Happy Blog Anniversary!

recent sketch, finding my way through some new ideas

I've been writing this blog for six years, beginning January 9, 2007.

I began because I wanted to learn.

Six years on, I am still wanting to learn, although I have already learned more than I could have imagined.

Blogging has changed considerably, but my original goals for it have not.

I am still learning through projects:

• Harold Speed's drawing book - I've had a big break, but I'm coming back to it
• research about starting CP drawings - The Art of the Start
• study on Eastern painting philosophies - I'm still reading on this one

Thank you for all of your encouragement along the way - you have enriched my journey.

Challenge Can Lead to New Inspiration

Another page in the flower book

Recently I mentioned that I was joining Problogger’s 31 Days to a Better Blog challenge. When he did this two years ago I read through all the posts, so why did I decide to do it again?

More importantly, why should you give yourself a challenge about blog writing?

1. None of us is perfect – everyone, even Problogger himself could stand to improve. It’s a bit like communication in marriage, one can always work on it :D.
2. Breathes new life – asking critical questions of your blog can lead to new ideas.
3. Refocuses purpose – do you remember why you started your blog? What is your aim? Are your latest posts in line with that purpose?
4. Encourages – in some of the areas we’ll be looking at you’ll find that you are doing really well – and it’s always nice to be reminded that are doing well.

And, is it working so far? (This is day two.)

1. Improving? Yes, I have been thinking about some improvements lately and this whole process is confirming to me that I need to make the improvements. (Watch this space – there are a few changes ahead, they will be better for you and better for me, I promise. :D)
2. New Life? Yes, I’ve had a few post ideas lately that I didn’t think were all that great – today, I read the challenge and this post has written itself! (Today’s challenge was to write a list post.)
3. Purpose? I have never defined my exact purposes for this blog, it felt really good to do so. A friend of mine who is doing the challenge found this part very helpful!
4. Encourages? Yes, it feels really good to understand that how important this blog is to me and why it is so important to my business.

So, if you haven’t  done some critical thinking about your blog lately, I’d suggest you do. You can join the challenge, or not. You can get special emails about it, or just read the posts. Personally, I hope to only take about 10 minutes a day to work on it (at least sitting in front of the computer for only 10 minutes), thinking may occur at other times. :D

Don’t wait for the day when you are willing to devote 3 hours to your blog instead of your art – not going to happen! Ten minutes spent improving your blog is better than zero minutes!

Why You Should Have an Art Blog - Part 3

Bearded Iris in Blue
(yes, this is the same image as yesterday,
with a blue background, couldn't decide which I liked)
6 in x 6 in, acrylic ink and brush
copyright Rose Welty

This the third post in a series on the benefits of blogging for artists. See part 1 and part 2.

Difficulties you face and how to face them

• Challenging yourself - this is often the trickiest bit, challenging yourself to go beyond your current limits. Well, they are your limits, you can leave them there or you can move them.
• Learning some techie stuff - this is daunting, but you can take it one step at a time. You can start a blog very simply through blogger.com. Just start one, don't tell anyone, start it, post a few times to get the hang of it, delete what goes wrong and when you feel comfortable, tell others. I started just by telling my parents I had a blog...my heart raced with excitement. We all begin somewhere. As well, one of the best things about bloggers...after they figure out how to do something (especially tech-related), they usually tell the world.
  
• The "not polished, not professional" spot - when I began posting, my flash was throwing glares all over my sketches and I didn't know what it was for an ...embarrassingly... long time. It took a while to figure out what I wanted to talk about on a regular basis, how to say it, and how to sustain it. You know what? We have all been there! No successful blog out there began perfectly (or if it did, you'll find out later that it isn't the person's first blog.) These things develop - be patient with yourself, you are building skills. One other note on the subject of "not perfect," in some cases, this is a plus - people like to know that you aren't perfect and that you are learning too, this can make you less intimidating.
  
• "No one reads this, no one cares" - publicize yourself and they'll read. Write good stuff, post good art, they will care. Seriously, people will find you. I haven't gotten around to the SEO optimization yet, I signed up for technorati and haven't done anything else...and yet somehow people have found my blog. I do comment on other blogs and participate in group things when I can, but I do those things because I like to join in on discussions, say thank you, and learn from others - people clicking the profile and finding my blog is an unintended benefit.
• "What will I say?" - Well, that depends on you, ask yourself questions like: what is a topic I really know about? what am I passionate about? what do I want to research or know more about? can I tell funny stories? Art blogs lend themselves to diversification to some degree. There are many art blog types: "here's my image and the link to buy it," "here's my art and what I did today," "here's how I make my art," "we're chatting in my studio," "here's my art, my kids, and my cookbook," etc. Find something that works for you.
  
• "I have nothing to contribute" - I don't think you really believe this, otherwise you wouldn't be making art, right? And as the Bible says, "there is nothing new under the sun." Even if someone else has talked about a topic already doesn't mean you can't discuss it in your own context.
  
