It's a beautiful thing," Kristen Watson said, "an opportunity to experience gratitude."
 
Two artists, Kristen Watson and Sean Williams, were recently awarded Artist Development Grants to attend a residency and a workshop. Neither had planned to launch a crowdfunding campaign when they applied for the Arts Council grant. Both, however, turned to an online fundraising community to supplement the grants and fulfill the matching requirement. When the donations started rolling in, Kristen and Sean had a similar experience: gratitude.
 
Friends and family, fellow artists, and past collectors donated to Kristen's campaign. Similarly, there were only a handful of donors that Sean didn't know. Both artists felt a huge outpouring of support from those who know and love the artists and their work. "I'm not sure I could have overcome the inherent vulnerability in it if I hadn't been reading "The Art of Asking" by Amanda Palmer," Sean said.
 
In both her book and her TED Talk, Palmer weaves the story of the times in her life when she has asked for payment for her art. For her, the question has moved from, "How are we going to get people to pay for music?" to "how can we let people pay for music?"
 
You create something of value to your collectors and fans. They want to thank you for it. Let them.