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Pat Dobie and James Buchanan, two experienced creatives earning a living in their fields, explore the paradox of making art that makes money, doing what you love, and getting past the middle rungs of the career ladder.

Are you:

• doing creative-adjacent work to make ends meet?
• running so low on time and energy that your own stuff gets sidelined?
• looking for a way to get your work seen?

Gifted Underachievers is for writers, actors, visual artists, comedians—anyone who’s made a career out of thin air. Explore with us what it takes to ‘level up,’ make more money pursuing your creative projects, and expand your work with collaborators.

What’s in it for you?

You’ll get one episode a week, divided into two or three short segments just the right length for your commute, your spot in the donut lineup, or whatever you do regularly.

Regular segments include:

• Interviews — useful conversations with creatives about their goals, obstacles, and methods
• Gated opportunities — when access to opportunities relies on having connections or resources, how can you get in?
• Now what? — you got one or more book deals / shows / roles / gigs … how to keep it together and build on the momentum
• Office hours — the nuances of running a creative business
• The grants experiment — using “unfolding” as a framework for accessing grants to help fund your work
• Sneaking one past the goalie — when and why a project gets the green light
• The stench of privilege — we discuss the odor that arises when creatives are oblivious to their privilege
• Plus movie reviews, working from home, and other treats.

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