Today I spent part of the afternoon at the Greater Columbus Art Council’s offices for one of their OPPArt (Opportunities for Artists) events. Dawn Friedman, a local freelancer, presented How to Become a Working Artist: What it Takes to Make a Living.
Friedman mainly focused on marketing and branding with a few tips thrown in such as “be your own patron” and “it’s a business”. Writers and artists generally complain that time is taken away from their art to promote themselves or their work. No matter how successful anyone becomes, or how large a staff he/she employs, there are times when simply no one else can handle the business side of things. Honestly, would you read a Julia Roberts interview that was really her assistant answering questions on behalf of Julia?Â
Once I decided to become more serious about my writing all I heard about was platform, platform, platform. It hasn’t made any sense until today when Friedman addressed the topic. She provided excellent examples of branding showing how one artist uses the same logos, fonts and color schemes across various websites. Another example was a writer with a more serious website for her adult books and a much flashier one for her young adult books.Â
Today’s workshop was full and had a waiting list. I suppose a handful of people participated by offering up networking sites, sharing their experiences on the helpfulness of a community of like-minded individuals, and how volunteering time or donating items can be beneficial down the line. It was really exciting to be around other people who are trying to take the next step forward with their artistic endeavors.Â
Hey Amber! Thanks for your kind words! I’m sorry I didn’t get to actually shake hands with you. I didn’t expect so many writers because most of the other workshops have been visual artists. It sounds like you are building a really tremendous career here.
Hi Dawn! Thanks for stopping by and looking around my site.
I had no idea GCAC offered workshops until someone mentioned this particular one to me earlier this month. You seemed very comfortable with the presentation and I really enjoyed your honesty and forthrightness. It helped people open up about their experiences so it was a shared learning environment for everyone.
So many beginning writers I know want a recipe for success and I hate to tell them it doesn’t exist. Everyone’s recipe is different even if many of the main ingredients are shared.