J.S. Here are some links to other forums that focus on the business
of craft. Be aware that most of these boards are not as tightly
moderated as Orchid and some you have to register in order to post
questions. But you will get more specific answers to business
questions.
The Craft Report forum:
http://craftsreport.com/cgi-bin/forums/ikonboard.cgi
Click on the “craft discussion board” There are lots of very
knowledgeable people here. There is a definite bias toward
wholesale shows in this forum though there are a number of
craftspeople who do retail shows. I would say most people on this
forum sell low to midrange pricepoints.
http://naia-artists.org/resources/read_forum/index.cgi
National Association of Independent Artists forum. A higher
percentage of people who post here consider themselves “artists.”
And, in fact, there are a good number of 2d artists who post here.
Still there are some great people here and it isn’t a bad idea to
lurk for a while to find out what’s up in the art fair circuit.
http://www.proartists.org/forums/openforum.cgi
Professional Artist’s and Craftsmen’s Association forum. A newer
forum that, at least from my perspective has more craftspeople than
2d people but that is just my feeling. This group is very free
wheeling and gets off topic a lot. Lots of personalities to deal
with, but you can get some great discussions going. Some really
great topics have been on sales techniques at shows, what is art and
what shows could be doing a better job on.
For newbie questions I recommend TCR forum. They seem to be more
gentle and encouraging. This forum may be just the thing if you are
planning on selling mostly wholesale, J. S. Orchid is mentioned
occasionally on that board, but there is a real balance of different
mediums.
Hope this is helpful.
Larry