Well hello thar.

This weekend should be fun:

1) Sunday I start on the Artists Way.  Im feeling like it can help me, I must silence my Critic!

2) House Cleaning of DOoooOoooOOOOOM! Yeah. Its been coming. Gotta do it.  House is a bomb from all the cons and running around and 'dont have time for it'.

3) Unpacking fully from Convention Timez.  Get my studio cleaned up, organized, and hopefully take some product shots because NEXT WEEK....

Next Week:

Art times is ON baby! Im not getting an outside job, apparently -- and I dont even feel bad.  I think somebody up there is giving me subtle hints >.>

So, next week I need to:

1) Start the Artist Way stuff (yes I said this. Whatever. =p)

2) Daily Sketches, How I love thee. Let me Count the Ways. 

3) Upload a bit to Etsy everyday.  Stop pushing it off! *shakes fist at self* It cant sell if it aint up there. =p

4) Cycle through art ideas:  Prints, ACEOs, some lingering Fan Arts and repaints and challenges oh my.  But most importantly....

5) Start the Webcomic.  Thats right, Im doing it.  I might be the only one that will ever love it but this story is coming out of me - its barely letting me BREATHE it is so strong now.  Next week Ill be writing out the characters and story arcs and seeing if it makes sense.


And keep cleaning and keeping active! I have a pedometer now! Gotta get that up there! <3

Its time to grasp this and just go for it, enough being a Shadow Artist. Im Starrydance darn it, not Shadowdance!

Not to mention, next weekend - COMMISSIONS Will Open! Hooray! They will prolly be a limited number of slots, so if youre interested in those be ready! <3

Theres a job I might have a shot at at hubbies work thats a really nice customer service full time position and all that.

If it pays what we think it should (which of course is semi-dangerous guess work) and I hand over a majority of my paycheck, we'll be 100% debt free (Car, Cards, Loans) in a year. Thats really very, very tempting.  Sure, we will still have the mortgage to pay off .......

So! Where does that leave art, which obviously is my life dream here?  Well, to be honest about myself Im never really had a great track record at staying on a schedule and drawing everyday. I truly WANT to, but if Im staying at home it seems so easy to just let days drift by.

With my part time retail job (Which I did truly enjoy) I was so exhausted from the physical and up SUPEREARLY aspects that I didnt really have a great chance at doing art.  This job wont really have either aspect ....... 

I keep getting caught up in how art should somehow be selling, or popular for me to feel successful.  Even tho I wasnt really doing much formal art during my parttime job I didnt really ever feel that way. 

As a further development, my wonderful little brother will most likely be staying with us for a bit to go to school here. Which is GREAT! I love college (I really do) and Im honored to get to help teach him all the study skills I learned in college.  Also, I want to learn vicariously ^_^

So, Im really tempted to get this job and get us out of debt.  We go from 'about two years or more' to 'a year or less' in debt - and Ill have spending money on top of that.  If I can SOMEHOW MANAGE to get in a artistic cycle in that - doing Daily Sketches, some paintings, some ACEOs maybe .... not sure ... whatever it is its not a guarantee Ill do it either way.  At least with a job I wont have to continue to worry about making no sales and running low on money.

And frankly I always FEEL better when I have a job.  I was reading Ellen Million's post about how they really loved having a job outside of the 'art business' as it made the whole OMG MAKING MONEY OR NOT!!!!11!!! equation not even really matter.

Especially coming on the heels of having basically zero (no wait, actually zero) sales on Etsy, a lackluster convention, and looking at just one more con and then almost half a year with no real cons that I know I can rock?  Eeeeep! I know everyones sales are down, I know commissions arent selling as well - and frankly as much as I really want to work on skills and be  all I can be -- if its all for free and for the crickets?  Thats flustering for sure! 

So this little Starry is going to be terribly brave and apply for a job on Monday.  If I dont get it, I wasnt meant to have it. If I do, it was! Still, next week is a serious art week anyway! Id really like to get on that artistic cycle right away! <3

Yet another Busy week as we head towards A-Kon!

Ive had to narrow down my output again, I didnt expect how long stuff will take but thats ok! I hope by midweek Ill have painted:

5x7s:
1) Kerani the Otter Friend
2) Magical Phoenix Egg
:3) Penguin Critter
4) Polar Bear Critter
5) Sea Turtle Critter

8x10:

1) Dragon Day (Renamed Bookwyrm!)

These will be made into: 5x7s, Badges, 1" Buttons, Stationary, Stickers, Magnets, Cameos, and bookmarks!

*Passes out*

Ill have them all printed up by Thursday night, and hopefully the new sketches for this work week that I had hoped to have painted but they'll have to be painted next week while I draw that weeks and then turn around and paint that stuff! Wheeeeeee! :boing:

Thursday night we run to Houston again to finish my Display / hang out / and make lots of products!

Then come back and finish the last bits of artworks and turn around and make a lot more product -- but I have the whole week-before-Akon set aside just to make product! ^_^

Im only about a day or so behind at this point, so just a few good days and Im caught up! <3

Artworks to be Sketched this week:

Button Designs (Maybe, these arent cooperating )

5x7s:

1) Hummingbird Fairy
2) Moon Kitty Fairy
3) Totem Animal
4) Critter Kraken
5) Critter Raven

8x10:

The Marauders Repaint! <3

Im doing a Daily Sketch thing now, so I try to draw every day.  You can see a majorty of it over at Starrydance.Deviantart.com but not gonna link it all!

Heres todays:

Moon Kitty Fairy

Cherry Blossom Fairy

Im working on a huge pile of artwork this week too:

The Storyteller 11x14

Book Wyrm 8x10

Kerani the Otter Friend 5x7

Phoenix Egg 5x7

Well, we did our Taxes today and were getting .... ahh... quite a bit back! We never get tax money back! A majority of it was my part time job at Barnes and Nobles and White Stag Studios write offs / slow sales.

Then, I was doing the math and figured out at my current hours (15 hours a week) it was almost 8 months of paycheck!

So, I was talking to hubby and we decided it was time for me to leave my part time job, and come home and be serious about White Stag Studios / Starrydance.com

Now, this is a HUGE leap for us. Sure, Ive been randomly working on art for a few years but never really much beyond 'hobby' and the conventions sure helped me kick it up a notch. I was hoping to go home and 'do more art' sometime this year but was REALLY nervous about the ability to 'cover' my paycheck with art sales.


Long story short, Ill be working there till the end of the Month and then coming home and Art, art, art, art! Ill have basically the rest of the year to try to make a serious go at it, with 3 conventions to do. Ill have to do 'some' fan art for the conventions, but the rest can be commissions, fantasy, and all things I <3.

So heres for Uncle Sam!