The Maker's Playbook
A podcast where we talk all about what it's really like to make a living from the things you make. Featuring candid interviews with other ceramicists and makers, as well as helpful business tips to make your side-hustle into a life-giving, viable business.
Episodes
For many makers, opportunities to focus solely on creative exploration—without the pressure to produce work for sale or prove our worth through finished pieces—feel impossibly rare or reserved for those along a traditional academic path. When you discovered your craft later in life, already juggling mortgages and responsibilities you can't simply walk away from, where do you turn for intentional study and communi...
Building a team is one thing—but how do you actually run a production ceramics studio day-to-day without losing the handmade quality that makes your work special?
In this second part of my conversation with Sarah Wolf of Wolf Ceramics, we dig into the operational realities of running an eight-person studio. Sarah breaks down weekly production rhythms, why cross-training her team across multiple tasks creates both flexi...
What if you could grow your business and build a team without becoming a factory—creating a business that values craft, flexibility, and the humans behind the work?
In this conversation, Sarah Wolf of Wolf Ceramics shares her journey from studying geochemistry to building an eight-person ceramics studio in Hood River, Oregon. She opens up about the early years working from her parents' basement, the vulnerable dec...
Right now, for potters and artists around the world the holiday season is crazy busy - markets, commissions, shop updates, custom orders all piling up at once. But are you choosing what's right for you, or just reacting to everything coming at you? In this episode, we explore the crucial difference between making intentional decisions based on your unique goals versus automatically saying yes because you're...
Working as a librarian by day and making pottery in her garage studio by night, Becky wrestles with a challenge many makers face: how do you develop a distinctive artistic voice when you're working in isolation? What if the pressure to constantly produce—amplified by social media's highlight reel—is actually drowning out the quiet work of discovering what you're truly trying to say? Through Becky's...
Many makers struggle with the tension between creating work we love vs making work that we think will sell, especially when traditional academic instruction is often focused on concepts and what I call “Capital A Art” over the practical skills needed to make a living. What if the key isn't choosing between artistic integrity and commercial viability, but rather learning to work efficiently?
Olivia Avery's exp...
As makers, we often feel pressure to create what we think will sell rather than what genuinely excites us, but what if following your authentic creative vision is actually the fastest path to finding your people and building sustainable success? Danielle Williams of Strong Roots Pottery discovered this when she finally allowed herself to explore the hair-inspired clay work that had been sitting in her sketchbook for y...
Most makers think YouTube means teaching their craft or competing with influencers for millions of views—but what if the real power lies in creating educated, confident buyers who value your work before they ever click "purchase"? Jamar Diggs, YouTube consultant and creator of the Low Lift Club, reveals how service providers and product makers can leverage YouTube not for viral fame, but as a strategic lead ...
What if the pressure to grow your follower count and perfect your online presence is actually distracting you from the real relationship-building that sustains creative businesses over time? Because it’s a little bit crazy to realize how many of the most successful business opportunities often come not from your carefully crafted marketing strategy, but from the casual conversations that happen when you're just b...
The romanticized image of going full-time as a maker often glosses over one crucial reality: you'll spend as much time problem-solving your business as you do creating, and the mental resilience required might surprise you more than the financial challenges. What if the key to thriving long-term isn't just having enough savings or demand for your work, but developing the flexibility to constantly adapt when ...
Could it be that we've been thinking about this all wrong? That it's not the "real job" on one side of life and the dream of making art full-time on the other, and that eventually, we have to choose? Because when we really look at it, are the most sustainable creative careers, from the artists we admire the most, actually built on either-or decisions? Jenna McNerney's journey through teaching,...
The internet loves to talk about that magical “six figure business” milestone, but what if hitting that revenue number doesn't actually change your life the way you think it will? What if the real transformation happens when you stop chasing someone else's definition of success and start building systems that serve your actual goals—even when that means making decisions that feel uncomfortable or unconventio...
As makers, we often start with a vision of success that's more fantasy than strategic roadmap—believing that if we just work harder at making our beautiful pieces, it will somehow lead to a sustainable business. But what if the path to actually thriving as a creative is in repeatedly narrowing your focus, rather than doing more and more? What if doing less is actually what allows you to find that magical venn dia...
As makers, many of us feel pressure to choose between our creative passions and a more traditional career - but what if that's a false choice entirely? What if taking your craft seriously doesn't require abandoning a career you are equally passionate about? Melisa's journey from taking her first clay class as a 40th birthday gift to creating what she calls a "side saunter" shows us how blendin...
Recently there's been a lot of talk around whether or not you can make a full-time living as a studio potter, and most stories you'll hear about those who are seen as "studio potters" involve teaching regularly, running workshops, providing rental space for other artists, or maintaining multiple income streams beyond just making pots. But there are a few potters out there who truly make their livin...
Can you make a viable living from creating a wheelthrown mug that you charge $45 for? According to a video currently racing around the internet, the answer is no. But is that true? According to some of the past potters I've talked to here on the podcast over the last 4 years, that answer would be no, that's not true. In fact, they are making a living for their entire households.
On this episode we dig into 4 ...
What happens when we approach our artistic development not as lightning-bolt inspiration but as intentional practice—exploring the minute details that fascinate us while carefully choosing which external voices we allow to influence our work? Throughout her 23-year career, Martha Grover has done just that, and the iconic look of her distinct thrown and altered porcelain vessels reveals how a pragmatic approach to the ...
As makers, we often believe that stability - often in the form of continuous access to the same studio and materials - is essential for building a creative business, but Eva Champagne's nomadic journey reveals a different path. Throughout our conversation, Eva shares how she's built a ceramics practice while constantly relocating - from Florida to the Virgin Islands, Bali to Montana, and numerous residencies...
As makers, we often envy others' seemingly polished creative lives without seeing the winding path they took to get there. AnnMarie Cooper's journey from gallery employee to pottery gallery owner, cohorts program manager, and shared studio founder reveals how real artistic careers evolve through countless iterations - from taking community college classes and working in an 80-square-foot backyard shed to fin...
Missed Part One? Listen here!
Having established her community studio through careful listening and intentional growth, Amy Roadman now faces the challenge many creative entrepreneurs encounter: balancing business sustainability with personal fulfillment. What happens when you're finally the boss but struggle with pricing your work, protecting your creative time, and growing at the right pace? In Part 2, Amy share...
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