Can I challenge that? I bet you know exactly what you want, but you're afraid that it won't bring you clients or enough money. If money or success wasn't an issue, and you just did exactly what you love, what would that be?
@@TheArtMentor I really don't. I have a minimum of seven different stories that I want to make and notebooks and binders of information for each, each a different genre, and I can't decide what I want to focus on, especially because my personal interests shift focus frequently.
"What can I do that a machine cant?" I think about the commissions I've had where the client has had all these little specific changes they've wanted like, can you tilt the angle this character's head this way more, can you adjust the shade of this clothing? Or when they have a vague idea of what they want, but it takes an actual artist to bring it to life for them. By selling your art, you are giving a service and experience the client wont be able to get on their own or with a machine!
This was just what I needed. Even though I know what I should do to get out there and start looking for commissions, I always freeze up just before I actually get started. I hear all the negative thoughts in my head at once, and I just don't do anything. The biggest takeaway for me from this video was three words: *Pull The Trigger* Don't dwell on the doubts. Don't focus on all the things that you're convinced will go wrong. *Just get started.* Thanks, Teach!
@@TheArtMentor i had to make the character sheet, which included character turnaround (side, front, back profiles) and character expressing 5 expressions.
Everyone here, If you have done commission work in the past for a client where do you mostly get them from? do you mostly get them from online or mostly get them in person?
not that its super reliable but you can try various smaller online communities. the traffic is smaller and you are more likely to be noticed. there is also places like r/starvingartists where you could find potential job listings. you can also try "cold calling" talk to people that might be potential clients and see if they are in the mood for purchases.
Hi, I have been maratoning your commission videos lmao, and youdont have an idea how helpful it is, straight to the point, clear, and from a proffesional. I did a price sheet and I feel more comfortable that way, but i do agree with you about how limitating that is, i already had different examples and not just one, and its easy to understand, so its decent, i added a text that says that the price may vary since the sheet its just a reference and i invite them to dm me about their request so we can figure out a price. What do you think? Still a bad idea?
Thanks so much for your support! Please always feel free to ask me any questions about what you watch and I'll be happy to answer them. For your price sheet, how about just ditching it all together? You'll, surprisingly, do much better without it. However, if you feel compelled to start using one, how about getting your first three commissions so that you'll feel validated with customers, and then ditching it forever? How does that sound?
@@TheArtMentor i did plan to do that! Lets see how it goes, if I feel more comfortable and throw away the sheet, I will just open commisions giving the minimum price that I accept, so people would be more encouraged to dm me and talk about their ideas. Thank you!
6:43 Is it too bad to have a carrd website just displaying Illustration without prices as a portfolio? If yes, where could I upload my art? as an aditional question, How do you manage clients having different currency than USD dollar? Do you make the invoice in USD and paypal deals with the conversion? Thank you for the content! I have watched quite a lot of them already and I find them sort of therapeutic
Fair questions! So honestly, I don't think you should ever take a client off-platform to show them your work because it creates an annoying barrier for people looking on phones (which most clients do). What platforms are you advertising/posting on? For translating to USD, it's honestly never been an issue for me, and I do mostly international business with art clients. That becomes the client's concern to google a currency translator, but it's very simple so long as they know your price in USD. I've always simply sent clients my Paypal.me link and asked for payment rather than invoices where you need too much information and they get lost and it gets annoying lol. How does that sound?
@@TheArtMentor Thank you for clearing my doubts about the different currencies ^^. I've started using DevianArt mostly due to how easy is to create galleries with high resolution artworks and share them. Also after watching so much of your videos I started to feel a little bit empowered and I started to use reddit communities and DevianArt forum while applying the advices you give about how to comment and promote oneself without displaying artwork as a "food menu". Your videos have been extremely helpful when it comes to value one's self time and skills. Thank you
i would appreciate some content about handling internet puritans. i currently avoid big platforms like twitter because you can get dog piled on for the most mundane reasons like "your character isnt fat enough" or "youre a misogynist because you made a woman in a bikini"
@@TheArtMentor they are miserable people , usually from the political left,whom take issue with arbitrary details of artworks because they see everything and anything trough the lens of leftist politics. for example if you draw a female character being a mother you are "sexist" "right wing nazi " or "anti trans" . they usually form entire mobs to attack the artist in question. the most famous and recent example was JoCat. A TH-cam animator whom was basically bullied off the internet because he said "i like woman" in an old video and people assumed it was an anti trans statement. they sometimes edit and repost your art without permission to make a white character black or a female character fat and so on. basically a small scale cancell culture bullying campaign based on politics .
