The notion of making it big has different meanings for different people. Sometimes it is a precise moment in time when everything clicks. Other times, it can be a slow process. And sometimes, a big break that took many years can look like an overnight sensation to the outside world. People in this chapter talk about how the creative life isn’t always about fame and acclaim.

Artists can have a wide variety of relationships with their parents. We have already discussed supportive relationships. Sometimes, artists have parents who are simply uninterested. Other times, they have parents who are worried about their child’s ability to support themselves if they pursue the arts. In these cases, most parents could be won over by their child’s hard work and passion; if not, a taste of success was usually enough to win over a hesitant parent.

Many young artists try their hand at a variety of creative forms. Even those who know their passion early on may still dabble a bit in related domains, often fueled by the need to explore different artforms and endless curiosity. Many artists might use insights or skills learned in one domain throughout their career, even if they ultimately do not keep creating in that area. Some artists whose stories are told in this chapter kept shifting areas into college and young adulthood. Most stayed within the arts, but some found their way to the arts from other areas from sports to science. Other times, artists will work across multiple domains for their whole career.

Creative careers can complicate daily living. In this chapter, we talk about complications that arise in romantic and family relationships. Some people talk about the challenges of financial instability, others emphasize the need for selfishness and time to focus on creative work. Some discuss interactions between their creative work and parenting. Ultimately, compromise is key.

Some artists specialize in one very narrow type of creative output while others create in a wider range of areas. In this chapter, artists talk about how they view their creative output. Some talk about how they focus their work in one area, others juggle more than one related domain, still others create in two quite divergent domains, and one artist talks about how she juggles artistic and more traditional careers.

Culture can be a source of identity, including topics such as nationality, religion, race, and personal background. Culture can be an artistic inspiration, which can encompass many dimensions. Artists can want to share and teach, to process controversial social issues, and to engage in self-discovery. In this chapter, artists share how their culture shapes their creative output. For some, art enables them to address difficult topics that might not otherwise see the light of day.

When do artists feel that first intense pull toward creation? Some artists know early in their lives what they want to do with their lives. Sometimes, artists feel like their specific art choice has always been a key part of their identities. Other times, there is a sudden jolt of insight in which they realize their life path, whether from a gift, a moment of creation, or working on an artistic project in tandem with a friend or sibling. Peer support and approval can be a powerful reinforcement to pursue one’s artistic passion.

Artists can get their first inspiration for what they want to do in their lives when they see another person’s work. Early encounters with theater, television shows, movies, books, or music can serve as catalysts for a lifetime in the arts. At the most fundamental level, experiencing the art of others can demonstrate that such a career pathway is possible. In this chapter, artists remember moments of seeing, hearing, watching, or experiencing a life-changing piece of art. Some artists continue in that specific domain, whereas others might be initially inspired by one domain but find a better artistic home in another domain. An artist’s early efforts may even be directly inspired by another piece of work.

Mentors can play a pivotal role in inspiring creativity in young artists. Some encourage by example. Others discover previously hidden talents or nascent abilities. Mentors can also teach young artists to trust in themselves and their talents. The chapter outlines how some mentors act as informal advisors, others are teachers who take on this added role, and still others are part of a more formalized mentoring system. In addition, the artists in this chapter discuss how they pass the baton to the next generation of creative people, both through informal mentoring and teaching. A related topic is how artists find that their art benefits from teaching others.

Although the research literature refutes the standard wisdom that schools kill creativity, there can still be some unfortunate exceptions. Some artists felt that their creativity not only did not help them do well on the standard metrics of traditional school performance, but it may have even impaired their scores. Other artists encountered truly terrible teachers who were rigid, intolerant, and prone to punish too much question-asking; a few even sucked the joy out of their art (at least temporarily).

Artists might start out in one area or job and end up finding their best home in a slightly adjacent area. It might take moments or decades to land in the right spot, but the skills and lessons initially learned can still pay off in a related area. Even circuitous or winding pathways can take an artist where they need to go.

In this chapter, artists look back on their careers and consider what they will leave behind. Responses vary from pride to regrets. Some rethink career decisions, such as whether they should have—or should not have—gotten advanced education and how their careers might have progressed had accidents not occurred or had they chosen to pursue a different avenue of work. Artists also discuss why they create in the first place, addressing the responses of audiences locally and internationally, how it has made a difference in their own lives and the lives of others, and the notion of creativity as a necessary part of everyday life.

Many young artists saw school as something akin to a speedbump – a moderate annoyance, but one to simply be navigated. Sometimes, school might offer them a chance to develop or practice their art. Some young artists were treated differently when teachers and administrators realized they had a gift; they might be excused from traditional work or offered alternative ways to complete assignments. Other young artists relied on their art and their creativity to pass the time and overcome obstacles.

This chapter addresses the issue of the “starving artist.” Often, creative lives are not the most remunerative and this chapter outlines how people pay their expenses while devoting themselves to their art. Some have the advantage of a spouse who is the main breadwinner, others hold a “day job” in addition to their creative work, and others have less traditional sources of income. One artist also discusses how it works when both spouses are creative workers.

Parents can help their children develop into an artist. Some people are lucky enough to have parents who are supportive right from the start. In this chapter, artists share their experiences with their parents and how that has shaped their artistry. Some artists even had artistic parents who served as role models.

For many (if not most) artists, their work is a key part of who they are. Their creative efforts help shape their identity and how they see themselves in the world. It is not just the generic notion of “being an artist,” but rather their specific field, style, and project that define their self-concept. Some discuss the parallels between creating art and creating an identity; both involve generating different possible ideas and ultimately choosing the best one. They also talk about the process of learning to think of themselves as artists.

An artist’s entire family can help nurture and mentor them. This can include grandparents and siblings. In this chapter, artists share their experiences with extended family. Sometimes, supportive family members can make up for less supportive parents; other times, it can be a full familial unit that helps a young artist.

In creative work, as all of life, failure is inevitable. In this chapter, artists talk about how they feel about failure, how they incorporate it into their future work, and how it affects their attitudes toward creativity. They discuss how it can open new areas of creativity that they might otherwise not have considered. The artists also share their definitions of failure, which vary widely. Some artists dwell on failure regularly while others try their best to avoid such thoughts. They also talk about how they cope with failure.

Once artists have reached adulthood, they have to navigate their artistic passions and the reality of finding a job. Sometimes, a moment of serendipity can help. This chapter has artists share stories of chance meetings, encounters, and connections that helped launch their career.

It is the winter of 2021. Like many parents around the world, I have donned the new hat of home-school administrator. My children are high-school age, so they resist oversight (as expected), but I have come to see that they do not need much (who knew?). My role is simply to find suitable remote-learning resources. Again, I am pleasantly surprised, and relieved: high-school level art history, for example, seems to be an especially engaging subject online, given the potential for abundant accurately coloured images, flexible user interfaces, and up-to-date critical content. This happy realisation hits me as I notice that the unfamiliar hat has slipped off the side of my head: I am no longer surveying the resources for the kids’ sakes, but rather I am absorbed, of my own accord, in a lesson on Fauvism.