Creative Business Real Talk

I took 2 allergy pills, passed out for most of the day... and it was still good for my business.

This episode is my honest, unfiltered check-in on where I'm at after a hectic year and a wildly successful Summit - and why I'm choosing rest over hustle right now, even with a Challenge coming up in September.

In this episode:

The unglamorous truth about my "day off" - mosquito bites, allergy pills, and a nap that turned into an entire day

• My "Permission Slip" philosophy - motivation goes up and down, business goes up and down, and none of it means something's broken
• "Regenerative Business" - why fallow seasons are doing just as much work as busy ones
• Does turning calligraphy into a business change your relationship with it? My real answer

If you're in your own summer slump (or regenerative season) right now, this one's for you.

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FRIDAY PRACTICE PROMPTS: https://www.instagram.com/crookedcalligraphy

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

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I've never told my whole story in one episode. Until now.

This is the one where I go all the way back - the Korean American kid who peed her seat in third grade rather than raise her hand, the Harvard grad who didn't know what to do once she got there, the corporate lawyer who hit a health scare at 31 and finally started asking the question she'd been avoiding for years.

And then: calligraphy. And what happened after that.

The four eras:

• 3:10 - The "Should" Years (ages 5–30) — straight A's, classical piano, Harvard, NYU Law, corporate law in New York. Doing everything right. Feeling nothing.
• 12:54 - The Questioning (30–34) — a health scare that changed everything, a leave of absence, two years of trying blogging, knitting, cooking, and creative classes before finally finding calligraphy
• 18:30 - The Business Jackpot (35–40) — starting Crooked Calligraphy with $0 profit in year one, hitting six figures by year three, landing Dom Perignon and Apolis, going viral on Instagram, and building a course business during the pandemic
• 23:05 - The Second Questioning (41–now) — burnout, stepping away, coming back, and figuring out what a leaner, more creative, more life-serving business actually looks like at 42

Plus - 20:00 the year-by-year revenue breakdown from 2016–2022. Because I believe in showing the actual numbers.

My mission has always been to give people a sense of what's possible — that a more creative, unconventional life is real and reachable. It's hard and risky and requires confronting every uncomfortable thing about yourself. But it's worth it.

This episode is proof.

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

How I went from WORST YEAR EVER…. to a bulging business bank account. It’s time for our 2026 Mid-Year Recap: an honest behind-the-scenes of a true rollercoaster of a year.

And I'm doing after getting back from vacation literally last night. I’m jet-lagged, I’m teaching a live training tonight — and honestly? Not mad about any of it. Because I chose it. And that feels like the whole point of this episode.

What we get into:

• (1:40) The 6-Month Recap — feeling like I finally had it figured out, then watching February completely unravel that story and my brain deciding everything was permanently broken
• (7:27) The thing about "arriving" — after 10+ years, what I actually know now about business ownership, hedonic adaptation, and why you never really figure it out for good
• (10:50) The Summit’s Unexpected Gift — watching other people get excited about building a calligraphy business brought me all the way back to why I started mine
• (13:30) The lawyer dread vs. the jetlagged calligrapher — the comparison that still gets me every time

The takeaway isn't that it gets easier. It's that when it's yours, hard feels different.

(P.S. Free live training tonight 7/21 and tomorrow 7/22 — crookedcalligraphy.com/training. Doors open to the Pro Calligrapher Bundle through Tuesday 7/28.)

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

Belle thought in 2019 she had her dream job as a nurse helping take care of terminally ill patients on a daily basis… until the real burnout hit her. Between COVID taking over in her job, and needing a creative outlet, Belle started dreaming about calligraphy as a source of relaxation at a time when she needed an escape the most.

Join me as I chat with Belle about how she went from an overworked nurse, to borrowing money from her mom to invest in her calligraphy education, to transitioning to calligrapher as her full time job (only 8 months ago!).

