There's a fun article in the NYT about how some musicians are using the web as the primary vehicle to build their careers, by building a vibrant fan base that supports the musicians in some amazing ways.

Takeaways for those of us who, alas, are not rock and roll musicians, but trying to do work on important policy issues via the web:
-find the people who are passionate about your issues
-invest some (serious) time in building connections and relationships with those folks
-provide them a way to contribute on these issues about which they are passionate
-stand back and let them help you out!

They profile Jonathan Coulton, who "welcomes his fans’ avid attention; indeed, he relies on his fans in an almost symbiotic way." Some examples:

-he invited fans to help him out by recording their own versions of a guitar solo for a new song, a solo which he was having trouble with - and they did!
-he held an online vote to pick the best solo effort and wove the winning entry into his tune
-a graphic artist draws illustrations for each of his weekly songs (for free)
-a fan reformatted his tunes to be playable on karaoke machines
-he asked his fans how he could expand his career, and "dozens of people chimed in with tips on touring and managing the media and even opinions about what kind of songs he ought to write"
-more than 50 of his fans have posted their own versions of music videos (using his music, of course) to YouTube
-he plans his touring and performances by polling his fan base to locate where they live and would like to see him play, and plans a "tactical strike on any town with more than 100 fans".

Great stuff.