(Regarding my ire over the hair debacle:
On Friday I stated, “Revenge is a dish best eaten when cold,” I refer, of course, not to burning down someone’s business, killing their family or reporting them to the IRS for tax evasion. As an introvert simply trying to live a quiet life, I am cognizant that arson, murder and extortion would not lend themselves to a peaceful existence. Ahem. No.
I simply mean that what goes around always comes around, without fail. I take no personal part in revenge. The Universe takes care of that for us, or didn’t you know that?)
I am currently involved in a number of writing projects, and it struck me this past weekend that the humanities is the only field where you are required to do the work FIRST, and then are obligated to spend all your time figuring out a way to get people to like it and hopefully hire you. No money, no guarantees. Virginia Woolf once said, “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write.”
Take the following as examples of creators and their art:
Songwriter to Label: “I wrote these songs, can you listen to them and let me know if they have potential for the maintream?”
Artist to Gallery: “I’ve been painting these landscapes for five years, can I hang them on your walls?”
Dancer to Studio : “I’ve been dancing since I’ve been four years old and I put this routine together, would you mind watching it?”
Writer to Agent: “It took me ten years to write this screenplay, do you think it’s ready to send to a director in L.A.?”
And then we spend the rest of our days figuring out creative ways to convince the world to believe in it. Why do you think so many writers and artists don’t get famous until they’re dead? Because it took all that time for one specific person to sit down and read the play or look at the portrait and say:
“He was a genius!”
Exhausting. Can you imagine this taking place in any other field?
Surgeon: “Let me perform this heart surgery for free, and then let me know how you feel. I’m thinking of doing this for a living, but only if it’s profitable.”
Engineer: “Here’s this bridge I just built with my own money and own materials, whattya think? Wanna hire me for your firm?”
Lawyer: “I’m going to spend 20 hours a day litigating this case without charging you. Then I’ll do it ten more times, for free. If I win them, I’m considering being a lawyer full-time.”
Car Manufacturer: “Look at these Bentleys I just built. I’m going to give them away and see if people like them. If they do, maybe I’ll make more.”
If you are a writer, or know anyone who wants to be a writer, I have one piece of advice:
DON’T BUY BOOKS ON THE CRAFT OF WRITING IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR ENCOURAGEMENT.
The people who write these books regale hopeful writers with 300 pages about the wonders of writing, but have to resist the urge to admit their book only needs one sentence:
Don’t bother trying to make a living as a writer, unless you have connections in the literary world, or you are already a social media sensation/celebrity.
This is not sour grapes. I have a fabulous opportunity in the fall to get my projects in the right hands. But I also see how long it has taken me to get here. And the writing world now is all about social media. I had an agent say the following to me:
“Don’t even bother sending a book proposal out until you have 10,000 social media followers.”
I appreciated his candor, and since that conversation, I have become more and more determined to circumnavigate around the world of teenage influencers, Tik Tok nonsense, and Facebook posting. If I can’t be the kind of writer I want to be without being on Tik Tok, then I’ll be a different kind of writer.
You heard it here first.