Arts & Numbers - by Elaine Grogan Luttrull (Paperback)

About the Book

A straightforward guide to financial planning, budgeting, and business basics for creative professionals, artists, and nonprofit managers.

Book Synopsis

The creative class--artists, actors, writers, musicians, freelancers, dancers, performers, and the like--are known for applying their passion for creative expression to everything they do. Perhaps the one thing that most fills this group with apprehension is the rigid world of numbers. This leads to problems arising from the unconventional financial and business situations of creative professionals, as well as the nonprofit organizations with which they're often affiliated. Finances, budgeting, and business matters can be dreaded, if not outright ignored, by creatives--to the detriment of their artistic pursuits.

Author, artist, and CPA Elaine Grogan Luttrull has written Arts & Numbers to help creative professionals find the same confidence in their financial dealings as in their chosen mode of expression. It is an engaging, accessible guide that covers a variety of must-know topics, such as budgeting, cash management, visual charting, taxes, employment, and business etiquette. In a simple, straightforward style, Luttrull draws examples from smooth-flowing narratives depicting common issues within the arts worlds, as well as from her own personal anecdotes. Unlike stuffy textbooks and patronizing business books, Arts & Numbers is a lively and artfully done ally in helping creative professionals plan their present financial situations and secure their futures.

Review Quotes

"Arts & Numbers is accessible and useful, full of worksheets and practical assignments that will guide you to getting your cash flow organized and flowing in the right direction. Luttrull is a genial and sympathetic guide through it all." --Art By The Hour

"The book addresses the unpredictable income streams that creative entrepreneurs experience and explains how to manage this in a practical manner. The author speaks in terms that turn accounting terms into understandable concepts." --Tere Scott, Examiner.com

"Too often, creative professionals push aside financial matters to the detriment of their artistic pursuits. Wading through tax documents and scouring up money for rent payments are all-too-familiar staples of the artistic lifestyle.... This volume is an engaging, accessible guide that covers a variety of topics." --Opera America

"No longer shall the artist be fearful of finances." --Columbus Alive!

"Good concepts and practical solutions...I recommend this book for its concepts and charts that help in planning." --Fred Plotkin, Operavore, WQXR New York

"While everyone needs money management skills, the approach to achieving financial security can be different for creative types.... people who work in the arts should be particularly mindful of the necessity to stay on top of the money side of their creative ledger." --Michele Lerner, DailyFinance

"Ms. Luttrull explains the trial and error of mastering finances in a way that creative people can understand. When a musician plays a piece of music on the piano for the first time, will that composition be played correctly in technique and style? Not at first. That accomplishment comes with instruction and practice. The experience of trial and error also can be expected when creating a budget plan or learning how to handle taxes as a freelancer." - Paula Wethington, Monroe News

Praise for the Author and Minerva Financial Arts

"Thank you Elaine Grogan Luttrull of Minerva Financial Arts for helping us file our first tax forms as an incorporated non-profit organization" --The Harlem Chamber Players

"Elaine has a great way of presenting concepts in terms that take the fear out of the subject and make it accessible and understandable." --Kevin Gadd, founder and CEO of Venture Highway

"A heartfelt thank you to Elaine Grogan Luttrull and her Minerva Financial Arts for her support of the arts and artists." --August Schulenburg, playwright, actor, and director

About the Author

Elaine Grogan Luttrull is the founder of Minerva Financial Arts, an organization that bridges the gap between business and the arts. She is a CPA, writer, and consultant who formerly worked for The Julliard School and Ernst & Young.