The world needs artists and creatives. Unfortunately, being needed doesn’t often easily translate into financial stability. The struggle is real for so many incredibly talented artists and creatives and so we think it’s important to hear from creatives who have made it work – there is so much to learn from the folks we’ve featured below.

Ceaser Beavers

Yes, I’ve been fortunate enough to earn a full-time living from my creative work, but it definitely didn’t start out that way. I worked in a factory for seven years, putting in 12-hour shifts, and then I’d come home and grind on graphics until it was time to sleep. On my days off, I didn’t rest. I doubled down and focused entirely on building my skills, client base, and portfolio. Read more>>

Dylan Query

After officially starting Query Productions in 2019, I spent years paying my bills with day jobs and weekend video gigs. I always told myself that my business would only ever be a side job and I was comfortable with that. And yet… As the years passed, I felt less and less fulfilled in my day jobs. Having not quite figured out my true dream, I took a big jump to leave my stable corporate job to go work for a non profit in Indianapolis. This was the first domino in a long series of dominos to fall. Read more>>

Elena Sullivan

Yes, I am a photographer and have been supporting myself through my creative work for almost 15 years. My journey began in Cancun, Mexico, where I spent nine years building a photography business from the ground up. At first, it was mainly destination weddings and family portraits on the beach. It wasn’t easy—I didn’t have a roadmap or business background, just my passion, my camera, and an unshakable belief that I could turn this into a sustainable career. Read more>>

Dalila Seruntine

My Husband had been a full time drummer for years before we began dating,
I always loved singing along to the radio, and had a small hope I could actually sing in some type of public way. My husband was immersed in the New Orleans music scene so it provoked me to pursue and develop myself as a singer. I sang in front of one his best friends bassist Roy Pope, and he affirmed my gift so to speak. But I definitely had to take steps of learning, and the majority of that happened at Church but also Bourbon Street in New Orleans! Read more>>

Tom Coyne

I never expected to make a living as a writer, and in some ways, I don’t. I’ve written six books with a few bestsellers in the mix, but I don’t crank them out every year, and if you space out that book income over the course of a career, it doesn’t necessarily support a family of four with college for our kids on the horizon. The key to earning a living is in the hustle and the pursuit of opportunities that come away from writing but that have grown out of the books. I write about golf and the interesting places it is played, so that has allowed me to get into the golf tour business, and I’m now working in golf course design as well. Read more>>

Traci Rabbit

I have been a full time artist since I graduated from College with a Bachelors in Business Administration. I was self taught by my father who was also a self taught full time artist. It did not happen over night. God laughs when you make plans for he has other plans for you. This is exactly what happened to me. I do not think I could have sped up the process. Going through all the trials made me a better artist and business person. Read more>>

Tanner Kelly

I am very lucky to work for a lot of amazing places and am fortunate to say all of my jobs are in the arts. My undergrad was at the Lamont School of Music in Denver and while I was getting my performance degree, I started to dabble on the production side of things, rather than focusing solely on performing. I quickly found that I wanted to be a versatile player in the arts and spend some shows on stage, and then be able to direct, music direct, choreograph or play in the pits for other shows. Read more>>

Patrice DeVincentis

I prepared for my career by earning a Bachelor of Music Degree from Westminster Choir College and a Master of Music Degree from Temple University, the traditional route. However, my passion lie in electronic music. I ventured out to San Francisco and had some success playing in a band there, but returned to the East Coast. There I decided to take a music teaching position. Through those five years, I kept focused on technology and music. Eventually, I left a tenured secured position to create my own production Studio ..Sonic Surgery. Read more>>

Brielle Yuke Li

Yes, very fortunately, I have. It took years of building trust, skill, and a solid reputation in the industry. I’m an independent producer working across film and entertainment — from festival-circuit features to vertical series that have made waves in the industry and reached millions online. Read more>>

Bruce Gardner

I was lucky to.have worked in the music industry at a very young age playing keyboard for local area bands and producing music for other artist. I also became a session musician for a production company that had several artists with lable deals, so i.learned about song splits, publishing royalties etc. Read more>>

Wyatt Justice

I’ve been working full time for almost four years now. I made the leap from my old job as a pharmacy tech in September of 2021 and had almost no success building a fan base outside of my friends and immediate family for several months. It was very worrisome to say the least. I had a couple of shows a month for about six months, but then the operators of The Ranch Bar & Grill took a chance and booked me along with the band I was playing with at the time. We played that first show and they asked me if I would like to play solo every Wednesday shortly thereafter. Read more>>

Jenny Cocq

Being an artist is a journey. It does not have a beginning or an end. Making a living as an artist can take a few different forms depending on your personality, strengths, or ambitions. I had been an artist my whole life. It was not a lifestyle choice or a career choice. It was that “art” chose me to do it. Read more>>

Jana Junker

No – I’ve always had side jobs alongside my creative practice. Especially in the beginning, I deliberately looked for work that took place in the evenings or at night, so I could protect my daytime hours for artistic work. That helped me carve out time and space – but over time, that split felt increasingly unsatisfying. Read more>>

Janet Abbey

or years, I supported myself through the planning side of events—logistics, timelines, vendor wrangling. And while I’m proud of that foundation, it’s what that structure unlocked that truly lights me up: the creative design side.

