Are you a creative artist or writer who feels uncertain or afraid of how to market your creations? Is fear keeping you and your fans apart? Connect with your audience in an authentic, fun way you'll both love. This illustrated marketing guide is for artists, writers, and other idea people who are ready to get down to the business side of creativity. When fantasy artist Frank Robert Dixon was a little kid, his mom read him a classic folktale about three Billy goats who needed to cross an important bridge to reach the land of prosperity. For Frank, and thousands of talented artists or writers like him, the classic story unlocks a powerful lesson for building a successful creative life: "Fear of marketing is like the big scary troll. Sharing my work and connecting with my audience is like that troll bridge I used to be too afraid to cross." Frank's friendship with Robin Blakely, a business coach for talent-driven brands, helped change Frank's fear about actively marketing his creative work in a rapidly changing world. Together, they have created this illustrated marketing guide for artists and writers that provides a big-picture view of the most important parts of building a creative career which include: honoring the creative identity developing natural talent and skill selecting modern communication platforms utilizing imagination, intuition, and creative strengths to reach out to an individual's chosen target market and, most importantly, taking solid control of your own professional dreams. PRAISE FOR THE AUTHOR(S), THE ARTIST, AND/OR THE BOOK: ..".superb, incredible, beautiful " - Ray Bradbury, celebrated author of Fahrenheit 451 ..".Stunning illustration, solid information and the clever juxtaposition of a personal story and sharp marketing advice... the treasure map to creative satisfaction and business success." - Rebecca Forster, USA Today bestselling novelist ..".Deeply charming and incredibly useful, a perfect metaphor and guide for the writer or artist to the "bridge" between creation and reaching your audience." - Leslie Daniels, author of the critically acclaimed novel Cleaning Nabokov's House ..".Wow Crossing the Troll Bridge somehow captures everything that I've learned (by accident) over the past 15 years. The biggest thing to take away? The part about facing fear. All of the points are extremely important and must be followed for a creative person to succeed." -Eric Joyner, artist at www.ericjoyner.com "Crossing the Troll Bridge is the how-to guide for navigating the go-to-market process for creative folks." -C J Meenan, Founder and CEO of Open for Business Ventures"