Anna Sabino is the author of Your Creative Career, a book about how she left her Wall Street job to make jewelery for a living. She shares some tips and insights for people who want to follow their passion and create something they love. I liked some of her ideas, but I didn't like her tone. She seems to look down on people who have to work a regular job to pay the bills or who are not ready to take the leap into a creative career.

What I hoped for: a guide to "how to build a business that reflects their talent and true calling while generating serious cash"
What I got: "I, the author, caught some serious breaks the likes of which you, the reader, could only dream of, evidently had no responsibilities to prevent taking huge chances, and overall have absolutely nothing to offer anyone not as lucky or as unburdened".

It was still fairly early when I hit the sentence "They defer taking action and choose to settle for the safety of their paychecks" that I quit. CHOOSE to settle. Choose to SETTLE. My note on the Kindle edition of this was short and profane.

I'm really late in posting a review of this book but I did want to say that it was a great read for those looking at creative careers.

Sabino talks and addresses a bunch of different 'art forms' from jewellery making (from her personal experience) to writing, and other entrepreneurial pursuits. But she generally focuses more on product-based careers, which personally wasn't as relevant for me. It was still fascinating to read her experience of growth with her own creative career and what she's learnt from it. There are loads of excerpts from other entrepreneurs' books and talks, tying her own ideas to a greater range of people and experiences.

I wouldn't especially recommend this if you're a writer like me, but if you are an artists in terms of creating things, then you may find this book useful.

The author has shared a lot of tips and suggestions from her life events which talks about acknowledgement of one’s passion and how to turn it into a more successful career.
The book discusses various practical experiences on how to sell your business.
The book talks about issues of exploring creativity within the person, following your passion, thriving as an entrepreneur, money making and developing of the brand. If you have a small creative passion which you want to turn into financially sound business. This book is for you. The book talks about various practices of earning cash against providing your creative services to the people.

This is a great book for anyone looking to take the leap into pursuing a creative career. It was a very insightful read that included practical steps for making your creative goals into a reality. It is the perfect blend of motivational as well as realistic. I appreciated how she didn't veer away from some of the harder topics of beginning a creative career such as interactive with customers in positive/negative ways, money, and how to get started in fields where there is a lot of creative competition. It was a very worthwhile read.

In Your Creative Career, Anna Sabino shows her fellow artists and creatives how to build a business that reflects their talent and true calling while generating serious cash. Whether the goal is to build an empire and be financially free, create a lifestyle business, or just to have more time, Your Creative Career guides you through every aspect of creative entrepreneurship.

If you want to start your creative career, transition into it, or give it a boost, this book is a must read that features:
- Proven systems and strategies to create ideally priced products that keep selling.

- The importance of going through all the steps of making it from idea inception and execution to branding and distribution.

- The importance of transitioning from artistic solitude to collaborative, creative entrepreneurship.

- The most effective marketing and PR methods adjusted to the new reality of short attention spans and information overload.

Really informative read with imortant information about every step though the process of starting your career.

I actually have a physical copy of this as well and have gotten it for another creative person in my life. This was awesome. It helped me so much in channeling my creativity, which I very much needed.

Nice ideas and readable writing but sadly i was missing the actual creative inspirations that i couldn't also find, for example, on pinterest which is if nothing else one of the most creative platforms on the internet i think. So overall a nice book and a good idea but at the same time not as creative and unique as i was hopping for.

This book has many practical insights, but it lacks a bit of a topic/chapter structure. I usually like if the author main points are organised in a more didactic way. It is not just for writers but for most creatives. Still, an interesting read.

Enjoyed this book. It was a solid overview of how much passion and organization you need to start a creative career. The focus was on jewelry given the authors background. Some things weren’t cross applicable to other arts but business is business.

Excellent read with some sage advice.. Author offers some great personal examples and insights to justify her point. Encouraging! I would recommend this to anyone looking to establish a career with the artist within us.

RATING: 3 STARS
​(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY​)​
(Review Not on Blog)

A good guide to get some motivation if you are looking for more fulfillment in your "job/career". I find myself in customer service jobs (ie: front counter or phones) which I truly find difficult with my anxiety. I am one of those people that would love to be given a computer, desk and things to input, access, etc. I am on a quest to find a job that I can love doing. I once had this dream and if management had not changed I would be there until my retirement. This book definitely gives me some ideas and goals but it isn't very different than other material out there.

This book was so helpful both creatively and business wise! And really inspirational as well!

This a really good book.

Can you feel the surprise in my last statement? I approach non-fiction books with a bit of uncertainty, I don't really expect them to be life-changing or thought through. This one is like this though. It's very practical and it makes it very easy for the reader to take what he wants from the book. For me - it was the Japanese saying "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down", the idea of creating while waiting for feedback on other projects, the idea of always creating the next thing. It was also the sending ships thingy and making connections more mindfully. I'm curious what this lecture will result in in my case. I guess we'll see. I have a couple of ideas.

I strongly disagree with Sabino's approach to formal education though. It's definitely not necessary and there are other, much more sensible ways to broaden your horizons and impact your life.

This book is a must-read for any creative looking to boost their career and develop their style and mind. This was a really fun read that was helpful for thinking about my future career. I recommend this to any creative.

Anna Sabino shares tips and advice from her own experience building a handmade jewelry brand from the ground up. Her business advice is down-to-earth, but unlike most business models, she doesn't focus on growth at any cost or completely ditching your creative ideas for mass-production. It's about being realistic and finding a balance between the creative growth you need and what your customer wants and will buy. I recommend this to anyone hoping to make a living marketing their own creations.

Disclosure: I received a digital ARC copy in exchange for honest feedback.

This book maintains an effective balance between motivational writing, accessible research, and actionable prompts. While it inspires artists and crafters to transform their "side hustle" into full-time work, it's equally straight forward in presenting the challenges that come with starting your own business. It provides tons of quotes, prompts, and questions for the reader to chew on, and the writing, which is familiar without being superficial, keeps the reader engaged.

Both serious and fun, this book would help new, aspiring entrepreneurs get motivated, take smart actions, and be realistic about starting a creative business. While it is by no means a comprehensive start-up guide, this book would provide a great foundation before getting into more technical business research.

Interesting book about starting a creative career. I would buy this for my creative friends.

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I would give this 2.5 stars, if I could.

This book was fine. It wasn't great but I finished it so that says something. I didn't feel like it had anything new to offer. It was repetitive and it took a while for the author to make her point. I feel like I could've gone through and pulled out important sentences and done away with most of this book. It was just too long. And it was repetitive.

I was also annoyed that the author mentioned her own business by name so much. At first, I went with it because it's reassuring to know that the person "speaking" has been there. Then I found myself rolling my eyes going "Yes, I know what your jewelry line is called." Finally, it started to seem like a shameless plug and it pissed me off.

I made some highlights in the book but in all honesty, it's probably not a book I'll pick up again.