STOP SELLING FAN ART

CREATORS DON'T STEAL FROM CREATORS Making fan art = fine vs Selling fan art = illegal, there is no grey area (Google it) We are a collective of artists that believe fan art can be a beautiful thing when it’s from a place of love. Once the artist wants money for the creation, it’s no longer out of love. The intention changes from love to money and if they don’t have permission to sell it - they’re stealing. It’s not their IP to be making money off of. Selling fan art is illegal and more artists need to know. But more importantly, they need to know that any time they’re creating fan art, they’re taking time away from their original work and their journey as an artist. We also believe that fan art is a stepping stone. Training wheels. Meant for experimentation and exploration and never profitable gain. We want all artists to be confident that their original ideas and work can sell. Be proud of the work you do and what you want to create. We want to walk into a convention, see your table, and be swept into your world. Please take time to read the posts below and believe that you can make it in the art world without the help of selling fan art. You are strong enough. Your ideas are good enough. Keep going and don’t give up! ❤  (This is a Tumblr site, feel free to Reblog / Like any posts! Spread the word!)

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If you're in doubt about whether selling fan art is illegal or not, just Google it. You'll get the same facts that this blog has elaborated on and then some.

Go ahead and make it, just don't sell it and steal from the creators you're trying to support.

Overall, focusing more on YOUR characters and YOUR stories will be far more rewarding in the long run.

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If you were sitting across from the person who created that character at the con, would you still be selling it? Their money is being taken from them right in front of them.

Some of these creators go to cons and this happens to them. Mike Mignola will not sign fan art of Hellboy because of it. Creators high up hate it but can't do anything about it because of the companies they work for. 

What if it were you? We don't sell fan art because we respect the creator that's just a creative like us. And we know we wouldn't want to be treated that way.

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Right out of the rule book...

For those that don’t know, every convention writes this in it’s contract to protect their own butts. That means that if a company (say Disney) comes in and starts handing out Cease & Desists to artists selling fan art, the convention will point to it and say, “They signed it! We told them no but they did it anyway!” to save themselves. It’s happened in the past and could happen again any other time. The problem is this, companies find it too expensive to take the time/money/trouble to have someone go to say, NYCC, and put the kibosh on these artists. It’s also a ton cheaper for them in terms of advertising where they can use the little guy instead of Mr. Big Advertising Firm. Not a very healthy relationship between company and artist if you ask me. Artist spends time/money on something they’ll never be able to put in a portfolio because it’s copywritten. Company uses the little guy for their time/money instead of paying advertising firms to do it for them. Either way, it comes down to the artist and if they feel right having a company use them and steal their time while they’re stealing money from a company. Personally, since ‘stealing is stealing’ to us regardless of how big or small - it’s no good. Directly from a big shot artist or from the lil artist next door just starting off. Stealing is stealing.

Then there are conventions like Ohayocon who have made the leap to having applying artists PROVE they won’t be selling fan art of any kind. Other conventions will hopefully be catching on soon since even Dragon Con is getting a more strict legal system in place. They handed out IRS forms this year in Artist Alley. 

For Ohayocon, you have to send them a comprehensive portfolio laying out everything you plan on selling. They even address fan art if it’s reported to them while at the convention. They’re very thorough and serious. Here’s the excerpt from their contract explicitly stating no selling of fan art. Hmm wonder why...

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Downward Spiral

We go to a lot of conventions. We see a lot of the same people. We are fighting this fan art fight so that the new artists coming into conventions don’t see this and think it’s how to be successful, as it is VERY far from that. 

There are some that sell fan art that go WAY too far. That may or may not know how bad it is for them and the industry. It gets addicting for some people, that’s why it’s never good to start. You may get addicted. Here are a couple examples of what not to become. We’ve omitted saying who they are as not to shame them. We do however want to use them as an example. Hopefully some day they return to their own art and expressing themselves. Instead of just being businessmen and thieves. 

We’ve seen this guy multiple times. The only time fan art is alright to sell is if you have permission to. I doubt he has permission from all these companies...

Think of all the money he’s making that doesn’t belong to him. A lot of these may even be traced from promotional art. A lot of fan art at cons is. You can help by not buying from these people. Buy from original artists. Help them to establish a new world where this isn’t tolerated. Where they get rewarded for their ideas.

This one was heartbreaking. Out of all the fan art this guy has (a lot was super provocative), this little girl went up and pointed to one of the sweetest he had. A little merry-go-round of chibi Star Wars characters. Now, none of this is acceptable and all of it is money that he’s openly stealing from these companies. But this was the last straw. This guy is also at a lot of cons.

Please stop giving fan artists money. Let them know it’s better that they spend their skill investing in themselves instead of being taught that stealing is the only way to success. Ask them if they have permission to sell that property or if they’ve worked on it. Or ask them if they have any original art because you’d like to support their ideas. This really needs to stop.

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Why are you stealing from something you love?

Usually selling fan art comes down to someone saying one of two things:

1. “I do it because I love the property!” 

2. “I do it because it’s popular.”

