Director's Notes: 226 - Creditors (Patreon)

They don't often tell you this in creative classes, but a huge chunk of being a professional artist is administration. 90% is probably a bit high of a percentage but it sometimes feels like it.

It doesn't matter if you're working full time or just running an etsy shop on the side, you gotta have phone calls, zoom meetings, tax forms, website updates, social media presences, and so on. And it can feel so overwhelming.

So when Station Management was explained away by The University of What It Is last episode, I couldn't help but feel great sympathy for poor Cecil. In my mind he's always just been a pure artist. He writes stories, and he lends his voice to his community. He gets paid. The end.

But it's never the end. A few years ago when Night Vale Presents' business manager left for a bigger, better job, Joseph and I found ourselves neck-deep in bank statements, 1099 forms, writing a want ad, and conducting interviews. It was hella stressful.

We had done all of this for years before having a business manager, but then we got one so we could concentrate more on writing books and failed tv pilots and other podcasts. Finally we found Joella in March 2020. And she's been wonderful.

But there's still emails and Slack and questions about health benefits and admin meetings. And listen, this isn't a complaint. It's just a part of the job, and a reality Cecil Gershwin-Palmer suddenly found himself in.

Thankfully, Joseph and I don't have debts owed to goat-headed creditors, and we've never tried to store 18 cases of room-temperature scallops in the office.

-Jeffrey Cranor

April 15, 2023