I remember back when I was about four years old, and I was colouring in the same book with my Mom, she was on one page and I was on the other. I think it was a Three Little Pigs colouring book or something, it's a little hazy. But what I DO remember is when I was done, I looked down at my page, feeling all proud and stuff. It was a little too much red on one side, and I just barely made it inside the lines... and okay fine, maybe tomatoes aren't blue, but it was my creation and I thought it was best thing I'd ever created... and then I looked over at Mama's. Hers was absolutely perfect! It was all in the lines and brightly coloured, there were even places where she put in her own little details, with, like, light and shadows and stuff-- just crayon-coated perfection! I look back over at mine, and now it looks like someone snorted a bunch o' crayons and sneezed on it.
I was four.
I never looked at colouring the same way again.
From that point on, I was careful to colour in the lines, and I was sure to pay attention when I made mistakes. Then I started drawing for the first time; it was a yacht with little sailors on it.
Those were the best stick figures I'd ever made in my life!
From that time on, I knew that I was in love with creating things. I've always been the crafty one in the family.
My Mom's favourite joke;
"Just give her two sticks, a piece of foil, and some syrup , and she'll build you a house! With plumbing!"
Now, obviously that's not true; I haven't been able to do that. I never managed to get the plumbing to work.
My point is that I've always been the one who could do it all with out question. Things just came to me easily. I've made so may wonderful things, and sang in recitals, and sculpted statues and other creations for whole organizations. I've even gone so far as won awards for my work.... and yet I'm still living with my Mom in my early 30s, which made me beg the question,
*ahem*
WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING WRONG!?
I've had opportunities come knocking at my door, but I always seem to be just short of really excelling in a career as a creative nut. I've given it some thought, and I've thought of a few things that were getting in my way;
1] My self esteem/lack of confidence
2] Lack of commitment
3] No patience
These three things are -- what I've noticed -- the main reasons that not only I, but many other people are suffering from that are keeping all of us from greatness.
Oh! And I forgot one more! And this is a big one for me:
4] Too much on my plate
This was a BIG problem for me!
It wasn't that I had so many abilities, but that I was trying to use them all at once, as if I was running out of time or something!
Luckily, I've thought of something: if I find outlets to help keep me on track as I sort through the cartoon hurricane that is my life, then maybe I'll be able to get through life and not drown in it.
SO, here are some things that I want to start in this FIRST, in life (and it's a short one):
1) Publish my writing
I don't know if me writing this post gave it away, but, in case you haven't noticed, I LOVE to write! Especially poetry!
as matter of fact, I actually have an E - book coming out really soon of poetry, and I'm using amazon.com's self - publishing software to spread it out. More word on that later.
2) Establish Myself Around Town
There was a time when I was doing this sort of art business in Florida where I was spreading like a virus by word of mouth that they wanted paintings and drawings and cartoons for either themselves or for some business they're doing.
Now, Here in Michigan, I've lost all my clients because I WASN'T ESTABLISHED ANYWHERE! Not online, not on paper, business cards, no local advertising of any kind, just word of mouth. that was all! Now I know that's bad for business, but I didn't start the business in the first place, it just... happened, you know? And I just went along with it. my clients were even setting their own prices at first.
So, let me just say that #2 on this list used to be "establish myself online", but as you can see, I've already done that. (by the way, you can also find me on Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr, There's a link at the bottom of the page.)
Now that I've done that, I want to establish myself in the cute little artsy town I've been dropped intonotbychoiceIwasbroughtherekickingandscreamingbutnowthatI'mstuckherebyassociationImightaswellmakethebestofit.
It's a really a great town!
No but seriously, If you're looking to establish yourself as an artist, this town, Marquette, Michigan is a great place to start, especially in the summer. I'll write a whole different article on Marquette later, but there's this Co-op art gallery in town that I want to get into, but they have a lot of requirements that need to be met before I can get into it.
I know that I can do better than this. I just have to focus... right? Just focus and I-- ooh, almonds! I found some almonds.
Anyway, everything else I've said along the way, (y'know, the four things I said in this article), will come in time. I'm starting the Blog so that I can keep track of my progress.
