SL no fun for creator/builders?

Hello, I am a creator/builder who has finally found my niche, but from talking to some folks, SL doesn't sound like much fun if you just want to build and sell things on a regular basis. I'm not looking to make any RL dough, I just want to make enough Ls to stay in the game without having to shell out $25 USD every month.
Is there any way to do this without having to get involved in cutthroat "politics"? I mean SL is my way to escape politics and have fun--does that have to be mutually exclusive from running a successful business?
TY
-Ras

What politics? (O.o)

I build and sell just fine. Except for my $72 per year premium fee, SL is basically free for me. And, sometimes I'll just build for the sake of building. That's fun all its own. (^_^)y

No.

It depends on how you approach SL and what you do while in world. I think some of the people you've spoken to who have had difficulties with building (or any other activity someone might find enjoyable) and having fun is that they approach it backward. If you come to have fun you'll find fun.......if you come to work and do the grind of real life business you'll find you can certainly do that too. A lot of people "make tier" which, in turn, makes SL completely or nearly free.........not all, but a lot. The ones who have fun whild doing that are the ones you need to talk to. The ones who slave away and have no fun will discourage you. It's possible to do what you enjoy, sometimes you make enough to cover expenses, sometimes you don't......but it's up to you to have fun.

note:
use an alt to do all your selling, and make sure their name is in there as creator... guaranteed no drama from customers while you are building or goofing off with your main. (or just have someone else you trust handle all that stuff, while you do the part you enjoy).

Building is a true joy.

Is SL any fun for builders/creators?

I dunno.. cursing at the build tools, lag and the occasionally interrupting griefer is kinda fun. Watching prims snap back to original sizes after you've attempted to size them? Not so much fun. Getting a silent disconnect from the sim for ANY reason and wondering how long you've been building without a clue? Not fun.

SL is self-supporting for me. It's actually fun and when I'm really in a build mode, I almost hate leaving for sleep.

If you decide to run a business then, in addition to building, you will have to market your business and deal with competition. It's unfortunately kind of inevitable, because even if you don't want to make big bucks, you're competing with people that do.

However, one thing you might note is that it is not necessarily essential that you own your own land, run a business and use the money to pay tier. If you are a good builder you may well be able to make a little money and build for free by offering yourself as a building service. For example, a landowner might need an attractive landscape or setting around their sim to make it stand out from others. If you can convince them that you can do a good job, you could effectively get a whole sim to build on without ever needing to pay tier.

I kinda get the idea that you want to find out if owning a store is something for you or not.

May I ask what it is, you want to, or are creating?

I might have something for you:
I have a New Creators Mall. 4 months shopspace for absolutely free.
Next period starts Januari 1st.
perfect to start and see if you enjoy it.

This. Do it for the fun of it. If you sell stuff, that's good too -- but do it for the fun of bending prims *first*

Yeh, I only started selling stuff when people started going "you oughta sell this stuff".

Like anything else you might do for money it is fun sometimes and other times tedious. It is fun to see in pixels what you saw first in your mind. It is not so much fun to write your instructions and set your permissions and do your xstreet listing. Overall SL is way fun and I wouldn't listen to folks who aren't having any. If you have fun building and are willing to put the time in, you will make quality stuff and quality sells. Content creation is neither a get rich quick scheme nor is it a closed club for the already successful. If you don't like politics or drama (and there is plenty of that) just ignore it. Sl can be a mirror. It will give back to you what you bring to it. If you know how to have fun in real life, you'll have a blast here.

The most successful never show their faces here, so you already have one counter-indicator for success

Sounds like you've been reading too many forum threads. If you stay inworld, and get yourself a little workshop and a store...knock out some cool stuff....try a few good mall locations...hook up with a store owner who sells similar items...

that just scratches the surface.

But if you read too many forum threads - you'll never be motivated to do anything. Not sure what you're talking about with "cutthroat politics"....I don't see that inworld at all. The happy people selling a lot of product, generally don't show up much in forums....so you're reading a warped view.

without a doubt, the worst aspect of being a content creator is the fact that your business lives or dies by the whim of linden lab, and the lab favours CHAOS and market INSTABILITY above all else.
it is not possible to have any sort of plan or strategy for anything further into the future than say.... 1 month.
LL will kill your livelihood without an ounce of consideration,
LL are currently on a big gom trip, meaning they are moving into resident markets and competing directly against their own customers.
content theft is at extreme levels.
i think the days of starting a profitable business are largely GONE now, with the exception of those that are highly technical.

