A Financial Field Guide for Creatives, Solopreneurs, and Other Anarchists
Remember those days of old when creative people did what they did because some guy with money paid them to do it, all for the privilege of calling themselves a patron? Well, those days are over unless you get smart—and creative—with your money and become your own patron, in which case the time has never been better.
How To Feed A Starving Artist is a 186-page book (available only as a PDF download or in Kindle version) about money for creative people, people who don’t want to talk about money, feel like they need to take a long, hot, shower when they do, but who need to get a handle on their finances so they can continue to do what they love with greater freedom.
I wrote this book because I've been there. I've gone from struggling artist to reluctant bankruptee before getting my finances in order. This is a book about the financial possibilities available to artists and other creatives. Like its predecessor, A Beautiful Anarchy, this is an honest book about freedom. It promises no get-rich-quick solutions, just sound wisdom and actionable ideas to help you change the way you think and act in relationship to your money. It’s a starting place for people who want the freedom not necessarily to be rich, but to live their dreams and fill their days with the art and adventure they long for.
Money’s not the point, not even remotely. But money makes things possible. If you want to get a better handle on your finances, stop stressing out about making ends meet, and want to get closer to "living the dream" by doing what you love, How To Feed A Starving Artist is a great place to start that journey.
"How to Feed a Starving Artist is packed full of resources and solutions to many problems we face as creatives. Much like A Beautiful Anarchy, it is a book you will reference often, pulling from its pages a more successful and modernistic approach to an age-old question most of us struggle with in today’s competitive market. If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Where do I begin?”, this is the book for you." ~ Doug van Kampen
"I’ve tried to read books on managing finances before, but I could never make them work for me.They were either so dry that I couldn’t read them, or the authors made me feel like I needed to sell out my friends, family, and soul to get where I want. I shouldn’t have been surprised that this book is completely different. David approaches the subject with the same humility, and creative vision that I’ve come to love about his writing. He shows that acquiring wealth can be done in creative, ethical ways, and that money (much like camera gear) is a tool for achieving your life’s vision. The strongest endorsement I can give for this book is this: it has already motivated me to take action. I have started implementing some of the changes he’s suggested in the early chapters and have made concrete plans on parts of the later chapters. From a guy who couldn’t even finish other finance books, that is the highest praise I can give." ~ Marcus Taylor
"Skinny people don’t write books about dieting. It takes someone that has lived the treacherous life of a struggling artist and had come out with the upper-hand to tell you the real story as it is. David duChemin holds back no secrets when telling the story of his own personal failure and success, he explains in laymen’s terms the fundamentals of any successful business but tailored for the creative (photographer) entrepreneur. This book has it all to get you sailing on the right financial course towards achieving your creative dreams. My only regret is that I didn’t write it myself." ~ Sharon Tenenbaum
