I feel like the RPG scene as a whole would be way better off if we internalized that WotC pays a minimum of $400 for art for Magic The Gathering these days, and to just calibrate all of your expectations around that.

It's really hard for artists to stick up for themselves, especially emerging artists! There's the constant fear that if you say a number that's too high, the person hiring you will just walk away. It's YOUR job to overpay, to tip, and to make it clear you'll work with the artist.

If I have $300 in my budget for a piece and an artist tells me what I'm asking for will cost at least double that, I have two options:

- Double my budget.
- Scale down what I'm asking for.

Anything else comes off as extortion. Stop it.

I'm happy to answer questions about art payment here, although I will defer to any artists or art directors who hop in the thread, and I refuse to reassure you that you're paying your artists enough. That's not my call.

"Minimum" is doing a lot of work in that first tweet https://twitter.com/jdragsky/status/1294675951796867072?s=20

Anyway back Wanderhome to get us to 175K so we can pay all our artists even more than we were already planning! http://tinyurl.com/wanderhomerpg 

Blah blah "I didn't expect this to blow up I wrote it really fast and I was talking to a specific audience with a context that's now been lost so many of my points lack nuance" WHATEVER

I'm muting the thread, read the replies for some good convos, back Wanderhome