Helping Picky People

Yeah. I'm generally a helpful and friendly person, and as an artist, that means people expect me to make all sorts of things for them. It's like they think that I pull artwork out of thin air. I'm helpful... to a point. Amazingly, people seem to become less eager to capitalize on your skills once you start charging for your services. So my answer is this: start charging an hourly rate. I understand that in this case, it's your mother, so there's always the other option: "You know exactly what you want and need, while I'm not doing a very good job... perhaps it's best if you do it yourself." Or you might try to explain how much work you're doing by stating how much you'd charge her if she were a real client. Also, I've learned the hard way that if there is no money involved, once I hear someone utter the words "my vision" or "realize my vision", to back away slowly. (On the other hand, if they're paying me per hour or per revision, I'll realize their vision all they want).