Boy, the trend of offering commissions really has sprung up around the DA community! Back in the day, I recall commissions only be offered by the creme-de-la-creme artiste elite who had full formal art education and was probably already working in the artistic field in one way or another. Now, however, pretty much anyone and their mother is offering commissions of one type or another (myself humbly included).

Nothing wrong with that. Whether you're just looking to make a few extra bucks or get your name out in the artistic community, commissions offer a great way to expand your horizons as an artist and open a new avenue for the DA community at large. Pretty sweet, eh?

Not if you don't know what you're bargaining for.

Whether you know it or not, when you decide to offer commissions you're entering into a sort of verbal (well, type-written) contract with potential buyers. You are saying, "If you pay me, I will draw/paint/write/etc." You are, in essence, a merchant; those who commission you are your customers. In light of that fact, I thought I'd publish a succinct yet straight-forward guide to commission etiquette.


1. Punctuality. I can't stress enough how important it is to complete commissions in a timely fashion, particularly if your clientele pays up front. A good way to do this, if your customer doesn't have a specific time by which the commission is needed, is to set reasonable goals for yourself. Say you get a commission on Sunday. Plan it out. "I'll get the sketch finished by Wednesday, inking by Friday, color by next Sunday." Allot yourself a suitable amount of time without dragging out the deadline.

2. Communication with your client/customer base. If something is preventing you from finishing a commission in a reasonable or allotted amount of time, common courtesy would dictate that you should let your customer know. You'll save a lot of frustration in the long run if you communicate with your clientele that you're running a little behind rather than just keeping them in the dark.

3. If you're too busy to take commissions... Don't. Take. Commissions. Only you know how much you can handle. If you know that finals are coming up and you'll be working extra hours plus attending such-and-such-a-con, do yourself (and potential customers) the courtesy of holding off on taking commissions. If you bite off more than you can chew, you'll burn out and get sloppy.


Yes, this is an online artist's community. Yes, a lot of commission work is done in casual exchange from friend to friend. I get it--commissions aren't always Serious Business. But there's the rub...they are, particularly if you intend to pursue a career in art. In the real world, artists and authors have time limits that must be kept. You know where the phrase "starving artist" comes from? Artists who didn't know how to keep and stick to deadlines.