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*TTRPGs General
Self Publishing: What's An Artist Worth?
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<blockquote data-quote="GreyLord" data-source="post: 7768757" data-attributes="member: 4348"><p>I listed above a long post about it, but in general I'd probably go with the idea that you take how long it will take you to make the piece of art and multiply it by the hour.</p><p></p><p>A beginning artist should probably charge NO LESS than $10 an hour. $15/hr is probably not unusual to charge either. Then it depends on the size and detail (obviously). For a sketch of less than an hour you probably shouldn't charge more than $30 -$50. For a normal piece of artwork that takes around half a day probably $50-$80. For something more complex, let's say full page...you'd probably be looking at something between $100 - $150. </p><p></p><p>This depends on DETAIL and scope though. </p><p></p><p>IMO (obviously), the problem dealing with newcomers to the art scene has several factors.</p><p></p><p>The first is how skilled they are. I hate to say it, but the better artist they are, the more they can charge. It really boils down to skill. The one who has more skill is going to eventually be able to charge more than the one who does not.</p><p></p><p>HOWEVER...the second variable also makes a HUGE difference. Dependability.</p><p></p><p>You can have someone be a master painter, but if that half page artwork takes them 2 weeks but it might take them longer and sometimes they overshoot their estimate by two weeks and it costs you $2500...you have to ask yourself is that worth it?</p><p></p><p>On the otherhand, you may have someone that can do decent artwork but can dependably put out a drawing a day or a full piece in three or four days. They charge $350 for the same half page full art that the other guy does...AND you can expect it to be done when they contracted it to be done...</p><p></p><p>Who are you going to normally depend on getting you the artwork when you need it?</p><p></p><p>Another example...</p><p></p><p>You have an artist that only charges you $250 for full page in depth illustrations. However, you need 5 (so ($1,250 total) of them in a month's time. They tell you no problem. Instead...you end up waiting 3 months and you still only have three of them thus far.</p><p></p><p>On the otherhand you have an artist that charges you $3000 for the same thing, but they will HAVE them when they say they will. You know from past connections and others good words about them. When time and dependability is on the line...that (total of $15,000) is WORTH every penny.</p><p></p><p>When a big magazine is putting out something and they need that cover...they need someone they can depend on to GET THEM that cover WHEN they NEED the cover...not someone who may or may not get it to them.</p><p></p><p>Unfortunately, only one of those can be seen with new artists. One can see how their artwork looks...but one cannot tell how dependable they are at first. </p><p></p><p>If we go by the equation of </p><p></p><p>Skill x Dependability = Price</p><p></p><p>if either one of those is zero...you should expect to get zero back. </p><p></p><p>There are other factors obviously, but those two I think are some of the BIGGEST factors that some people deal with. For someone looking to hire an artist NOTHING probably is more demoralizing to have everything ready to go but you are still waiting for that artwork that you were guaranteed to have three months or more ago.</p><p></p><p>At the same time, you don't want artwork that anyone could draw. You are paying an artist for their ability to do and create art...normally beyond what you or the average individual could do. </p><p></p><p>You hit it on the head with your introductory paragraphs describing it.</p><p></p><p>It is so hard to figure out how much an artist is going to get paid because the variables are so wide and expansive. </p><p></p><p>That said, I'd go with the law of averages if one is trying to figure out what should be charged. Go on an by hourly basis...and with $20hr being the average (that's NOT for someone just starting, that's someone who's been in the field for a while and proven themselves), that's a good basic idea to base what you should charge as long as you are somewhat of a decent artist and have shown yourself to be dependable.</p><p></p><p>If you are just starting though...you probably shouldn't charge that much until you have good word of mouth (and there are sites out there where you can get a start freelancing in art beyond just Deviant art and such...though it MAY NOT be for RPGs, it can be for a wide range of projects) and good contracts or those who pay you should leave reviews up that will bolster your work history. I would NEVER suggest one charge LESS than $10/hr (or €9-10/hr), and in some places if you are only working LOCAL contracts (such as cities such as San Francisco, New York, London, Paris) you could probably charge DOUBLE that...but ONLY LOCALLY as outside of those areas it would seem exorbitant...when they are starting out, but they need to build up their history.</p><p></p><p>Have a portfolio...show off the skill...but the other factor of dependability (also known as experience by some, or history of work by others) and how dependable one is typically has to be built up for a short time before knowing whether one can charge the big rates or not.</p><p></p><p>I'd say inch up rates gradually as the reviews build up and after a year or two you should be able to charge the normal going rates for whatever area you are working in. By that time, you should have a good grasp of what your artwork is REALLY worth (and that's the biggest problem with many who are just starting out, they overvalue what they are worth or how good an artist they are...too many junk artists that are really terrible out there), and what you can feasibly charge. After two years behind you, that's the time to PRESS the limits. </p><p></p><p>At that point you can start raising rates dynamically to see just what limit you can get to and still have people coming to pay you. There are averages, but there is NO HARD AND FAST rules on how much this can be. If you are extremely talented and very dependable...the sky is literally the limit. You could have a MASSIVE amount of money offered per illustration (talking thousands of dollars per piece) and you just need to push the limit to figure that out.</p><p></p><p>I'd probably NOT just limit oneself to RPG illustrator to reach that point though...there's a ton of other illustration jobs out there beyond just RPGs...and if one is building that portfolio of experience...why not stretch themselves in other areas. They might just meet that Harper's magazine who needs the illustrator badly enough or someone else that pays a LOT more money than some RPG companies are even able to dream about (though there are the big RPG companies out there too such as WotC with MtG).