My first year of craft shows wrapped up with the end of 2016. I had previously had open houses at my own home but I had not participated in an actual show outside my home until last year. I had applied to some and been turned down over and over. Minnesota is flooded with makers and artists so the competition is pretty high. As a pretty new creative person, as frustrating as it was, it also was not all that surprising. I also don’t know anyone here in the arts organization. I know other artists, many of whom I have supported for years, but they tend to their own business and I try not to ask for their help. I know how much work it is just to find time to do any little bit of creative work in day to day life. I’m not even sure what I would ask. And as a jewelry maker not many people really feel the need to buy my jewelry over and over. I have a few kind and loyal people around who have bought pieces here and there(and I am very grateful to them, it genuinely means the world to me) but overall no one pays much attention. That is when you think that you should quit.
Don’t.
The truth is, I love making jewelry and even if no one ever wants to wear it again- I will still make it and recognizing that has helped me a great deal.
I do on occasion ask people to repost things on social media. Very few people do and I’m not really sure how to grow the interest, but maybe I should just accept that if they are not interested they are not interested and leave well enough alone.
I really run into this with my books. Almost no one that I know will read anything that I write. I have read threads on authors sites and apparently this is not exclusive to me. It is pretty common that the majority of your friends and family will not read any of your work no matter how you ask or what’ve you done or how you are related. No one is really sure why. I would imagine there is a variety of reasons and I try not to get frustrated by it. It is not easy. Especially when you did/do support others and their creative endeavors (and in many other ways) for years, but it is also not constructive. It took some time but I don’t think about it anymore. I offer that as a bit of advice. Of course you want the people you like and respect and support to do it for you, but you should be ready to accept that they might not. They really just won’t think about you. And yes, for a while I thought this was just because of me and that people generally don’t like me, but that actually does not seem to matter. I can’t imagine the dozens and dozens of posts I’ve read about this mean that all of those people are un-liked. In fact, one time I was helping a woman in the bookstore I used to work at find a copy of Coraline by Neil Gaiman. It was some years ago now and as I handed it to her she laughed. She looked at me and said, “I’m buying this for my daughter and you know what? My cousin is married to him and I’ve never read a single thing he’s written. Isn’t that terrible?” She laughed again and went to check out and I had no idea what to say. I had actually forgotten about this encounter until just now. So there you go.
The good thing that has come out of it most especially is that it has challenged me to refine what I do. Working on better displays, organization and products. Not to mention looking outside the usual suspects. My first craft show wasn’t even in my own town and it was really great. It was something new and unexpected. I enjoyed it immensely. I should probably say this even if it is obvious to some that these things are an INCREDIBLE amount of work. But if you don’t love it, you shouldn’t do it. I loved that the display was mine, the work was mine, the idea of what bags to use, boxes, everything was mine. My ideas, my work, every little detail.
I have trouble talking about my work, most especially my books. That is definitely a work in progress. It gets more difficult when you are not signed by a giant publisher that people know because at that point they just assume something is wrong with you and won’t heed any attention to you. This multiplies my difficulty in talking about my writing about a thousandfold. And of course, I am not an ace at social media. I have spent time on my social media accounts but the truth is those accounts are not where I want to focus my attention. I feel like I want my energy to go into my work. I don’t know how to curate my lifestyle or nor spend all my time color coordinating. Their are some people who can do all this and their art and it is very impressive. I am not one of those people and I doubt I ever will be. This is also something that used to frustrate the hell out of me. But once I made the decision of where the majority of my energy was going to go the frustration melted away. Now I just do it because I like something or went somewhere cool I think other people would like. If it’s not fun, don’t do it. It’ll just make you miserable. Plus we should probably not forget the world was filled with amazing, creative people before the whole world could like something on Instagram. I know that social media has opened up the art world a lot for some, but it doesn’t for most and it helps not only to remember that but not to let it affect what you do. Use it for inspiration. Not comparison.
Now the craft shows. So yes, they are fun. I did have one that was not a success financially but luckily I do have one very good cheerleader who reminded me of the fact that I spent a big chunk of time talking to an aspiring young sci-fi writer and she seemed so happy to talk to me that he kept telling me that mattered more than selling anything. And he was right. I have stayed in touch with this person and they seem to value my input. I can barely comprehend this but it is really amazing. SO there is another good lesson: What you take from these experiences doesn’t always tally into numbers.
Talking to people all day can get very tiring. You don’t want to just say the same thing over and over to people. And figuring out what experience to give each person is not an easy task.
