Above: “We’re not ‘Barista Vampires’! We’re Artisan Writer Vampires who currently happen to be working as baristas.”

“And Graphic Designer Vampires. Hi, I’m Cass.”

I laughed while watching the “Come Out and Play” episode of the final season of What We Do in the Shadows when—in a parody of the film The Warriors in which the vampire family is pursued by other bloodsucking clans—they encounter the “not Barista Vampires.” It was funny…but also a little sobering, too. I was reminded of the old story about every restaurant server in Hollywood “actually being” a director/screenwriter/actor/designer who was only waiting tables until they got their big break. It seems like it’s gotten to be the same way for the entire creative community these days and pursuing a career of any sort, for a whole host of reasons, can be challenging.

Harlan Ellison used to say, “The trick is not becoming a writer. The trick is staying a writer.” It goes the same for artists of all types: the trick isn’t becoming an artist … the trick is making a living doing it.

This is the traditional time of year for both honest reflection and for looking forward. Where have we been? Where are we going? What have we done right and what could we do better?

But I think what everyone really has to ask themselves is: What do you want from being an artist? Do you just want to improve your skill sets and get better at what you enjoy doing? That’s pretty straight-forward and, through hard work and study, it’s a goal that can be achieved. No one can stop you from creating the art you want to create for your own pleasure.

But … if your goal is to make a stable, decent living producing art, Fine or commercial, for clients and patrons … for many it’ll probably get tougher. And if what you’re looking for is riches, popularity, and fame … well, good luck with that.

Studies say that by 2027, 23% of jobs will change, with 69 million new kinds of jobs anticipated while 83 million existing ones will be displaced or disappear. The churning will be driven by new technologies—including, yep, AI—as well as the long-running impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and corporate reevaluations of their personnel needs when compared to actual cost of doing business. And I imagine that if the tariffs proposed by the new administration come to fruition, everything—books, comics, magazines, action figures, electronics, fuel, food, clothing, everything that is imported into the U.S.—will cost more. The higher the price for goods and services, the less people purchase, the less they can afford to purchase, and that includes work by artists. Money to money and shit to the geese, as the saying goes. Companies are constantly trying to maximize their profits by getting more for less with fewer employees, independent contractors, and freelancers and you’d better believe they’ll pass along the taxes on imports to consumers.

I had mentioned awhile back that an employer—any employer, big or small—isn’t your family or your friend: sure, that might sound cynical and, sure, you can have friends who work for your employer and, no, I’m not trying to demonize companies. Business is business and if they aren’t profitable they’re not around very long. The reality is that at the end of the day they’re not especially concerned about your rights or feelings; they’re concerned about their success and their profits. Not yours. I think Donato drove home that truth earlier this year with his post.

What will the future hold for illustrators, sculptors, painters, and other creatives? Will clients be ethical in their treatment of artists or more abusive? Will there be the same number of jobs or more or fewer? Will patrons buy more art or less? I haven’t a clue. You tell me.

In the past Muddy Colors’ comments section was an energetic forum where people could ask questions or share opinions. There was always a lot of give and take. But for quite some time readers have been incredibly quiet and the comments sections, regardless of the posts’ subjects, have been dominated by phishing robots claiming that they “…made $84,000 so far this month working online and I’m a full time student.” (Yeah, and a monkey just flew out of my butt.)

The reality is that people are allowing tech-savvy scammers to drown out our voices. Dan and I have talked about it and there’s not much he can do to prevent the ‘bots from doing what they do.

But today, as the year comes to a close, let’s try to beat the fraudsters to the comments section and, simply, talk. How is your art career going? What were some of your good experiences in 2024? What were some of the bad ones? What are your concerns for the coming year? What are you optimistic about? What do you want to achieve in 2025 and beyond? What have you learned this past year? What would you like to see from Muddy Colors’ contributors in the future? What do you want to see less of?

I’m all ears.