Commissioned work for magazines can be difficult, I have never turned an offer down though, I still get that little thrill when I get asked to do something.

That thrill can fade very fast when you get your product. I finished a project last night and when the pack arrived I only felt dread, so I stuck it back in the box out of sight. Then I got to thinking well the reason you were offered this was to promote the companies product, my job is to use and display their product to the best of my ability, the fact that it may not be my style/colours/gender selection is irrelevant, I agreed to a set of conditions knowing full well what was expected of me.

I'm happy with what I made in fact I like it a lot, at the start as I shuffled the paper I realised that this is where I have to put that little bit of extra effort in, not for the $20 fee because lets face it after postage and your own product that comes to about $3 so I'm not doing it for the money, but for my own sense of achievement.

Would I like to be published more? yes I would but I don't have the drive right now to submit so if all I have published is commissioned pieces that is good for me.

Thoughts..

There has been a lot of bad feeling about the aussie scrapbook critic blog that has closed again, I don't know how anything like that can't escalate into a slinging match if the veil of anonymity isn't lifted, I think it would work a lot better but for whatever reason people feel if they are unidentifiable it gives them a license to plunder and pillage, unfortunately in this instance it is peoples feelings and that is sad, sad for us as a community that such ill feeling against others exists, I don't know why some are singled out over others as targets, not everyone in the world thrills me but I am happy to keep those thoughts to myself. Critiquing work and magazines is one thing but pulling down people is over stepping the line... end sermon