6 Difficult Truths of being a Writer / Artist by JosephBlakeParker. Suggester writes: "A well written compilation full of wise truths that I believe all artists, not just writers, can relate to."
Chapter 10 “Publishing and the Writing Life” – Section 1“Difficult Truths”
With Links to Supplementary Material
Choosing to be a writer has been one of the best decisions of my life; the craft fills me with a sense of purpose, and is honestly the most fun vocation that I could ever hope to do. I am tremendously fortunate to be at a place and time where doing something like this is even possible, and I would never pretend otherwise. However, every path is filled with its share of difficulties, challenges, and hard truths, and I hope that with today's article I can provide some insight for those who are thinking of becoming writers, provide encouragement for those facing these problems, or even just help provide insight into some of the challenges of the field. Though I would not dream of claiming to know how difficult a dedication to other forms of art may be, I hope that some of these insights will help other artists of other fields as well—though please keep in mind that my realm of expertise is limited to writing.
Truth 1: You are responsible for your own success in your field.
I make this statement, bearing in mind that Edgar Allen Poe died penniless in the streets, and the fact that Twilight has seven times the number of reader reviews (and a higher average rating) than Judy Blume's “Are You There God? It's Me Margaret.” But market trends, sales numbers, lottery-chanced publishing, and publishing company shenanigans are not how I am defining success. Success is dictated by whether you have a following, no matter how small, of people who see genuine quality in your work, and find that their lives are better for it. We, as artists, are responsible for seeing that our stories reach that level of quality—even if we have to go through a hundred drafts and twenty years of work to reach it. And if absolutely nobody ever sees that quality, then we cannot blame the market, or readers, or even our own lack of natural talent. Your art can be good enough so that others can care about it as much as you do—and your job is to hone your craft so that this is possible.
Truth 2: Art takes time and hard work.
I began writing short stories when I was seven years old, in little notebooks I bought at a snack shop. Since then I have written tens of thousands of pages worth of stories and poems—and perhaps over a hundred thousand if I count literary essays. I got a degree in writing, ran a literary magazine, received many awards, have written several drafts of four completed novels, read hundreds of books from nearly every genre and two languages, and am currently conducting this study on teaching others what I have learned. And the honest truth is that I have still not reached the level of writing skill proficiency necessary to reach the standard that I hold for myself. Art takes time, sometimes more time than we think we can afford. It takes time to learn, takes time to perfect, and takes time to do.
Truth 3: Your story can attain genuine quality.
This seems encouraging, and it is! If your passion is to create art, then you can do it. Furthermore, you can make your works of art things of mastery and beauty. However, that also means that you are responsible for the story or art that you bring into the world. If you try to claim that it is finished, even though you know deep down that it is not of the level of quality that you would expect out of any professional artist, then you have knowingly sabotaged your own art and butchered its potential to have been something incredible. This does not mean that the damage cannot be undone, that you cannot write for fun, that you shouldn't deem some projects unworthy of your time, or that you cannot publicly publish things to get feedback for improvement. It means that if you have hopes that a story you love can be as beautiful and inspiring in physical form as it is in your imagination, then it is up to you to devote the time and work necessary to make it so—because you can do it.
Truth 4: You will need to take chances that lead to anxiety and uncertainty.
You might be noting that I believe in a particularly immense amount of time and work necessary for making a worthwhile story (although part of the purpose for this book is to give you a huge shortcut that was not afforded to me). After all, lots of writers get lucky and their first drafts finally get picked out of a slush pile, and then editors do all the hard revisions. Then that writer becomes rich, and famous, and gets to write for the rest of their days. All of those objections are 100% true, and I congratulate those authors who formerly had to struggle between a job, life and relationships, and writing, who now get to live the dream. However, there are many writers and artists for whom that chance is not enough. If writing or art is your passion, you may not want to leave your future up to chance, and you may have to take the longer road. This means going to writing school, spending all your free time reading, and dedicating countless hours and days not relaxing or working towards becoming something socially acceptable, but toward something that others would deem a hobby. If you do this, you will likely spend countless nights looking up at the ceiling and wondering if you are wasting your life away or worrying that it's all been a terrible mistake. Just remember that if art is what gives your life meaning and makes you feel genuine happiness—if it is your passion—then it is one of the few things in life worth taking a chance and facing your fears for.
Truth 5: Artists lose their place as part of “respectable” society.
If you choose to be a writer or artists, many people will decide that you are just lazy and do not want to do hard work. Perhaps they will imagine that you are socially awkward and that art is the only way for you to work, alone. The same people who are considered brave and bold for staking their lives and savings in stocks or businesses will think you irresponsible for staking your life on art. Many will also be loyal supporters of your dream, but you will not gain overall social credit as being a respectable member of society, especially when you begin your journey. Even Stephen King said that if you intend to “write truthfully, […] then your days as a member of polite society are numbered.” Be prepared for this stigma, but also remember that it will be replaced with an incredibly intimate relationship and mutual respect between you and your readers, your art, and your fellow artists.
Truth 6: You will be forced to deal with people who want to tear you down.
I see many artists, especially those who receive Daily Deviations, whose comment sections are filled with subtle/underhanded insults, cutting remarks, and criticisms framed in a way to completely tear the artist down. As for myself, I am fortunate to have a overwhelming majority 99% of readers who are nothing but supportive, kind, and encouraging—even with their criticisms. But when I get that occasional, nasty comment, patronizing remark, or rude critique, it does tend to put a damper on my day. Any artist, even one that does nothing but paint rays of sunshine for the sole purpose of making other people happy, will encounter people who for whatever reason just want to cut them down. You will face them, too, both online and in the real world. Know that while these comments hurt more than we would like them to and perhaps more than they should, they also make us stronger, more resilient to attacks, and more appreciative of all the kind and wonderful people who encourage us in our art with their comments, kind critiques, favorites, watches, llamas, and readership.
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Choosing to be a writer has been one of the best decisions of my life; the craft fills me with a sense of purpose, and is honestly the most fun vocation that I could ever hope to do. I am tremendously fortunate to be at a place and time where doing something like this is even possible, and I would never pretend otherwise. However, every path is filled with its share of difficulties, challenges, and hard truths, and I hope that with today's article I can provide some insight for those who are thinking of becoming writers, provide encouragement for those facing these problems, or even just help provide insight into some of the challenges of the field. Though I would not dream of claiming to know how difficult a dedication to other forms of art may be, I hope that some of these insights will help other artists of other fields as well—though please keep in mind that my realm of expertise is limited to writing.
As a writer in my own aspect, #6 is to me the culler of many. It can be completely paralyzing having that prospect over you, especially if the near perfection is being strived.
There is a worse one though. A paralyzer you get when you look at your work, and have no idea what's wrong with it, or right with it for that matter, because nobody has told you. Nobody has looked.
That's a far scarier prospect.
One should never undervalue feedback. Not myself certainly. At least not at the moment.
Anyway, always a pleasure. And may truth ever be apparent.