This is most assuredly true since you don’t ever want to be seem tired nor rude. Choose your words carefully and yes, sometimes you have to because people say strange things to you that can either confuse or annoy you. For example: People looking over your stuff and outwardly tell you that they are going to copy your ideas. Yeah that is pretty darn frustrating. I don’t have one good response to this. I try to generally smile and tell them I appreciate their admiration but the reality is if they are going to copy something you did, you can’t stop them. I try not to make more than one copy of things I make intentionally to give someone a unique piece (I do on occasion if I have matching materials or a special request). I do try to go out of my way not to copy other people. I also try not to infringe on others intellectual property without paying my fair share. This gets tricky if you’re making fandom things which I do on occasion but I do try to pay for what I use and I don’t make other IP the focus of my work. I can’t say I always succeed but I am not without intention- I try to be my own person. And developing what that means takes time. I have often given myself endless amounts of grief for not filling a certain niche. Why is it I am not completely Goth? Or completely girly pink? Or sporty? Well, I am not. And that is that. Don’t try to force yourself to be something you’re not. You won’t like it. And really, no one is all one thing. Some people, like I mentioned earlier, are just better at curating a lifestyle to sell.
Some of the worst things I try to contend with is when people put themselves down at my table. (Yes people have insulted me, but I don’t even really feel like that is worth talking about it. Just laugh and thank them for stopping by, they’ll go away). One I ran into a lot at my last show in March was “I’m too fat to wear this stuff.” “This won’t fit my fat neck.” I absolutely hate people saying this stuff. For a lot of reasons. And anyway, in my case it’s really not true. There are a few pieces I can’t change the size of but I learned early on one size DOES NOT FIT ALL and you don’t even want to be that person. You want to create things that include everyone. All shapes, all sizes, all genders. My very first sale at my very first show was to a little boy buying himself a necklace. It was beyond delightful.
Now, there is always the chance that no matter how tactful you are you will put your foot in your mouth. I ran into this a few times as a party host at conventions. Some people are just sensitive and it is not always easy to figure out who can laugh at themselves or the situation and as such you could inadvertently insult someone. If this happens again, smile and thank them. More than once if necessary.
Be kind. Point out that this is not the case. That yes you do have things that would fit them. And if it’s in your ability to do so, offer to adjust the size of something for them. This will often diffuse the situation. Not always, as some people just can’t let the thought go. But more often than not just being friendly and saying “hey you know what, this is a place for everyone, even those of us having a bad me day” works great.
These couple of things, and I suppose people insulting me, are the most challenging things conversation-wise in my opinion. You can also end up being the person people try to use as an information booth but I would recommend that you do not let them. I almost fell into this trap and I am very careful about it now. Send them to the actual information booth. There is always one. Do not spend your time selling the show. That is not your job. Your job is your work. The information booth is there to answer questions about the show. Let them do it.
When the show gets off to a shaky start and it seems like everyone else is busy and you’re not, you’re going to fall into misery. I am as guilty of this as anyone. Just don’t. Next to impossible to do, I know, but don’t. You literally have no flipping idea how your show is going to turn out and yes, sometimes the result financially is going to suck. But the reality is you’re likely going to get something out of every one that you do. Oh, and if it’s a two day show, seriously, most of my business in my last show was in the last few hours of the weekend and it was non-stop busy and made up for all the rest of the weekend. Completely the opposite of the year before. You will spend hours trying to figure out why. Don’t bother. You can’t, and even if you can pinpoint a few things like weather and stuff like that-it’s not like you can do anything about any of that. You will save yourself hours of misery not worrying about what you can’t control. The reality is you win some, you lose some, but you can control how you approach it next time.
One thing I learned last year, for example, was that my packaging sucked. I was using boxes with cotton to display my pieces. This was not great as people always want to pick things up and people always drop the cotton and it makes a mess. So first thing I did this year was research and invest in new display pieces and cards. They are so much better this year and I am glad for it but I am still working on some of the pieces. Beware of what is happening. What are customers having a hard time with? What would streamline the process?
On the subject of time devoted to your work: Once you seem like you have your ducks in a row people are going to try to use you as a short cut. Now it is up to you whether or not you let them. I take it case by case. And anyway, information is different for every person. But you can let them know right up front that you have spent a lot of time trying to work something out and that you think that it’s best that they take their version of the challenge and research it themselves. I am hesitant to give advice about editors, business, display etc… because I am not expert and even if I was I still would have no idea how that is going to turn out for you. And truthfully, until I see your work or read it, I doubt I am going to attach my name to it unless I think it’s good. And I don’t feel bad about that anymore. I used to try to recommend everything but I don’t anymore. It’s not truthful. I want to like something and trust someone is doing a good job.
I *WILL* take the time to look into someone’s work most definitely. I try to give everyone a chance. I do try to support as many people as possible even if I don’t have a wide reach. But as far as the short cuts part-there are none. Seriously. People will tell you this all the time who are at the top of their game and they are not lying. Yes, sometimes they had it easier because they had all the money in the world to try something but think about it….unless what they did was amazing-is it still around? Nope.
And yes some people have connections. Good for them. You don’t. Get used to it and find another way in. No I don’t know where it is.
You need to get used to fucking up. And rejection in all its forms, be it from strangers or from your dearest friend whose work you have read thousands upon thousands of words of and they won’t look twice at what you write. And if you can’t, you won’t get far. And you can take that from someone who has come very close to giving up more than a few times.
