How do you make your art pay?

Maybe you’re not bothered about money – you’re happy enough just sketching for fun, and that’s fine. Most creatives struggle to make a living from their art and do other stuff too. Unless you’re one of the lucky few.

I’m not one of the lucky few by the way. I share my art with friends and am just happy if someone else enjoys it as much as I do.

Then one day a friend suggested I should sell my art. I thought it was a joke at first. Sell it? How? Who would pay? These were just some of the questions rattling around in my head.

Usual disclaimer here (before I go any further) – this is not financial advice, this is just my personal experience, yadder, yadder, yadder. I did a bit of research and came across the “Buy me a coffee” site.

The basic premise is that if someone likes your art and they want to use it (to put on a T-shirt, include in a story, add to a website, or whatever) they can buy you a coffee as a thank you. We’re talking about easy micro-payments here. You’re not asking the earth – just a simple acknowledgement (in the form of a coffee) which most people can afford to do.

Anyway, I set up my own page (you can also get to it by scanning the QR code below) and added a few pieces. I decided to specialise in old school DnD art, because that’s what I enjoy sketching anyway. It’s a simple style – black and white, using ink, often with a dark fantasy theme.

I really don’t mind if I don’t make much from it. It’s just nice to be appreciated for something that you put a lot of time and effort into. That first time someone bought me a coffee though, for my art, was a real buzz!