Save the Date | #ArtistHotline Returns to Twitter on November 15

Miss October’s Artist Professional Development Day on Twitter? We’ve got the recap here! Be sure to join the next #ArtistHotline on November 15, from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM EST.

#ArtistHotline is about resource-sharing and building your professional network. If you haven’t yet joined us for one of our monthly Twitter chats to ask your arts career-related questions and participate in the conversation, we invite you to do so on Wednesday, November 15, from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM EST. The Artist Professional Development Day takes place on the third Wednesday of each month, and is a way for artists and arts professionals to create more fulfilling and sustainable arts careers with the help of their peers and international arts professionals.

To participate, you’ll need a Twitter account and to use the hashtag #ArtistHotline in each tweet throughout the day. You can also follow along by searching for the latest #ArtistHotline tweets. Read more about joining the conversation in our Participate in #ArtistHotline blog post and see below for a recap of October’s #ArtistHotline.

October Topics

During October’s #ArtistHotline, we shared a range of arts career tips, including:

• How to research residencies through social media and tailor applications for each program;
• How to craft a social media strategy. For example, use high quality images for Instagram posts, and behind-the-scenes, “raw” posts for Instagram Stories; research relevant hashtags to connect with others; and decide how much of your personal life to share with your followers;
• Tips on approaching corporate sponsors. For example, present them with a cohesive project narrative and clarify their opportunities for visibility

Key Takeaways from the “Fundraising Myth Busting” Guest Chat

Each #ArtistHotline, we focus on one special topic during a two-hour window, inviting virtual panelists to share their insights. In October, we heard from Guest Tweeters Courtney Harge, an arts administrator, director, and writer; Alysa Nahmias, a film director and producer; and Gigi Rosenberg, an author, performer, and artist coach about how artists can effectively fundraise for their projects. Here are some of the takeaways from this Guest Chat:

• Know what you need funding for and why, and be specific;
• Start with funding that feels accessible, but don’t rule yourself out for opportunities that seem to be too prestigious;
• View fundraising as relationship-building, and approach funders like potential partners, and most importantly, like people;
• Ask for feedback on pitches, grant proposals, work samples, and other materials from people you can trust;
• Follow up after a pitch as a way to build a long-term relationship, but avoid spamming your contacts;
• Consider that your audience can also be your funders, and fundraising from individuals can be much faster than securing a grant;
• If one funding model isn’t the right fit for your project, decide to explore other fundraising channels;
• Remember that fundraising is not often easy or quick

Pointers from the “Building Relationships with Individual Donors“ Staff Q&A

As a way to continue the conversation about getting your artist project off the ground, we invited Madeleine Cutrona, NYFA’s Program Officer, Fiscal Sponsorship, to help close out October’s Artist Professional Development Day. Cutrona and our #ArtistHotline organizational partners shared several tips for interacting with your supporters, including:

• Build relationships over time through newsletters, personal notes, and social media updates, especially since most donors start out with small donations;
• Look for supporters outside of the arts through “content-matching” with audiences who care about your project’s subject matter or cause;
• Remember that donations aren’t always monetary; space, materials, and other donated goods and services can be invaluable

Read the full day’s conversation in our Wakelet recap, and don’t forget to join us for our next #ArtistHotline on Wednesday, November 15, 2017, from 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM EST. As part of the day, we’ll host a “Strategies for Mid-Career Artists” Guest Chat from 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM EST. Then, from 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST, Gabriella Calandro, NYFA’s Program Officer, Grants and Exhibitions will join us for a “NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship Application Tips” Staff Q&A. In the meantime, stay up-to-date with NYFA by following us at @nyfacurrent on Twitter.

Inspired by the NYFA Source Hotline, #ArtistHotline is an initiative dedicated to creating an ongoing online conversation around the professional side of artistic practice. #ArtistHotline occurs on the third Wednesday of each month on Twitter. Our goal is to help artists discover the resources needed, online and off, to develop sustainable careers.

This initiative is supported by the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation.

Image: Simon Harrod