Posts Tagged ‘fire pit’

Writer Chuck Wendig recently posted a great piece at his blog; it was written in response to questions that people sometimes put to him about how long it’ll take them to write, edit, or publish their works. These people are probably wondering how long it’ll take for writing to pay a bigger chunk of the rent, or when it Read more ›

Music boxes were first created hundred of years ago when watchmakers (as in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Artist of the Beautiful {also at The Literature Network}) would painstakingly handcraft each one. Now, that process is getting a makeover with 3D printing technology. Left Field Labs is a digital creative agency that focuses on bringing technology into harmony with the Read more ›

How do you run a good YouTube channel? Industry insider Jon Baltz will tell you: it’ll take planning and dedication, among other things–it’s more than just uploading videos. I think this problem applies to any aspect of the music industry, from album releases to tours: People don’t go into the YouTube platform with a distinct Read more ›

Musicians: posting songs on the web free of charge can lead to income, if you’ve got a good strategy. LOSS LEADER: Definition: “a pricing strategy where a product is sold for free or below its market cost to stimulate other sales.” The most common example of loss leaders in music is when new artists offer Read more ›

Independent musicians seem not to care too much about award shows, the Grammys included. Why is this, when this year “independents scored 50% of nominations and last year independents took home over 40% of the awards” and “unlike many other music awards, the GRAMMYs are awards bestowed by our music industry creator peers”? Rich Bengloff Read more ›

There’s a point you may have reached in your progression as an artist: you’ve become so familiar with your craft that you may find yourself coasting. When you’ve reached that point, how do you continue to evolve? Maria Popova, curator of Brain Pickings (a great repository of wonderful ideas) writes an article in which she Read more ›

Art restorers know what to do when physical pieces of art are damaged or show signs of age, but what are the guidelines for restoring digital art? This is new territory: turns out these guidelines are just being created. Paintings fade; sculptures chip. Art restorers have long known how to repair those material flaws, so Read more ›

With its new collaborative series, Heart of the City, 516 ARTS addresses many of the problems that Downtown Albuquerque, along with many other urban environments, face: fragmentation, broken-up communities, and the shortage of basic services, among other things. Does Downtown serve as the heart of the community? How can we improve it? You can also access Read more ›

How can you use postcards to promote your art? Let us count the ways. Here are 25 ideas to help you make postcards work hard for you in growing your art business: 1. Show Invitation. Invite your retail customers and new prospects to an upcoming arts and crafts festival when you are in their area. Include your Read more ›

First of all, what is the middle eight, exactly? (The internet is split on this. Just check out Google.) Some people refer to this section as the “bridge,” but not Neal Warner, who has given us a satisfying definition of this somewhat squirelly concept and essentially argues for its return in songwriting. These things are Read more ›

When author Kelly McClymer asked her number-savvy scientist husband to help her make sense of the confusing world of ebook royalty rates, he did. Here he is, crunching the numbers in an effort to see what rates are fair for authors. When your WW (Wonderful Wife) is an author you spend a lot of time talking about Read more ›

BusinessNewsDaily published a list of five unusual crowdfunding/crowdsourcing sites that go beyond the standard Kickstarter model. With these sites, you won’t necessarily be able to ask for money. Instead, you’re mining your “crowd” for time, skills, expertise, or even medical advice. Awareness and interest in arts projects Most crowdfunding efforts involve donating money, but on Feed the Arts, Read more ›

Sometimes it may seem like the man is out to get you (shine on, you crazy free-spirited artist-folk, you) but in this case, the law is actually on your side. You can take your instrument on the plane—erhm, a plane governed under U.S. law, anyway—no matter what airline staff tell you. We’ll let Ari from Ari’s Take Read more ›

Be as newborn babes, ye writers of 2013. Resolve, as writer Chuck Wendig has done, to do more, be better, and write in 2014. Last year, I did 25 writer resolutions for 2013 – This year, I thought I’d add some more thought-midden to the steaming ordure heap that is this blog and toss out another ten resolutions for 2014. Read more ›

Sometimes we forget why art was created in the first place, so comic-creator Grant Snider made this comic.   Art is there to be experienced. It can inspire wonder, provoke strong emotions, and alter perception. It is meant to be loved, despised, or puzzled over, but never politely ignored. Go to a museum, a gallery, a Read more ›

Time is linear, but Gregorian calendars are laid out in a grid pattern. Clocks, like the one above, work in a circular pattern. So Jeff Schwarting designed a linear calendar that matches the linear way in which we experience time. Fast Company featured his design. “Clocks represent time as cyclical, typical calendars represent it as Read more ›