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Finding balance is almost never "easy" or "quick" (relative terms), and yet we have to continue seeking.

What makes a professional artist? Is it money? Is your value as an artist only judged by what is in the bank? Or is it notoriety? Is it a gallery show every other month? What makes a “professional” artist? What?

I left Steemit at least twice because as an artist I felt a lot of the same things you are feeling. But this comment is about HR, not ENH!

I don't currently make the SBD you are seeking a week, although I am happy to facilitate your time and energy. I sent 5.0 SBD as a token of my support. Keep pushing, @artwatch, Steemit ♥s you!

Thank you! That means a lot. You kinda already sponsored me there for a week after you sent that gift for the tiger fan art. So I feel your one of my first sponsors here.

Cool! I'm happy to support good art and I'll donate what I can to your cause.

Something came across my feed recently about the author deciding that they needed to focus more on their work than on their momentum and trying to post every day on steemit, something about trying to keep up a post a day thing detracting from their real work.

I did try posting every day for a bit myself and found it too much drama and much easier to just post when I have something to post.

There will be people that look out for your stuff if you need to take longer than 24hrs to come up with something, so just do what you need to do XP

goatsig

Honestly, I'll probably go back to shit posting if I can't find sponsorship.... as the anxiety/addiction is too much for me right now.

I have spent a lot more than 24 hrs on a lot of my posts only to see them fail terribly. It's just not worth it in comparison to the grinding and thus the addiction.

it's soul destroying, I spent money on almost all my post....some of them quite a bit for rendering out animations etc. Almost no returns....but my latest one, which I posted a link on my original response to your article....made some promising returns......a bit like re ignited my stick and carrot analogy

Early stages it is more about marketing yourself to the whales and dolphins. Sadly I cannot help you do that as I don't have connections myself. But that's something I'd put more effort into as you. Maybe try to talk to few of them in discord.

Sent you another color variation for that painting. Sigh whales... lol I am so not a discord girl... it's my greatest failing as a steemian, I feel. I just never got into it...

You're not the only one who hasn't gotten into discord. Don't despair! ☺

I get it, I'm not a "marketing guy" myself either but that's what I'd focus on in the hopes of making big bucks here. The competition is too harsh to survive otherwise. There was this witness, who's name I don't remember now, but one that was building services and helping the ecosystem greatly, but as he didn't keep the community in the know, he fell from a witness spot. And only at that point he came out and made a post about what he has done for the community.

Currently your posts won't end up in the front of whales eyes and that's what is required or just see if you could help some dolphins or such. There are many paths but they all might require some amounts of that sweet artwatch :) If the platform grows, even half a steem could be worth a nice sum but we all have bills to pay so it's no good. It's a tough spot for sure.

If you're trying for a post a day then definitely do something light and fluffy every day and just have one day once a week or fortnight or freaking month or whatever where you post your masterful sheer brilliance that you will now have time to work on whenever you work on these things because you're not frittering hours trying to come up with something kind of cool to make a daily post out of.

Did any of that make sense? Coz I only just sunk the first coffee XP

Anyway aren't you in TC? The channel on the PAL server is pretty active and occasionally they invade us over in TA or we invade them XD And using the tag might help a bit as well.

goatsig

Followed upvoted and resteemed. Let's both make it a new beginning

Good idea @artwatch - and I hope you find many sponsors.

I hope so too. Hope your keeping well mama.

while reading through your few paragraphs I found myself relating with pretty much everything you have said and "checking them off" in my mind. I have also found trouble in balancing "fast" works to "keep up" on steemit and doing "quality" works which can take weeks at a time! The only "balance" I think I have found is trying to post "work in progress" type posts of the "quality" art that I'm doing to try to keep the postings up. It can be very discouraging seeing other people make $20+ on every single post they make when sometimes it's just an average photograph with 2 paragraphs of abstract mumbling about a picture they took in their backyard lol But, they have a whale(s) in their corner so I guess they have "made it" on steemit! Nothing wrong with that, but it can be very discouraging feeling like the line between scrapping by and "making it" is so blurred and hard to achieve/find.

I remember when I first started steemit (about 10 months ago) I kept seeing about how it's all about posting "quality content" and the quality will rise to the top; but I can't help but feel like that is simply not true; it's all about connections and networking and getting the right people in your corner. But, that is steemit!

Gotta be able to sell yourself here. It is unfortunate as I was never really into sales whatsoever. Yeah. Feel your pain brother. Just gotta keep going until I can find the right whale nipple/teat to suckle lol. Sad state of affairs 🙇

@artwatch good lord you have great idea you must too do it

oh come on with the spam replies :D 80% of the works here are original maybe 50% I just don't follow all the crap here :| anyways I dislike comments that have images and repeat :D

Great 😍

love it!!!! quite manga'esque.
i'm into digital paintings as well. Also just released a teaser animation for my steemit comic / game / concept art. Check it out. https://steemit.com/steemanimation/@cryptocreative/steemanimation-arriving-in-steem-city-level-one-game-teaser

I could patron, but I'm missing some 7sbd for the high stakes :D if it's a tough week I would chip in now, if not I'd wait till next week or the following :) I have to say I just read my first post from you and I do know how you feel, It's a tough grind, many have fallen under it, many have walked out, in the end it shouldn't be about rewards, at least that's how I feel although I'd like to have them as much as the next guy... like @enternamehere I've stopped posting a few times for my year here, actually there are a few times that I have posted, mostly I comment and read, then get tired and overworked and stop, I'm nervous enough as it is to come here relying on whales and dolphins to feed the fish :)

it is what it is :)

I hope the art scene grows and manages to support itself in the modern times, maybe you can explore the other possibilities as well utopian, dtube and dsound even dmania :D you can move the shit posts there and still grind, while you work for the remainder of the day, it is tough however, consistency and the burn from overworking are tough to balance out

oh and shameless self promotion since you said master so much, it's my master post after all :)
https://busy.org/story/@j3dy/how-to-be-a-master-challange30-day-1-play
also substituted steemit for busy :P .

Burn out, I have come to realize, is a true struggle for the creative folks here. Youtube has the same problem though. A lot of platforms really have that problem... so yeah... all I can do is hope to find a work around to keep me sane while I try to do the real work. Sigh - ya know? Doesn't help that I am also just another human with complicated emotions/anxiety/depression just trying to make a way for myself as an artist.

I would greatly appreciate the support if you are in a place to help. enh sent 5 and if I can make up the 10$ between other donators I got this piece covered and can commit to it without worry ha ha

How would you like to claim adspace on these posts should you become a sponsor? Do you have a footer image I could include and link to your work/channel/feed?

Steem dollar is pumping hard and is near 2 dollars, you might want to change them to btc and cash. Witnesses will raise SBD issuance to lower the price back.