Why do you say that? I only warned against NSFW when using PayPal bc it’s against their terms of service and will get your account frozen. I hope you didn’t think I said to just flat out do it 😅
@TheArtMentor I'm more or less frustrated that we nsfw artists want to make an honest living doing what we enjoy, we paybour taxes, and do our best to keep those who shouldnt see our content away from it. but i feel like opportunities for us are fleeting because of how puritanical payment processors are getting. How do they expect us to stay above board when they wont even let us in the first place?
@@TheArtMentorhi Mr ArtMentor, I’m not currently an NSFW artist but I am curious - what platform would you be able to get paid on for nsfw work if not PayPal?
So I’m no expert on the intricacies of nsfw invoicing, but I’d check out squarespace or stripe. Mind checking and getting back to me? I’d love know in case I get asked again. Have you looked into those yet?
@@TheArtMentor for starters for the longest tome the average commission price for a full character was between 50-75 dollars and was expected to have a turn out time of the same day at a convention… price sheets are pretty much an expectation or you pretty much don’t get work. And, paying ahead of time was so often a frowned on practice. But it was kind of a different culture of artists I suppose, most their income came from making badges at conventions.
Hmm I guess for many privacy and peace of mind could also be a great fear and hold them back from putting themselfs out there. Especially for girl artists. Like people will see your full name and maybe even adress if they send payment. And regarding direct messaging - don't people without boundaries message you all day, maybe even demanding to answer asap ?
So would you rather have a username for your interactions? Most artists do and that keeps their anonymity. And regarding your DM question, is that for when people specifically reach out to me, or when you’re working with clients?
I'm not afraid of focusing on a niche, I just have trouble choosing one to focus on because several different ones get my mind running
So which one do you love the most out of all of those?
@@TheArtMentor that's the part I'm having trouble with lol
Can I challenge that? I bet you know exactly what you want, but you're afraid that it won't bring you clients or enough money. If money or success wasn't an issue, and you just did exactly what you love, what would that be?
@@TheArtMentor I really don't. I have a minimum of seven different stories that I want to make and notebooks and binders of information for each, each a different genre, and I can't decide what I want to focus on, especially because my personal interests shift focus frequently.
@StrawberryNova then why not just pick one and go with it for a while?
"What can I do that a machine cant?" I think about the commissions I've had where the client has had all these little specific changes they've wanted like, can you tilt the angle this character's head this way more, can you adjust the shade of this clothing? Or when they have a vague idea of what they want, but it takes an actual artist to bring it to life for them. By selling your art, you are giving a service and experience the client wont be able to get on their own or with a machine!
Exactly! Thanks so much for sharing your experience! Our infinite ability to define specifics makes us human artists irreplaceable, doesn’t it?
This was just what I needed. Even though I know what I should do to get out there and start looking for commissions, I always freeze up just before I actually get started. I hear all the negative thoughts in my head at once, and I just don't do anything.
The biggest takeaway for me from this video was three words: *Pull The Trigger*
Don't dwell on the doubts. Don't focus on all the things that you're convinced will go wrong. *Just get started.*
Thanks, Teach!
Thanks so much for your support my friend 😁 so what are you going to use that advice to accomplish this year?
Just completed commission work i feel so good! Thank you for guiding me sensei!
That’s awesome! So proud of you!! What was the job??
@@TheArtMentor i had to make the character sheet, which included character turnaround (side, front, back profiles) and character expressing 5 expressions.
good for you! Keep it up!!
Just started watching your videos..... I love the topics you cover.... I share them with my students.....
Keep up the good work
Thanks so much! What do you teach?
You got my subscribe. :D
Thanks so much for your support! What did you enjoy the most in this video?
@@TheArtMentor Calling out my BS and telling me I can do anything I want if I put my mind to it. :3
haha happy to have helped you!
This was a very encouraging video!
Thank you for everything Sean 💗
Happy to help! Which of these fears have you encountered?
Everyone here, If you have done commission work in the past for a client where do you mostly get them from? do you mostly get them from online or mostly get them in person?
not that its super reliable but you can try various smaller online communities. the traffic is smaller and you are more likely to be noticed. there is also places like r/starvingartists where you could find potential job listings. you can also try "cold calling" talk to people that might be potential clients and see if they are in the mood for purchases.
Happy to help! Have you seen my guides on where and how to find clients? I can provide you the link here if you’d like
Hi, I have been maratoning your commission videos lmao, and youdont have an idea how helpful it is, straight to the point, clear, and from a proffesional. I did a price sheet and I feel more comfortable that way, but i do agree with you about how limitating that is, i already had different examples and not just one, and its easy to understand, so its decent, i added a text that says that the price may vary since the sheet its just a reference and i invite them to dm me about their request so we can figure out a price. What do you think? Still a bad idea?
Thanks so much for your support! Please always feel free to ask me any questions about what you watch and I'll be happy to answer them.
