It’s no secret that sometimes I don’t do art for months. There are objective reasons, and emotional reasons, and totally silly reasons, but whatever they are—the result is the same: no new art, guilt and shame because I’m not making art, and overall grumpy feeling and lack of enthusiasm because I need my art. In the interest of documenting my methods for the future when it’s bound to happen again, but also to help others who have the same problem, I’ll talk about what I’ve tried and what helps me start again after a long period of not creating. Read more...
In the final installment of my series on the process of self-publishing my first book, I’m laying out 16 tips for authors that will help you prepare for your first self-publishing adventure, or decide whether self-publishing is the right approach for you. Read more...
Writing a book is one thing, but how do you make sure it sells? In the third part of my series on self-publishing, I explain how I started creating anticipation with my audience, set the book price, created the website, launched the ebook, released the paperback, and used live events to drive more interest. Read more...
Writing the draft was a huge milestone for me. Now it was time to make the manuscript presentable and format it into the final book. In the second part of this series, I cover: choosing the book title, book editing, ebook design & formatting, sourcing beta reader feedback, administrative tasks, ebook distribution, paperback formatting, and paperback distribution.
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It wasn’t easy to create a book, and it took way longer than I thought it would. In this series of articles I’ll talk about the whole process, and why I made certain decisions along the way. It’s not intended as advice, but I hope it provides some insight in case you want to self-publish a book of your own. In the first part I cover: why write a book in the first place, how to decide on a topic, how to find the time to write, and the behind-the-scenes of my writing process. Read more...
If you own a business or do creative work for a living, it’s very likely that some (or a lot) of your clients are friends and family. That’s great, right? However, some of your friends and family might think they’re entitled to a discount just because they know you. My stance on this is that friends and family should pay the full price like everyone else, and in this post I explain why that is. Read more...
After watching the movie “Loving Vincent”, my partner asked me: are artists narcissists because they want others to appreciate their art? I thought others may wonder about that as well, so I'm sharing our dialogue and the explanation I gave him on this matter. Read more...
When you’re a creative person, you’re naturally pulled towards new things, experimenting, and reinventing yourself. Doing things consistently and predictably sounds like a total chore. Is this resistance to “being stuck in a box” preventing you from being consistent in your branding? If so, this post it for you. Read more...
A rare person can say “Look at all these things I’ve accomplished, now it’s time I take a well deserved break.” There’s always more to achieve. There’s always a way to become better, and to make a bigger impact. It’s my belief now that pure discipline in the service of success doesn’t lead to a life well lived. Read more...
Dream clients are actual human beings who have bought your services, and you freakin’ love working with them. Graduating from so-so clients to dream clients takes time, but once you get there, you experience a level of ease and joy in your business that nothing else can replace. Read more...