Tag Archives: Indyish

How to be an Indy(ish) artist

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indyishI’ve been aware of the fun-loving work of the Indyish collective for a few years now, and at one point I even performed at their Monthly Mess event—a kind of mash-up of artistic genres, open to all independent artists. Lately their website has been really shaping up as a hub for all things indie (and Indyish!), where they’ve recently posted a link to all their Indyish How-To Guides, which are completely amazing. They cover everything from finding (and keeping!) an intern, getting people to your event without sounding like an annoying PR hack, how to make CDs, release an album, organize a clothing swap… and the list goes on. This is all great advice for the indie artists out there, and will definitely make your life easier. Go read ‘em all right now—or add your own, if you’ve got some advice to share.

In addition to their excellent business advice for independent artists, they’ve also got a neat-o Mix Tapes section to the site, where you can listen to indie artists that have submitted tracks for an old-fashioned “mix tape” experience. This mix tape is digitally streamed, rather than loaded into your cassette deck or boombox, but the concept is the same: a variety of genres, available for your listening pleasure. Click here to rock on over Montréal, or anywhere else in the world!

Crazy contests galore

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In the spirit of summertime (i.e. where the livin’s easy), I am posting links to a variety of crazy contests that may interest you. Some of them involve skill, others merely luck, but there’s a variety to appeal to different types of nerds and hipsters from across the board. Here are some of the most interesting ones I’ve come across lately:

"Summertime Version 2" by deviantart user noahlee

“Summertime Version 2″ by deviantart user noahlee

  • Before These Summer Nights Are Gone — Montréal creative gang Indyish is giving away tickets to a show that benefits the Yellow Door’s The Elderly Project, this August 25 at the Sala Rossa. Performances by Brie Neilson, B.W. Brandes, James Finnerty, Whistlestop, Bent by Elephants, and even some good old-fashioned poetry readings will be involved. To win, all you have to do is write a comment on their blog about an elderly person in your life. Dare to share, dare to win!
  • Hint Fiction contest — As mentioned in my last post, there’s a cool Hint Fiction contest happening now at Robert Swartwood’s blog. Enter your hint fictional pieces for a chance to win a spot in his forthcoming anthology, published by W.W. Norton, plus payment of $25. Can’t beat $1 a word, now can you?
  • Brain Harvest Mega Challenge — Another interesting contest that may interest you is the Brain Harvest 2009 Mega Challenge. Can you un-trope a tired trope or cliché? Check out the list published by Strange Horizons, featuring “stories we’ve seen too often,” for some idea about the types of stuff they’re sick of seeing. Then, try to teach that old dog a brand-new trick for Brain Harvest. Winners receive $100, publication, a Fresh Eyes criticism on a piece up to 10,000 words long, plus a hand-knitted mustache! HOT!
  • Bartelby Snopes writing contest — Like writing dialogue? Like it so much you could write a piece using ONLY dialogue? Then you’ll want to check out the Bartelby Snopes contest for sure! Winners received a MINIMUM prize of $250 (the actual amount depends on the number of entries), so get cracking!
  • Broken Pencil summer party contest — The crazy indie peeps at Broken Pencil are sponsoring a contest for a party in Toronto that includes live music, hipsters, free beer, and (possibly) an albino. Dudes, wtf are you waiting for? Entry is a mere $10, you’ll get a subscription to BP whether you win or lose, and you could be listening to erotic poetry all night long, or heckling DJ Hemingway about his unusually literary name. What’s not to love?!

Those are the craziest contests I’ve seen in a while, but if you’ve got more to share, please feel free to post links to them in the comments section. Honestly, anything goes with the kids these days… and that’s a very good thing indeed!