01/17/2008 16:59:45

Alison, I too want to pay off my mortgage and allow my wife to retire.  I just want to do it while doing what I love.  Same as you.  I have a mailing list of about 80 people and I write newsletters I try to send out every couple of months, which I am behind on right now.  I'm trying to start getting into some of the so-called social media... blogging, my-space,you-tubeso on and so forth.  Just a bit overwhelmed at the moment trying to wade through all the different steps.  So what's a good place to start this group?  Do we meet here or is there some where else that is easier for everyone?

01/16/2008 13:32:26

Thanks to you Paintswithsticks for connecting me back to this endeavor. I have to say that I'm more ambitious than you are, Stevem, I want to make enough money to pay off my mortgage, allow my 53 year old husband to retire, and travel a lot.

I'll check out guru.com. Does everyone have a mailing list and an email list? These generate good business for me. I put everyone and anyone on it. I even went through the phone book looking for some people. I send out snail-mailings about 3x/yr and emailswith website attachments about 1x/month. I can check the reponse to my emails through my website and it's pretty good. Most people take a look. I can even see what pages were looked at, if my site was forwarded to other people, and where people live. Also, I contacted the local TV station and got on a local show called NH Chronicle. It made me a local star (for a day). They're going to recycle the show periodically which is great by me.

I own my own gallery so I host events all the time. I also paint in the gallery window which draws people in. This has been the best thing for my career so far.

Alison

01/16/2008 11:35:40

Where should we post these ideas?  A place that we can easily access from our page.  Thanks, Steve, for the contact; I will check it out.

01/05/2008 12:01:48

Hi Alison and Linda,

I guess we should start by defining how we want to make this thing work, and what we want out of our art careers.  I personally just want to be able to support my family doing what I love, creating art.  My idea of succss isn't being that rich and famous artist.  I have told my family I would consider my self successful when I have a monumental sculpture in a public location that kids and adults alike can interact with.  Do we want to start by throwing out ideas we have all used so far to advance our art careers and then maybe we act like a support group and all log back in on a certain day of the week to update our progress.  To start the ball rolling I'll give you one of the things I do to earn income from home.  Linda, there is a site on the web called Guru.com  It is a place where freelance artists can post their qualifications and potential employers will contact you with projects they want to have created.  You can start with a free profile which allows you to bid on 10 projects a month or something like that.  It's a pretty good tool.  You should give that a try.

01/05/2008 08:55:05

P.S. I listed some great shows in Events on this site.  Check out the Sugarloaf shows.  They are super professional, run up and down the east coast and exhibit the style of work you are doing.  Also the Boston Mills show in Ohio. I have a new invitation on my desk for Art on The Grand in Michigan if you are interested.            &nb sp;                 me

01/05/2008 08:49:22

I've been doing shows across the country for 40 years; all that traveling is getting old and I have physical issues that make being home easier to stay healthy.  I have lots of info on shows, displaying and selling retail.  I need info on alternative ways to sell.  Just joined a co op located in a mall.  Contact me; just like alison, tell me what to do next and I will jump in with all fours.            &nb sp;                    me

01/04/2008 18:36:51

Oh yes!! This is a great idea. Count me in. I always have loads of ideas but would love to hear everyone else's. How do we go forward?