A few months ago, I entered my art in an online contest. I did not win as a top finalist, but I kind of did win (more on that at the end of this post!). Today I’m sharing what I learned from this experience and from contests I’ve entered in the past. Not all competitions […]

A little over six years ago, I was sitting at my desk job as an in-house designer for a local newspaper. I had dreams of painting patterns, seeing my art on products, and running my own creative business full-time. I had been adding to my savings for over year, took a business plan class, and […]

If you’re an artist, you’ve probably been asked for free or discounted art at some point. Whether it was from a friend or family member, a business, or even another artist – it’s likely you’ve heard it one way or another. But what are you supposed to say when someone wants you to work for […]

Are you thinking about becoming self-employed? In recent years, and maybe even since the pandemic, it seems like being self-employed is becoming more and more enticing. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there are 9.651 million self-employed people in the U.S. (April 2021). This is about 30% of the total U.S. population. […]