We’re sharing…

• (2:50) How Belle went from a burnt out training nurse to finding joy in calligraphy when she needed it most
• (6:20) How calligraphy went from the backburner to her main career (and how the Pro Calligrapher Bundle pushed her into starting her creative business)
• (13:20) How Belle took the leap to full time calligrapher 8 months ago
• (17:35) The best part of becoming a full time calligrapher & the most challenging part (and the advice Belle would give to those aspiring creative business owners)
• (24:30) My takeaways from our interview - the financial analysis, the “deathbed regret” feeling, and how DOING IT SCARED is still doing it
• (27:50) How the Pro Calligrapher Bundle can help you, like it did Belle, move toward your goals

Remember - ready is not a feeling, it's a decision. You might never feel like it's truly the right time, but you don’t want to find yourself on your deathbed saying, “I wish I would have done that.” Because at the end of the day, time is fleeting.

If you’re ready to start moving closer to your creative goals, our Pro Calligrapher Bundle enrollment opens Jul 21, 2026 and I’m celebrating with 2 FREE hour-long strategic workshops to help you see the path forward.

Visit https://learn.crookedcalligraphy.com/webinar/ to sign up for one of 2 LIVE Webinars happening July 21st, 2026 & July 22, 2026!

Find Belle Here:

IG: @handwrittenbybelle 

https://handwrittenbybelle.com/

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

"How do people actually generate a living as a calligrapher? I thought it was all $3 place cards and making a few dollars for painstakingly writing envelopes...”

If you've ever thought that, this episode is for you.

In this episode, I’m sharing excerpts from 3 different speaker presentations from my “Art & Business of Modern Calligraphy Summit”:

(2:38) Shaochen of Monstera Gold shares how to turn a $100 order into a $1000 order (product-based vs. service-based calligraphy)

(8:27) Rosie of WanderCrafter shares how she changed her side hobby calligraphy business into a full-time income not through talent, but rather clarity, trust  and visibility

(14:13) Kristin of Kreative Blends shares how your calligraphy doesn’t make you a great calligrapher - it's your confidence and what kind of experience you’re delivering to the client

(20:25) Sneak peeks of some of the other business presentation topics in the Summit

(22:50) How to get INSTANT & LIFETIME ACCESS to over 20 presentations right now!!

These are just excerpts of 3 presentations — and all of the presentations run 20-30 minutes (so there's a lot more where this came from)! SO MUCH is covered - legal, finances, stationery, how to teach workshops, and for beginners, exactly how to make your first $1,000 (with email templates included).

Whether you are a seasoned calligrapher with years of experience, or have never held a calligraphy pen in your life, there is something for everyone in this Summit - and I can’t wait to share all these AMAZING teachers and presentations with you!

Make sure to sign up HERE!!

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

Forget the 40-page business plan. Here's what actually works when you're just starting out.

In this episode, I'm walking you through my Calligraphy Starter Business Plan: 3 categories, 9 questions, and zero room for overthinking yourself into paralysis.

1. 🖊️Your Product/Service
- What to offer first (choose one for now!)
- What related upgrades you could add for the same clients
- The focused practice so you can deliver it well

2. 👰Your Clients & Pricing
- How to get clear on your dream client
- How to build a portfolio that speaks directly to them
- Where to focus to land your first 3 clients (hint: start closer than you think)
- A simple pricing exercise that gets you past the fear

3. 💰Your Finances & Legal
- The 3 financial steps to set up first
- Sole prop, LLC, or S-corp — what decision you actually need to make right now

Traditional business plans didn't work for me. This did. It's scrappy, focused, and designed to get you moving with intention — not spinning in place.
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📝 Want this in a snazzy PDF you can fill out on your own?
You can download the Summit Business Plan Builder when you sign up for my free Art and Business of Modern Calligraphy Online Summit (July 7–9) at crookedcalligraphy.com/summit

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

What if I told you I sat on something for years that I REALLY wanted to do - but the fear overwhelmed me? 

Sounds QUITE the opposite of the, “go for it” and, “YOU can do it” mentality I put out to the world, right??

As comfortable as I look online with a camera in front of me, you should see me at a party…

Stuck to my husband.

Biding my time in a corner till we leave.

Worried no one wants to be my friend or talk to me (total lone wolf mentality)

Needing a FULL recharge after social interaction (if you’re an introvert, you know this all too well).

After getting out of my own head and realizing I needed to take my own advice, I rolled the dice and started creating the very first Art & Business of Modern Calligraphy Online Summit - a passion project literally years in the making. And boy has it been a rollercoaster designing it (because perhaps it wasn’t the best timing - but that's life, right?)

