Growing as a Professional Artist: Business for Breakfast, #10
By Leah Cutter
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About this ebook
So, you commit art.
However, you feel...stuck. Unsatisfied. You want to do more as an artist. Can do more.
You just don't know how.
You've seen all the advice books out there, all meant to help you. Most of them come from people who are not artists, haven't struggled with the fear.
This book may help you, but you have to want to change and then be willing to do the hard work.
Inside, find straightforward advice on things you need to think about to grow as an artist. The "Check Ins" provide thoughtful questions, meant to get you pointed in the right direction.
You must to do the work. I cannot want it more than you do.
The Business for Breakfast series contains bite-sized business advice. This is a 201 level book, with intermediate advice for the professional.
Be sure to read all the books in this series!
Leah Cutter
Leah Cutter--a Crawford Award Finalist--writes page-turning fiction in exotic locations, such as New Orleans, ancient China, the Oregon coast, ancient Japan, rual Kentucky, Seattle, Minneapolis, Budapest, etc. Find more fiction by Leah Cutter at www.KnottedRoadPress.com. Follow her blog at www.LeahCutter.com.
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Growing as a Professional Artist - Leah Cutter
You Are an Artist
Yes, You
My base assumption is that one of the reasons you’re reading this book is because you’re an artist. (And not just a writer, which many of you are. This is about the greater thing called art.)
But what does that mean?
It means, first and foremost, that you’re different than most people. There is nothing wrong or shameful about that. I’m aware you’ve probably heard that before.
Do you actually believe it? Deep in your heart, are you comfortable with being an artist? Are you truly okay with marching to a different drummer?
Or does that fact make you feel ashamed occasionally? Do you question whether or not you’re normal? (That is, with the assumption that normal is somehow equivalent with right. For me and other artists I know, normal should be classified as boring.)
It isn’t always easy to accept that eighty-five to ninety percent of the population isn’t like you.
Where did I get that number from? Science!
In the mid-80s, scientists conducted an experiment on thousands of people of different ages, different background, different ethnicities, etc.
The experiment went as thus: put a group of people in a quiet, dimly lit room, then play soft music and make everything as comfortable as possible.
After fifteen minutes, when people have gotten really comfortable and relaxed, have the sound of a gunshot go off in the room. Loudly.
Lastly, test people’s saliva for traces of adrenaline.
Eighty-five to ninety percent of the people tested no longer had any traces of adrenaline in their saliva after twenty minutes.
Ten to fifteen percent of the people tested still had traces of adrenaline in their saliva for as much as two hours after the original gunshot.
Guess who those people were?
You got it. The introverts. (For more information on this study, see The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N. Aron, Ph. D.)
While I know a few artists who are extroverts—mostly musicians—most artists are introverts.
Different than eighty-five to ninety percent of the population.
Accept your differences. Embrace the fact that you are physically wired differently than everyone else. Keep checking in with yourself when you do feel alienated. Remember that it’s okay.
Check In
This is the first of many sections in this book where I’m going to ask you to check in
with yourself.
What I want you to do is to put the book to the side, close your ereader or turn off your phone or actually put the physical book down and ask yourself a question, or meditate on something.
For this check in, ask yourself this:
Are you okay with being different? How okay are you with this?
As part of growing your inner artist, you need to develop acceptance of your differences. Then either embrace them or forgive yourself for them, depending.
I’ll talk more later about not looking outside for judgement but only inside. For now, your work is to accept, embrace, and forgive.
Introverts
I mentioned this in the previous section, that most artists are introverts. What does that mean?
The classic definition is that an introvert gets their energy from being alone, while an extrovert gets their energy by being with other people.
For a great infographic on introverts, and dealing with introverts, see the Hamster Ball comic: http://themetapicture.com/how-to-interact-with-the-introverted/. (This infographic literally changed my husband’s life. The first time he saw it, he suddenly UNDERSTOOD introversion.)
There are shades of meaning with all of this. There are social introverts
—that is, introverts who need time with other people though they also need time alone. There are what we refer to as functional introverts
—that is, an introvert who functions so well in social situations that they frequently fool other people into believing that they’re an extrovert, when they actually aren’t, and they must have alone time in order to recharge. (I fall into this category.) There are the people who define themselves as hermits
—those who have a lot of difficulty in social situations, can’t make eye contact, need to have something to do rather than talk with other people, etc.
For introverts, the single thing that sucks the most energy out of them are expectations.
Going into a social setting (even if it’s just with one or two other people) is hard enough. Having to go into a social setting where there are expectations placed on you is exhausting.
For example, suppose that you’re going to a friend’s party, and this friend is really, really mellow and cool. They know you, accept you as you are, and are okay with you being different. They understand that you may come to their party, sit in the corner and not interact with anyone else, then leave early. They won’t pressure you to interact, to go enjoy yourself
, or even do much more than just check in.
If it’s a really good friend and they know you well enough, they’ll have some task or solitary activity for you to do while you’re at the party. It’s always easier for an introvert to go to a party if there’s something to do other than just talk with people.
Contrast that with something similar to a work function, where you’re expected to go and interact. Or you’re expected to go and chat up people. Or even if you’re expected to go and be responsible for other people. All of that is exhausting.
This brings me to the concept of non-people.
As I’ve mentioned before, people are exhausting. Getting peopled out
is a