There are problems with both of these scenarios. 

#1 comes down to, how can you steal from something you love? If you love your significant other - would you steal from them? If you love your family - would you steal from them? Why would you sell fan art and claim to ‘love it’ while you’re stealing from it? Does not compute. You’re not only lying to yourself but you’re manipulating others by playing off of their nostalgia. Not a good way to make money or grow as an artist.

#2 is a sad one. Usually it’s money based which is already a poor starting point. (As that’s also more of a business perspective and not an artist’s viewpoint which would be based more on expressing your personal inner feelings.) You can’t tell me that as an artist you’ve never dreamed of having your own property. So why on earth are you sacrificing any time you have on this earth to something you don’t care about just to get popular? “Oh I’ll switch over to my original stuff once I’ve grown a bit.” Nope. Think about why that won’t work. The people that follow you are following you because of the nostalgia chord you’ve plucked with them. Once you start doing what you want to do, there’s no loyalty holding those people to you. However, if you had just spent all that time you were making fan art (that you didn’t care about) on something you DO care about (your own art) you’d have followers who are loyal to what comes from your heart and mind and not what’s already been planted in theirs. Not only that, but you’d already have made so much more content YOU CAN USE instead of a ton you can’t. Remember, you can’t make a book of fan art, but you CAN make an artbook of all your stuff. Fan art is really a waste of time when it comes down to it unless you’re just starting to draw and are experimenting. Sure, do it to express your love for something but give it away for FREE. Else it’s not love, it’s something else.

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EAT YOUR VEGETABLES!

Trying to quit fan art? Let’s get you healthy!

If you’re someone who has original art at your convention table as well as fan art - you’re hurting yourself. (Even if you have permission to work on that IP, more on that later...)

      An analogy if you will - If your table has vegetables (original art) and fan art (candy), people will almost always take the candy. If you have a table full of just vegetables, they’ll choose their favorite vegetable. People usually will choose their favorite out of what’s offered to them. So of course if you offer them something known (something they’re familiar with) of course that will outweigh your unknown property. If you have a pop culture figure among your original ones, they will choose that almost 100% more due to the rapport and recognition they have with that character. The best thing you can do if you want to sell original art is to just make the jump and DO IT. It’s scary, yes. But oh so worth it. If you still have an abundance of fan art prints, give them away as ‘free with purchase’ or ‘promotional items’. Just don’t sell them. Once they’re gone, leave it be. You should be proud.

      Having even one item of fan art at your table puts your original work at risk. True story - A comic artist we know sells his original art at cons. He did a custom cover for a popular IP and had that for sale at his table. He worked for the company and legally was allowed to sell it. No one ever looked at his original work and only asked questions about the cover. Once he took the cover off of his table - he immediately had more response to his original work.

What do I do with what’s left of the fan art I ordered? Give it away! Like it was meant to be! Until it’s gone. Then don’t order more. Give it away free with purchases or to friends, etc. Brighten someone’s day with it!

      Your table is your world. We want to see what you see. We want to support you and the ideas you have. You are the future of art, don’t regurgitate what’s already been done. Show us what you got! ❤

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Fan Art vs Fan Fiction

Ever wonder why you don’t see fan fic books that have been published?

Because they can’t be. Writing can be copy-written a lot more comprehensively than visuals. It’s super weird that fan artists never seem to think about fan fiction and why one is ‘more wrong’ than the other. Any time anyone has created a fan fic that’s wanted it published has had to change everything in it so it no longer resembles it’s originally conceived form. (See 50 Shades of Grey & Twilight)

So why isn’t it the same with fan art? The problem has grown beyond the means of being shut down. For any big company to send someone out to a convention to hand out Cease & Desists to artists would be so much time and money it’s not worth it to them. Let’s say they did that, then the artists would have to leave, would be angry, the convention would be in an uproar over the loss of artists and people there to see the artists that it’d just be insanity. The way to shut this problem down is over time, before conventions even start, and to slowly show artists why fan art isn’t worth their time. Especially if they want to eventually have their own properties. Luckily, conventions like Ohayocon exist that make artists prove they won’t be selling fan art at the shows to be able to exhibit. It’s a step in the right direction. Think if you went into an artist alley and EVERY table was 100% someone’s ideas. EACH TABLE WAS A WORLD?! How cool does that sound? Let the people who own licenses make the official merch, let’s all start working on our own stories and characters so there’s something to replace the things later that are popular now! <3

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What about the creators?

So a lot of people tend not to care that they’re stealing from companies like Marvel, DC, etc. But what if you picture a person instead? 

We know of an artist who has created a certain popular character and when they go to conventions, that’s their claim to fame. They worked really hard to get there and deserve the acclaim for their creation. However, they’re surrounded by people selling their character on various products that their money is literally being taken from them in front of their eyes.

Think if that were you.

Think if you made a story or character and distributed it. Whether online through books, prints, etc. Then one day, you go to a convention, and sitting across from you is someone selling fan art of your character. 

What would you do? What could you do?

A simple case of treat others as you’d like to be treated.