For your price sheet, how about just ditching it all together? You'll, surprisingly, do much better without it. However, if you feel compelled to start using one, how about getting your first three commissions so that you'll feel validated with customers, and then ditching it forever? How does that sound?
@@TheArtMentor i did plan to do that! Lets see how it goes, if I feel more comfortable and throw away the sheet, I will just open commisions giving the minimum price that I accept, so people would be more encouraged to dm me and talk about their ideas. Thank you!
6:43 Is it too bad to have a carrd website just displaying Illustration without prices as a portfolio? If yes, where could I upload my art?
as an aditional question, How do you manage clients having different currency than USD dollar? Do you make the invoice in USD and paypal deals with the conversion?
Thank you for the content! I have watched quite a lot of them already and I find them sort of therapeutic
Fair questions! So honestly, I don't think you should ever take a client off-platform to show them your work because it creates an annoying barrier for people looking on phones (which most clients do). What platforms are you advertising/posting on?
For translating to USD, it's honestly never been an issue for me, and I do mostly international business with art clients. That becomes the client's concern to google a currency translator, but it's very simple so long as they know your price in USD. I've always simply sent clients my Paypal.me link and asked for payment rather than invoices where you need too much information and they get lost and it gets annoying lol.
How does that sound?
@@TheArtMentor Thank you for clearing my doubts about the different currencies ^^.
I've started using DevianArt mostly due to how easy is to create galleries with high resolution artworks and share them.
Also after watching so much of your videos I started to feel a little bit empowered and I started to use reddit communities and DevianArt forum while applying the advices you give about how to comment and promote oneself without displaying artwork as a "food menu".
Your videos have been extremely helpful when it comes to value one's self time and skills.
Thank you
i would appreciate some content about handling internet puritans. i currently avoid big platforms like twitter because you can get dog piled on for the most mundane reasons like "your character isnt fat enough" or "youre a misogynist because you made a woman in a bikini"
Hm can you give me a little more info please? What would you define as an internet puritan?
@@TheArtMentor they are miserable people , usually from the political left,whom take issue with arbitrary details of artworks because they see everything and anything trough the lens of leftist politics. for example if you draw a female character being a mother you are "sexist" "right wing nazi " or "anti trans" . they usually form entire mobs to attack the artist in question. the most famous and recent example was JoCat. A TH-cam animator whom was basically bullied off the internet because he said "i like woman" in an old video and people assumed it was an anti trans statement. they sometimes edit and repost your art without permission to make a white character black or a female character fat and so on. basically a small scale cancell culture bullying campaign based on politics .
Can I just advise you to stay off Twitter then? There's a reason I do lol
????
Glad to know I just got told to f myself as an nsfw artist.
Why do you say that? I only warned against NSFW when using PayPal bc it’s against their terms of service and will get your account frozen. I hope you didn’t think I said to just flat out do it 😅
@TheArtMentor I'm more or less frustrated that we nsfw artists want to make an honest living doing what we enjoy, we paybour taxes, and do our best to keep those who shouldnt see our content away from it. but i feel like opportunities for us are fleeting because of how puritanical payment processors are getting.
How do they expect us to stay above board when they wont even let us in the first place?
@@TheArtMentorhi Mr ArtMentor, I’m not currently an NSFW artist but I am curious - what platform would you be able to get paid on for nsfw work if not PayPal?
@@DJ_BoomBear for what it's worth, I send clients invoices through Square and haven't had a problem yet
So I’m no expert on the intricacies of nsfw invoicing, but I’d check out squarespace or stripe. Mind checking and getting back to me? I’d love know in case I get asked again. Have you looked into those yet?
Damn… I’m learning that the furry fandom does everything about professional art wrong…
Oh yeah? Such as what?
@@TheArtMentor for starters for the longest tome the average commission price for a full character was between 50-75 dollars and was expected to have a turn out time of the same day at a convention… price sheets are pretty much an expectation or you pretty much don’t get work. And, paying ahead of time was so often a frowned on practice. But it was kind of a different culture of artists I suppose, most their income came from making badges at conventions.
I know of artists that don’t follow those methods who make bank as well 👍
Hmm I guess for many privacy and peace of mind could also be a great fear and hold them back from putting themselfs out there.
Especially for girl artists.
Like people will see your full name and maybe even adress if they send payment.
And regarding direct messaging - don't people without boundaries message you all day, maybe even demanding to answer asap ?
So would you rather have a username for your interactions? Most artists do and that keeps their anonymity.
And regarding your DM question, is that for when people specifically reach out to me, or when you’re working with clients?
So if you do want to do NSFW, what good alternative is there to PayPal? 😶
Good question. Sorry but I’m not in that space in all honesty 😅 anyone recommend an answer that’s reading this for those who want to know?