In this episode, I’m sharing:

• (0:37) The Art & Business of Modern Calligraphy Summit details!
• (1:55) Class & teacher previews
• (4:13) VIP All Access Pass
• (5:30) Why I was so scared to build this summit
• (10:15) The things that matter when building a summit (and what can take second priority)
• (13:40) Always remember what matters the most in the grand scheme of things

Let this be a testament to the fact that the more you can try new things, and grow your personal toolkit, the better off you are (even if you’re doing things imperfectly). I hope you guys enjoy the summit and I am so excited to bring this to you!

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

Sharing a personal update on what has been the busiest time in my business since my Million-Dollar-Revenue years. 

In this episode, I share:

• A big, exciting project I’ve been working on that has been pushing on the most vulnerable parts of myself
• My new approach to Facebook Ads and what it’s teaching me
• The hard personal stuff that has been forcing me to re-prioritize 

You never really “arrive” at a perfect place where everything is “figured out”… but the ebb and flow of business always helps me grow as a person. And I’m pretty proud of how I’ve been handling this tougher time in my life.

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

If you've ever caught yourself saying "I'll start getting clients when my calligraphy is good enough" — this episode is going to mess with your head a little. In a good way.

In addition to being a former corporate lawyer and now a calligrapher, you might be surprised to hear I also have a Harvard degree in psychology!. And after years of watching my students get hired, I can tell you with confidence: the #1 thing holding most calligraphers back is not their skill level. It's the story they're telling themselves ABOUT their skill level.

There's actually a name for what's happening to you. It's called the Curse of Knowledge -  you've spent months (or years) studying calligraphy, following the best people in the industry, and training your eye on exemplars, worksheets, and masterclass-level work. So now? You notice every wobble, every inconsistency, and every flat flourish.

But here's the thing: your clients can't see any of that.

In this episode, I share:

• (1:45) What the calligraphy bubble is, and why I have the authority and ability to can show you that work is better than you think it is
• (4:32) The “Curse of Knowledge” is real - and why it’s hard to remember what's its like as an outsider
• (6:10) Tappers & Listeners Stanford Study and how it applies to being in the “calligraphy bubble”
• (8:58) I am giving you permission to believe in yourself (and yes, The Pro Calligrapher Bundle IS achievable for you, too)

You don't need perfect calligraphy to get paid. I've seen it. I have receipts. And now I've even shown you there's a psychological bias to back it up.

And If you hear nothing else, hear this - YOU deserve to live a full, prosperous life and go after your dreams and ambitions. I know it can be scary, because I was there at one point too. But imagine the things you could do if you just believed in yourself and your talents. 

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!

Mian was a burned-out, unhappy tax lawyer who had quit calligraphy — twice. She had dabbled in it as a kid after her dad bought her a calligraphy set, and again as an adult, but her confidence got the best of her. 

After adding the titles of lawyer, wife, and mother, calligrapher got pushed to the backburner. But with one brave, “I’m a calligrapher!” proclamation to a fellow creative years after her first pen stroke, Mian found her voice & finally got noticed.

Within six months of taking my course, she was doing live calligraphy for Louis Vuitton and Valentino. Oh, and she just made $5K in one week.

Listen to my follow up with Mian to learn:

• (1:57) How Mian got into calligraphy as a kid, and carried it into adulthood
• (3:10) The calligraphy “pause” -  how it happens to everyone eventually (but doesn’t diminish your true self)
• (5:27) How the Pro Calligrapher Bundle created a confident roadmap now, and for years to come
• (14:45) What one moment of “yes” can amount to
• (19:00) Update on Mian and her $5k week!

If you've ever talked yourself out of your own creative dream, this one's for you (because that little voice in the back of your head still deserves to be heard).

🔗 Ready to write your own story about pursuing your passions? I’m teaching my Six Months to Pro Calligrapher training LIVE on June 2 & 3!!! Join at crookedcalligraphy.com/training

FREE WORKSHOP:

• “How to Become a Calligraphy Pro” Educational Workshop

FOLLOW SHINAH: 

• Join our community of creativity-seeking souls over on Instagram:  @crookedcalligraphy

SUBSCRIBE:

• Love podcasts? Listen to The Shinah Show wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts!