Dan,

It is not just folk. It is all kinds of music. Everyone does this now. Everyone has home recording equipment, Garage band, computer programs. We are trying to sell buckets of sand to people in the middle of the desert. Everybody has their own sand. But there are different grades of sand. Different colors.Different textures.
People need sand. It is used to make concrete, other products that use sand as a base. Medical, construction, etc. there are a lot of uses for it. You just have to have the right kind of sand, get it to the people who use it. That is a one on one relationship.

You laugh about the 12 people in your fan base. But that is 12 people that you didn't have before you started giving them something they didn't have before. Do that well and those 4, 5, 12 people, tell two friends each, who tell two friends, this is what the music business is. Do it 100,000 times and you have Taylor Swift and Justin Beiber.

All music is pretty much the same. We are just trying to get people to listen to what we do, buy into it emotionally and if we do it well, financially. One fan at a time. Demonstrate you have something everybody wants and you have a career.

Brian, the owner of this site has a great saying. Get 5000 people to buy one copy of your CD, you have a career. Record deals and publishing deals are just one way to do that. Consistant networking are one of the others.

But yes, you are more likely to get struck by lightning than to have a cut.
You are more likely to be struck by lightning in a submarine underwater than having a hit.

Approach it as a hobby, but treat it like a second job. Be the best you can and touch lives. That is all you can do.

MAB