, I had no idea how my first day would go and I was definitely nervous. Within the first half hour of the market, I sold my first pot. Read more>>