Today, most of my events allow me to fully step into that creative space—bringing a vision to life, layering in thoughtful details, and crafting environments that feel personal and unforgettable. Read more>>

Arushi Sharma

I feel fortunate to be able to earn a full-time living from my creative learnings. I think every aspect of my journey, including graduation projects, thesis, and internships, has helped me get to where I am today. I started my career as a print designer with a print studio. I hand-painted most days, sometimes for eight hours straight, while learning the technicalities of print design for commercial use. From hand-painting to making artwork ready for mass production, this is an art I’ve mastered. For my next job, I was hired as a textile designer, where I didn’t just work on prints but also worked on various embroideries and woven textiles for different soft home product categories. Read more>>

Gen Polansky

Yes, I’ve been fortunate to earn a full-time living from my creative work as a saxophonist, composer, and producer — but it definitely wasn’t like that from day one. It’s been a long journey built on persistence, adaptability, and a deep passion for music. Read more>>

Alison Sigethy

I have been a full time artist for the last 20 years and made a good living at it, but that didn’t happen all at once. When I first started, I was trying to make pieces I thought would sell. That is a terrible strategy for an artist. Artwork is only valuable if it is unique, and making pieces you think will sell, by definition, means it is similar to something that already exists. That’s not unique, so it’s not especially valuable. When I finally let that go and just made the sculptures I wanted to make, my work got interesting and people became interested in it. I have not worried about sales since. Read more>>

Sarah Grace Canja

Like many other creatives, I have chosen the well-worn path of Teach to Survive and Write to Thrive. What I mean by this is that working in education allows me the necessities of life—rent, insurance, human connection—while also providing evenings, weekends and entire summers dedicated to pursuing writing. What I enjoy about teaching high school English is that it still fringes on my interests of composition and literature but varies enough to be able to disconnect one from the other. I am just as much a teacher as a writer and truly don’t think either work would be as meaningful without the either. Read more>>

Samantha Shammas

As of 2022 I have been full time in my creative business without the need for a part time job or side hustle. I started on Etsy after graduating college in 2013 and, at the time, always thought illustration would be a permanent side job. I officially registered my business in 2017 and in 2018 decided to go full in. I never intended to be an entrepreneur, but after multiple layoffs, it seemed that working for myself was the smarter option. Read more>>

Jessica Henkin

My upbringing was complicated. Creativity ran through my family, but so did hardship—my parents and sibling struggled with substance abuse and financial instability. Somehow, through some magic of the universe, I became the first person in my family to graduate from college. Read more>>

Jessica Rowden

Earning a full-time living from creative work is certainly a rare thing and I feel extremely lucky to have found ways to make it possible thus far. When I graduated college, I started full time at a creative studio here in Detroit called First Fight. They did an amazing job of bringing me into the professional art world. I learned a lot, wore plenty of hats, and grew my skills every day. Read more>>

Leonardo Weiss

I’ve been lucky to make a living as an artist ever since I graduated from SVA, where I studied 2D animation. While I was still in school, I got an internship that led to my first job—an animated show on IFC. It was a crash course in how the industry works, and one of the first things I learned is that gigs don’t always last. I had to start figuring out how to keep things going. Read more>>

Cassandra Neece

I feel so fortunate that I have gotten to a point where I earn a full-time living from my creative work but it definitely did not start off that way. At first, I had other part time jobs that helped me pay the bills while I was getting clients here and there. Also, when I started I didn’t have a great handle on how much to charge for my creative work. It’s such a tough spot for creatives! Overtime, I learned more about how much value I was bringing with my work and I also improved my processes as a designer so I could increase my rates. I also invested in courses and mentors that helped me focus on growing my business into what I really wanted it to be. Read more>>

Alyssa O’Neal

Yes, I do earn a full-time living with my creative work, but it wasn’t always that way. I started dabbling in teaching Ballroom private lessons (mostly to wedding couple I knew personally, or fellow members of our collegiate competition team) as I was going to graduate school for Art History/3-D Modeling. While I loved being a student, and constructing 3-D worlds, at times it was incredibly lonely. So, as I craved more personal, one-on-one interactions, I decided to take the leap teaching Ballroom professionally for a small studio in Minnesota. Read more>>

Geancarlos Martinez

No, it definitely wasn’t like that from day one. I’ve been painting for over 15 years now, but it took time, consistency, and a lot of trial and error to turn my passion into a sustainable living. I started like many artists do—taking on whatever jobs I could find, building my skills and portfolio one mural at a time. I didn’t have a blueprint; I just knew I loved transforming spaces with my art, especially when it came to bringing natural elements into urban environments. Read more>>

Tyler Mele

Like many kids from the rural Midwest, I wanted to take advantage of The American Dream. So, shortly after graduation, I filled up my car with what little would fit, said goodbye to everything I knew and everyone I loved and drove across the country using a tom tom and a motel travel guide. With no job, no money, and no connections I worked my way into some of the most respected animation studios in Los Angeles. Read more>>

Mick Blankenship

Yes, my loyal following has been super supportive. With donations and subscriptions, I have been able to tour and continue to make music. Read more>>