Success? Well, heck! I once made as much as $21 dollars for a gig! But then I had to split it among the other members of my trio.

Seriously, though, I truly believe that the formula that Howard Jones offered above is about as close to being accurate advice as anyone might have to give. However, the "hard work" part should be defined largely in terms of marketing. It seems almost axiomatic that artists of nearly any sort fall way short of the mark in terms of marketing their talents, hence the term, "starving artist". One of the most valuable seminars I ever attended was geared entirely toward marketing strategies such as could be used by artists. It included a section on figuring out the sale value of your product in terms of what you did to produce it. Here is where many people sell themselves short. But, then, you still have to keep an eye on whatever the market will bear.

I suppose what I am recommending is that if you should discover a seminar or short course in marketing, it may prove useful. I daresay that there are many not-so-good artists out there who are doing rather well because they are marketed skillfully.