When Artists Write Me Hate Mail

I receive messages like this more often than you might expect.

Dear Crista,

I’m honestly shocked by what you’re charging for the Working Artist Academy.

It feels predatory to profit off artists when most of us are already struggling.

You present yourself as someone who “supports artists,” but this just looks like another business built on our backs.

Art is hard enough without people like you turning it into a revenue stream.

Signed,

Holly W. Smith

Let me say this clearly:

That’s not why the Academy exists.

I created it because clarity is my gift.

I see patterns.

I see how artists get stuck — and where a single decision changes everything.

And for almost all of my professional life, I’ve used that gift in service to artists.

When I left the commercial art world, I asked myself a serious question:

What is my responsibility now?

The answer was simple.

Artists don’t need more inspiration.

They don’t need more advice.

They need support.

They need strategy that works.

They need help making decisions they can actually stand behind.

That’s what the Academy is.

You’re right about one thing, Holly:

Being an artist is hard.

That’s exactly why this work deserves to be done well — and valued accordingly.

When someone writes to me like this, I know something else is going on.

So I don’t take it personally.

This work isn’t for everyone.

But it is for artists who are ready to stop carrying it alone.

That’s why I’m here.

The Working Artist Academy is a 12-week mentored program for artists building sustainable creative careers.

We begin January 22nd, 2026.

[LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ACADEMY]

Crista

January 16, 2026