Be Your Own Boss: Freelancing Tips & Tricks

by

FreelancingTipsTricks-2

Every year at the CTN Animation Expo I give a workshop on the business side of freelancing for artists. I’ve finally recorded it as a 2-hour webinar, which launched today at TaughtByAPro.com: http://taughtbyapro.com/course/be-your-own-boss-freelancing-tips-tricks/

I did my best to share what I know about promoting yourself and pricing your work. Topics include:

  • The Pro’s and Con’s of Freelancing
  • How To Stand Out As A Freelancer
  • Getting Started As A Freelancer
  • Building A Marketing Machine
  • Tips For Making Your Website Work For You
  • Ways To Find Prospects and Leads
  • Tips For Effective Cold Calling
  • Ways To Promote Yourself Effectively
  • How Much Should You Charge?
  • Tips For Talking To Clients About Money
  • Tips For Negotiating Effectively
  • Spotting Bad Clients
  • Professional Practices That Will Help You Stand Out

 

The 2-hour webinar is broken up into 7 mini-sessions to make the info easier to digest. Cost is only $10 for one month of on-demand access to the whole thing. There’s also a lot of other terrific courses being offered on the site. I’m honored to be in such esteemed company.

Webinar: Kickstarter Tips and Tricks

by

[youtube_sc url=t70EwHQf92U width=450]

After the successful launch of the Pose Drawing Sparkbook on Kickstarter I was hired by the folks at HOW Design University to create a webinar sharing tips and ideas to help other artists who are thinking about Kickstarter. They included the webinar in their one-day event “Strategies for Creative Freelancers”. Now that the event is over, I’m offering the webinar in my store as a download. It’s 80-minutes packed with all the helpful information I could think of. Above is a clip on planning your Kickstarter. Get more info or buy the webinar here.

I’ve Been Interviewed on “Creative Independence”

by

creativeindependence

The super-talented-illustrator-and-all-around-nice-guy Bob Ostrom and his co-host Chris Wilson have re-launched their Creative Independence podcast and have given me the honor of the first interview! I prattled on about my Kickstarter campaign for the Pose Drawing Sparkbook, including what I learned and what I’d do differently next time. Give it a listen. And if you like what I have to say, you can get more info in my upcoming webinar “Kickstarter Tips and Tricks”.

Webinar: Kickstarter Tips and Tricks

by

Shut-up-and-take-my-money

I’ve put together a webinar about my Kickstarter experience called “Kickstarter Tips and Tricks”. I’m going to share what I learned, some mistakes I made, and what I hope will be lots of helpful advice for anyone thinking about doing a Kickstarter. Eventually I may sell the webinar on my website but for now it will be one of several webinars that are part of the “Strategies For Creative Freelancers” event on January 30, sponsored by HOW Design University. It’s a one-day event but if you sign up you can watch the webinar online 24/7 for an entire week,, download a copy to keep, and also get a  PDF of my notes. More info here.

EDIT: Use the promo code “CFWIN2014” and get the entire event for only $99.

Book Launch and Workshop at CTN-X

by

CTNbooklaunch-banner450-v2

It’s almost here! The official book launch for the Pose Drawing Sparkbook will happen at the CTN Animation Expo in Burbank, November 15-17. My wife Jennie will be joining me at table XB06, which will be out in the tent area right across from the big live demo area in the middle of the tent. Blue Sky and Sony Animation will also be under the tent so I’ll be in very good company. Here’s my location on the floor plan (click to enlarge):

Map-My Location

If you are one of the hundreds of people who have already pre-ordered a copy of the physical book, either through Kickstarter or from my studio store, you can pick up your copy from my table at the Expo. Otherwise, as soon as I get back from the Expo we’ll start mailing out orders.

If you ordered an ebook version (either the basic or expanded) we will send you a download link on or before November 15.

I think this book has the potential to be a terrific tool to help a lot of artists put more life and personality into their drawings. Haven’t ordered a copy yet? You can read a few excerpts and place an order here.

Workshop: Be Your Own Boss (Freelancing Tips And Tricks)

For the third year in a row I’ll also be giving my presentation on freelancing and talking about the business side of being an artist. I’ll be speaking on Saturday, November 16 at 4:00pm. Unfortunately registration for my workshop is full but if you are unable to attend shoot me an email and I’ll send you a free PDF containing my notes from the talk.

Online registration for CTNX closes on Friday, November 8. Grab your tickets here.

Come See Me At The CTN Animation Expo

by

banner-booklaunch-ctn2013

Once again I’ll be attending the CTN Animation Expo in Burbank Nov. 15-17, and I can’t wait. It’s always a great show and one of the highlights of my year.

For the third year in a row I’ll be giving my workshop Be Your Own Boss: Freelancing Tips and Tricks. It’s a 45 minute presentation full of business tips for artists, to help you work smarter instead of harder. You have to sign up ahead of time to attend and I think there’s a $5 fee for the workshop, but I’m told it’s been expanded from a fifty-seat room to a 100-seat room due to the popularity of my talk in past years. The talk is on Saturday, November 16 from 4:00-4:45pm.

I’ll also be launching my brand new book, the Pose Drawing Sparkbook – a tool to help artists put more life into their drawings. Last month it was successfully funded on Kickstarter and pre-orders just keep coming in. I’ll have a table at booth XB06, located in a tent they are setting up outside the main entrance. Stop on by and pick up your copy.

Early registration for the CTN Expo is now open. Come on down – you won’t be sorry.