I disagree, any art survives if there are enough patrons. But unlike previous renditions of the concept (pools of money concentrated into the hands of a large patron in renaissance -> subsidized either privately or publicly, in recent history -> creator gets a cut of ads -> this), steemit's rewards are more direct, hence probably better "paid". In any case, all media starts as a hobby, and you have to get big before you attract enough to survive. Artists are known for barely living, no? Though you can argue that not all media is art, it is similar in application. Now, while you're certainly much bigger than myself and most of the users here, you're still not "big". So ... hang in there, I guess.

And never go so far as to need a hospital or something, regardless of what you're doing! You insane?