I think a business lives or dies by a combination of:

1) the quality of the the products
2) the exposure they get to the market
3) their pricing
4) luck.

Rasecel, creating and having a business is a really enjoyable and rewarding thing to do, I've found. The trick is doing something you really would enjoy doing anyway, but just happening to be a bit more organised and getting some payment for your efforts as well.

My favourite things are getting into the vibe of creating, when everything runs well, and the creative juices are flowing, having people wear or blog things I've made-(it's such a thrill), meeting great people in the process, and seeing that some income here can allow you to have a funner SL.

The least favourite to me are the tediousness of finishing a range off...like checking permissions, boxing, sending notes to groups (I hate writing descriptions and would much rather just create instead).

I think the tricks are to do what you love, not allow it to stop you getting out and having fun, and not to feel pressured into releasing a new range plus sale items every week. That last one becomes draining, and does nothing to add to the quality of what's in your portfolio.

have fun

It sounds like you want jam on it

SL is like any other world. If you want to succeed in business, even to the small extent of SL not costing you anything, you have to get involved in business, or someone does on your behalf.

Ohh I should have added that cutthroat politics sell bloghits. Apart from that, you can live and work happily without running into them.

I think it depends on what you are selling and what kind of customers you have. I would suggest you just start up and see what happens. Things may not be as bad as imagined. It also takes a while for a business to get 'found' and start selling so you want to start sooner rather than later.

Until the OP clarifies what "cutthroat politics" has been suggested, I'm at a loss at to what this thread is even about.

Build stuff you like. Or build stuff you think other people will like, and try to sell it. Or if you want to sell a lot, you do a bunch of tedious marketing chores.

I've no clue where "politics" comes into play here--in building perhaps least of all, because there are hardly any self-appointed expert bloggers to whom it would benefit you to suck up (as in clothing design), nor Mafia-like syndicates to whom you must pledge your allegiance and/or protection money (as in certain kinds of scripting).

Or... what kind of "building" are we talking about here? There is a fairly closed mutual admiration society of "artists" that would be hard to break in to, I guess, if that's what you mean by "building"--although I'm not sure their opinions carry much weight outside their own circle, so don't think it would much matter anyway.

SL has become even more fun for me since I got involved in content creation.

I am really enjoying the challenge of bringing an idea into being after forming it in my head. I am doing a lot of work in development and in marketing to get exposure for our ideas, and it's extremely rewarding when someone enjoys our work. Every single sale brings a smile to my face.

One of the best things about it, for me, is that I am collaborating with someone, so the work of content creation isn't isolating for me, as I sometimes hear people complain it can be. Moreover my social networks are just as important to my business as they are personally - my friends give me feedback, encouragement, and exposure. So I have an extra incentive not to let myself get so absorbed in content creation as to lose touch with people I care about.

I've never been involved in any politics or even any of the drama that seems so pervasive in SL, so I guess I'm lucky that way.

If you go into creating in SL with the idea that you are in competition with everyone else who makes the same kind of stuff you do, then you will probably feel that you are either "winning" or "losing" in comparison with others. Some people enjoy that approach, but those are probably people who also enjoy what the OP describes as "politics."
I create, I build, I run a store, and I don't give a fig about the so-called competition. I create items and run a store for fun, and I enjoy it. I do not run a business.
So, OP, I think you will eventually need to decide to consider your creating and selling as a business, and accept the headaches that go along with running a business, or decide to create and sell for fun, and go for the fun. You may make money, or not, either way. With the first approach, making money (even breaking even in tier) is the endgame, with the second, having fun is the endgame. It is really up to you.

If you want to make money (and that includes even making tier) then yes, unfortunately you do have to think about that, and inevitably you are either winning (successfully making tier) or losing (not doing so).

This has worked for me, and is pretty stress free:

1. Make a thing I want to make.

2. Put it up for sale.

3. Listen to feedback from customers.

4. Fix things I think are broken, improve things that can be better.

5. If income > expenses, goto 2, else goto 4.

I get out of "business" as soon as it starts losing money, and just go on making stuff I want.