</p><p></p><p>This is more for a general illustrator though, I have worked with RPG illustration previously but I will say my experience with RPG illustrators and illustration is extremely limited so it may work differently with the RPG industry.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="GreyLord, post: 7768757, member: 4348"] I listed above a long post about it, but in general I'd probably go with the idea that you take how long it will take you to make the piece of art and multiply it by the hour. A beginning artist should probably charge NO LESS than $10 an hour. $15/hr is probably not unusual to charge either. Then it depends on the size and detail (obviously). For a sketch of less than an hour you probably shouldn't charge more than $30 -$50. For a normal piece of artwork that takes around half a day probably $50-$80. For something more complex, let's say full page...you'd probably be looking at something between $100 - $150. This depends on DETAIL and scope though. IMO (obviously), the problem dealing with newcomers to the art scene has several factors. The first is how skilled they are. I hate to say it, but the better artist they are, the more they can charge. It really boils down to skill. The one who has more skill is going to eventually be able to charge more than the one who does not. HOWEVER...the second variable also makes a HUGE difference. Dependability. You can have someone be a master painter, but if that half page artwork takes them 2 weeks but it might take them longer and sometimes they overshoot their estimate by two weeks and it costs you $2500...you have to ask yourself is that worth it? On the otherhand, you may have someone that can do decent artwork but can dependably put out a drawing a day or a full piece in three or four days. They charge $350 for the same half page full art that the other guy does...AND you can expect it to be done when they contracted it to be done... Who are you going to normally depend on getting you the artwork when you need it? Another example... You have an artist that only charges you $250 for full page in depth illustrations. However, you need 5 (so ($1,250 total) of them in a month's time. They tell you no problem. Instead...you end up waiting 3 months and you still only have three of them thus far. On the otherhand you have an artist that charges you $3000 for the same thing, but they will HAVE them when they say they will. You know from past connections and others good words about them. When time and dependability is on the line...that (total of $15,000) is WORTH every penny. When a big magazine is putting out something and they need that cover...they need someone they can depend on to GET THEM that cover WHEN they NEED the cover...not someone who may or may not get it to them. Unfortunately, only one of those can be seen with new artists. One can see how their artwork looks...but one cannot tell how dependable they are at first. If we go by the equation of Skill x Dependability = Price if either one of those is zero...you should expect to get zero back. There are other factors obviously, but those two I think are some of the BIGGEST factors that some people deal with. For someone looking to hire an artist NOTHING probably is more demoralizing to have everything ready to go but you are still waiting for that artwork that you were guaranteed to have three months or more ago. At the same time, you don't want artwork that anyone could draw. You are paying an artist for their ability to do and create art...normally beyond what you or the average individual could do. You hit it on the head with your introductory paragraphs describing it. It is so hard to figure out how much an artist is going to get paid because the variables are so wide and expansive. That said, I'd go with the law of averages if one is trying to figure out what should be charged. Go on an by hourly basis...and with $20hr being the average (that's NOT for someone just starting, that's someone who's been in the field for a while and proven themselves), that's a good basic idea to base what you should charge as long as you are somewhat of a decent artist and have shown yourself to be dependable. If you are just starting though...you probably shouldn't charge that much until you have good word of mouth (and there are sites out there where you can get a start freelancing in art beyond just Deviant art and such...though it MAY NOT be for RPGs, it can be for a wide range of projects) and good contracts or those who pay you should leave reviews up that will bolster your work history. I would NEVER suggest one charge LESS than $10/hr (or €9-10/hr), and in some places if you are only working LOCAL contracts (such as cities such as San Francisco, New York, London, Paris) you could probably charge DOUBLE that...but ONLY LOCALLY as outside of those areas it would seem exorbitant...when they are starting out, but they need to build up their history. Have a portfolio...show off the skill...but the other factor of dependability (also known as experience by some, or history of work by others) and how dependable one is typically has to be built up for a short time before knowing whether one can charge the big rates or not. I'd say inch up rates gradually as the reviews build up and after a year or two you should be able to charge the normal going rates for whatever area you are working in. By that time, you should have a good grasp of what your artwork is REALLY worth (and that's the biggest problem with many who are just starting out, they overvalue what they are worth or how good an artist they are...too many junk artists that are really terrible out there), and what you can feasibly charge. After two years behind you, that's the time to PRESS the limits. At that point you can start raising rates dynamically to see just what limit you can get to and still have people coming to pay you. There are averages, but there is NO HARD AND FAST rules on how much this can be. If you are extremely talented and very dependable...the sky is literally the limit. You could have a MASSIVE amount of money offered per illustration (talking thousands of dollars per piece) and you just need to push the limit to figure that out. I'd probably NOT just limit oneself to RPG illustrator to reach that point though...there's a ton of other illustration jobs out there beyond just RPGs...and if one is building that portfolio of experience...why not stretch themselves in other areas. They might just meet that Harper's magazine who needs the illustrator badly enough or someone else that pays a LOT more money than some RPG companies are even able to dream about (though there are the big RPG companies out there too such as WotC with MtG). This is more for a general illustrator though, I have worked with RPG illustration previously but I will say my experience with RPG illustrators and illustration is extremely limited so it may work differently with the RPG industry. [/QUOTE]
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