So this morning I woke up from a nightmare, which more than likely was brought on by my nerves, since by next week's end I should have put my first book out for self-publishing. Anyway, in the nightmare, I knew plenty of people who all expected me to give them a copy of my book for free.
Art (and I'm including music and writing) seems to be the only vocation in the world where you will meet people who expect you to do it for free.
You would never say to a plumber, "Hey, thanks for fixing my leak; but, instead of paying you, I'm gonna have all my friends come over and look at what a good job you did, and that's free advertising!"
Or, "Tell the chef that the meal was excellent. But, instead of paying the check, I'm going to give you guys a great Yelp review and post a picture of my meal on FB and that's word-of-mouth advertising right to your door!"
But, I know plenty of artists who are treated that way. The price that is put onto art not only involves us wanting to make a living doing what we love, but it includes the cost of our time, our materials (if any), our creativity. Art is essential to the human experience.
And yes, I always support my artistic friends. I pay to see their shows, I buy their music and prints, I make sure I tell everyone about them and how cool their stuff is. That's all any of us want, really. To be supported and to be able to make a living at it. That's all, and thanks for reading :)