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Stealing is Stealing

Do you believe that someone stealing a jar of peanut butter is just as bad as someone who steals a laptop or a car? Hopefully you do, because stealing is stealing regardless who it’s from, what it’s for, etc.

So if you believe stealing a $4 jar of peanut butter is bad, how is it alright that people are getting away with selling $15-$40 prints at a convention of characters that aren’t theirs? Some people even TRACE real promotional or official art and sell it. Some are making hundreds or thousands of dollars from ideas that aren’t their own. 

You might say ‘sure, but they put their own spin on it!’ or ‘it’s in a different style’! Those aren’t justifiable reasons. If an artist has professional looking work and their style is super refined, they definitely shouldn’t be selling fan art. They’ve grown beyond fan art and should be working on their own properties. They’re stealing from other creators.

The only reason people start doing fan art is because they love something. If you love something, you give it away freely. The minute you want money for it, it’s no longer out of love. You need something in return. That’s when it turns ugly.

We’ve witnessed people at conventions talking to each other, saying things such as, “Thanks so much for telling me to make ‘Yuri on Ice’ prints! I’ve never seen it, but they’re selling like crazy!” That’s the ultimate bad to us. You haven’t even seen the property but you’re exploiting those who love it? Fan art plays on peoples’ nostalgia. That’s it’s main focus. You can sell fan art just by the character that’s within it. Regardless of where they are or what they’re doing because people recognize them. When you sell your original work, that has 100% your ideas in it, you KNOW this person loves it for what it is. To us, there’s no better feeling.

Creating fan art out of love and giving it away freely is beautiful.

Selling fan art is manipulation. 

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Need more reasons?

Fan art isn’t just stealing from creators, it’s stealing from you too!

Reasons too much fan art can be a bad thing. Whether you sell it or not.

1. That time that was used to make it could’ve been used for your ideas and building your creative muscle. The more pieces you make, the more xp you get, and the more you level up as an artist! However, with fan art, 80% of the idea is already done for you. The character’s design, backstory, basically everything you need to know. The only thing you’re doing is applying that to a new scenario of some kind whether it’s a place or a situation. Any time you make something completely from 0-100% that’s ALL YOU! You should be proud every time. All the concepts, ideas, and designs were all yours. You earned that xp.

2. You can’t use it for anything. You can’t put it in a portfolio or a book. You’re not supposed to sell it. So really, what good is it other than making it out of love and just once and awhile.

3. Some people sell fan art and are proud they’re stealing from the big companies. Well, ya know what? They’re stealing from you too. They’re stealing your time and effort and using it as cheaper advertising for their products. They don’t have to keep paying billions in advertising because so many fan artists exist. They let the problem keep going - EVEN THOUGH IT’S ILLEGAL because it’s more expensive for them to SHUT THEM DOWN. They get more out of fan art from letting it go on.

4. Once you get too far in - you can’t get out. We’ve known so many people who are so proud of the money they make at conventions from fan art. Guess what, they shouldn’t be. Not their idea, not their money. So they keep creating fan art to get that money, 5-10 years later what do they have of their own? Nothing. Not only that but they’re too afraid to start selling their own work because they know it won’t make as much as the fan art. Never start selling fan art and you’ll only ever be going up and up! It’s like drugs unfortunately. You get so deep into it you buy fancy things, cars, etc. Then you need to keep making that money to pay for them. So you never fully get to realize your ideas.

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Take the Pledge

Become fan art free - Post on your social media. Start the movement!

I, under the name [--Your Art Name--], hereby solemnly swear to never sell fan art in any way, shape, or form. If I choose to create fan art, it will be for free - for myself, friends, or family, but never for financial gain. It will be from a place of love and not for profit. The true heart of fan art.

I acknowledge that selling fan art of any kind is illegal and vow to never become part of a machine that turns a blind eye to stealing creators’ intellectual property. As an artist, I realize that one day it could be me that’s getting stolen from.

I also acknowledge that selling fan art has a detrimental impact on me as an artist, and does not help me reach my full potential. I’d rather profit off of my own ideas and creations than someone else’s. I will continue to educate those who ask, and to discourage the selling of fan art by requesting original works from artists.

Signed,

[--Your Art Name--]

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Mission Statement

       We are a collective of artists that believe fan art can be a beautiful thing when it’s from a place of love. Once the artist wants money for the creation, it’s no longer out of love. The intention changes from love to money and if they don’t have permission to sell it - they’re stealing. It’s not their IP to be making money off of. Selling fan art is illegal and more artists need to know. But more importantly, they need to know that any time they’re creating fan art, they’re taking time away from their original work and their journey as an artist.

       We also believe that fan art is a stepping stone. Training wheels. Meant for experimentation and exploration and never profitable gain. We want all artists to be confident that their original ideas and work can sell. Be proud of the work you do and what you want to create. We want to walk into a convention, see your table, and be swept into your world. Please take time to read the posts below and believe that you can make it in the art world without the help of fan art. 

You are strong enough. 

Your ideas are good enough. 

Keep going and don’t give up! ❤