Also, I wanted to connect with other people trying to work their way up in this industry. It's hard to make it at first when everyone's screaming LOOK AT WHAT I'VE MADE all at the same time, so if we work on a network that lofts each other, we'll be heard a lot better.
Is anyone else a struggling artist? Comment below! Let's talk!
Talk to you later with an update.
I was four.
I never looked at colouring the same way again.
From that point on, I was careful to colour in the lines, and I was sure to pay attention when I made mistakes. Then I started drawing for the first time; it was a yacht with little sailors on it.
Those were the best stick figures I'd ever made in my life!
From that time on, I knew that I was in love with creating things. I've always been the crafty one in the family.
My Mom's favourite joke;
"Just give her two sticks, a piece of foil, and some syrup , and she'll build you a house! With plumbing!"
Now, obviously that's not true; I haven't been able to do that. I never managed to get the plumbing to work.
My point is that I've always been the one who could do it all with out question. Things just came to me easily. I've made so may wonderful things, and sang in recitals, and sculpted statues and other creations for whole organizations. I've even gone so far as won awards for my work.... and yet I'm still living with my Mom in my early 30s, which made me beg the question,
*ahem*
WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING WRONG!?
I've had opportunities come knocking at my door, but I always seem to be just short of really excelling in a career as a creative nut. I've given it some thought, and I've thought of a few things that were getting in my way;
1] My self esteem/lack of confidence
2] Lack of commitment
3] No patience
These three things are -- what I've noticed -- the main reasons that not only I, but many other people are suffering from that are keeping all of us from greatness.
Oh! And I forgot one more! And this is a big one for me:
4] Too much on my plate
This was a BIG problem for me!
It wasn't that I had so many abilities, but that I was trying to use them all at once, as if I was running out of time or something!
Luckily, I've thought of something: if I find outlets to help keep me on track as I sort through the cartoon hurricane that is my life, then maybe I'll be able to get through life and not drown in it.
SO, here are some things that I want to start in this FIRST, in life (and it's a short one):
1) Publish my writing
I don't know if me writing this post gave it away, but, in case you haven't noticed, I LOVE to write! Especially poetry!
as matter of fact, I actually have an E - book coming out really soon of poetry, and I'm using amazon.com's self - publishing software to spread it out. More word on that later.
2) Establish Myself Around Town
There was a time when I was doing this sort of art business in Florida where I was spreading like a virus by word of mouth that they wanted paintings and drawings and cartoons for either themselves or for some business they're doing.
Now, Here in Michigan, I've lost all my clients because I WASN'T ESTABLISHED ANYWHERE! Not online, not on paper, business cards, no local advertising of any kind, just word of mouth. that was all! Now I know that's bad for business, but I didn't start the business in the first place, it just... happened, you know? And I just went along with it. my clients were even setting their own prices at first.
So, let me just say that #2 on this list used to be "establish myself online", but as you can see, I've already done that. (by the way, you can also find me on Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr, There's a link at the bottom of the page.)
Now that I've done that, I want to establish myself in the cute little artsy town I've been dropped intonotbychoiceIwasbroughtherekickingandscreamingbutnowthatI'mstuckherebyassociationImightaswellmakethebestofit.
It's a really a great town!
No but seriously, If you're looking to establish yourself as an artist, this town, Marquette, Michigan is a great place to start, especially in the summer. I'll write a whole different article on Marquette later, but there's this Co-op art gallery in town that I want to get into, but they have a lot of requirements that need to be met before I can get into it.
I know that I can do better than this. I just have to focus... right? Just focus and I-- ooh, almonds! I found some almonds.
Anyway, everything else I've said along the way, (y'know, the four things I said in this article), will come in time. I'm starting the Blog so that I can keep track of my progress.
Also, I wanted to connect with other people trying to work their way up in this industry. It's hard to make it at first when everyone's screaming LOOK AT WHAT I'VE MADE all at the same time, so if we work on a network that lofts each other, we'll be heard a lot better.
Is anyone else a struggling artist? Comment below! Let's talk!
Talk to you later with an update.
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