• "I'm just a learner" - (cue Star Wars music) we are all but learners...when artists become jedis they tend to stagnate. :D
  
• "Spammer and Identity Thieves scare me" - they scare me too and they should scare you. Although, don't let them scare you to the point of not progressing with your art journey! Spammers are a nuisance, but they can be marginalized. Identity theft is a serious issue and handling it is a personal decision. But you are in control...you control what info about you is on your blog. Don't name yourself, keep your location secret, give only your first name, etc. I've seen lots of clever use of nicknames. Just like you protect your wallet when you are out in public, protect your identity when you are on the Internet.

Please chime in on the comments if you have something to add...

Why You Should Have an Art Blog - Part 2

Bearded Iris,
6 in x 6 in, acrylic ink and brush
copyright Rose Welty

This is the second post in a series on the benefits of an art blog to it's author. See part 1 here.

What a blog can do for you

• Make you more regular in your art practice -you don't have to post masterpieces, you really don't, and you don't have to do it everyday either, but the more frequent a schedule, the faster you'll get better.
  
• Help you meet other artists - particularly if you are home-bound for one reason or another. I have three young sons, where I go, they go - we don't get to many museums or fancy art functions :D. But, I now know many artists, all over the world. We read each others blogs, comment, email, etc. I even hoodwinked a few into being part of a private art blog where we critique, encourage and laugh. (See the Fine Art Friends story here.)
  
• Help you learn - you are going to learn about art, writing, interacting, the art business, the art world, and even the online techie bits. You won't learn it all in a day. But, if you take it one step at a time, you will suddenly look back and see that you have learned alot. There are several people that start a blog, and then just keep taking steps...research something they're interested in so they can post about it, figure out how to jazz up the template for their blog a bit, start putting a few prints up for sale (because it's free to do so), etc. As you read blogs you find posts about the exact question you have or someone who has just done what you were thinking of doing. In general bloggers are helpful people, why not benefit?
  
• Help you realize goals - whether you feel obligated and therefore knuckle down or whether you meet some great encouragers along the way, you'll suddenly look back and think "wow, I really did it." It feels good to say you will finish X by next week, do it, and then show the world that you did. And again, people will cheer you on. There is nothing like getting a comment that someone likes your X, or really sees improvement since T or can't wait to see Y because your work is amazing, etc.
  
• Bring you customers - I have only done a few commissions, but all of them have been the result of someone seeing my work on my blog and then asking if I could do something for them. Granted, it is not a whole business plan, I don't live off my artwork or anything like that, but a few extra bucks now and then are nice. As a result of that, I can now begin to think about dipping my toe in some selling arenas. Two years ago if you had said that I was going to be thinking of selling my art, I would have laughed at you in disbelief.

I'm sure there is more to be said on this topic, anyone else is free to chime in on the comments!

Why You Should Have An Art Blog - Part 1

I've been playing around with the digital tablet and PS Elements again - not alot to love in this image, but the good thing about it is that in a few months I can see this post again and realize that I've learned something! (Just the sort of thing that this post is talking about! :-)

This post is about why you should bother starting and maintaining an art blog.

When I was sketching last week, I noticed how confident I had become in making marks on the paper. I noticed that I was having an internal dialog with myself about composition, values, etc. It made me realize just how much I have benefited from my blog. I decided to share a few thoughts with you this week in a three part series:

• what my blog has done for my art
• what a blog can do for you
• difficulties: what you'll face and how to face it.

Part I: What my blog has done for my art

• Made it better - honestly, this was the whole reason I started one. I read other blogs that said how much having a blog improved their work and I wanted to get in on the action. What's the magic? You feel obligated to draw, paint, whatever more often because you have a blog and people are reading it. So, you sit down and do it more often - that, my friends, is the magic, i.e. practice makes you better.
• Made it a part of my actual life, not just a part of my dream life - like everyone else, I've had sketchbooks and a few art implements kicking around in my moving boxes for years. They used to sit on the shelf and never get used. Occasionally I would pick them up, dust them off, and try something. Usually, the outcome was horrendous as I was so out of practice. Now, art is a regular part of my daily life - I still have three young sons, a husband, a house, and a yard to care for, but I make the time for art.
  
• Made me comfortable talking about art - I'm never going to be an expert on art or art history, but at least I am gaining familiarity with the basics and feel comfortable talking with other artists.
• Made me an artist in my own eyes and in the eyes of others - I would never have called myself that until the last year, I would have just said that I draw. Now, it seems natural to call myself an artist and others are beginning to know me as one.
• Blogging has given my art an audience - no matter how small the numbers of actual viewers, even less the numbers who like it, blogging has made my art an entity, not just an untidy stack in the corner. Therefore, I am more encouraged to continue learning, improving, spending time, etc...and so the art gets better! :D
  

Have you ever wanted any of the bolded items above for yourself? Consider starting an art blog. I'm sure there are other ways to grow and develop as an artist, but for me this blog has been instrumental. Never in the past would I have put my artwork high enough on the list of things to do to make it more than a dream.

I'm not trying to set myself up as some example here, I certainly haven't "arrived." When I was sitting down this weekend writing my blog posts for the week I was just thinking about how my life has changed in the last year and thought that maybe there was someone else out there wondering "should I?"