Okay, I typed up a quick rundown of my situation and then realized it was a little too person. There's no secret. It was just more than I wanted to share, but the short answer if yes. I get by. You can PM me if you have any questions. I'm not trying to say that people don't take other jobs when they need to. I was just trying to say I see real value in higher education of the arts.
That's right! Go get 'em, Tiger! Be yourself--everyone else is taken! Good things come to those who wait. And remember... there's no "I" in TEAM! And if you're upset now, don't worry--time heals all wounds. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! After all, everything happens for a reason. And people are our most important asset. Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger. God has a plan for you...
Oh honey. I have not even begun with the mockery that could be directed at this particular line of argument. (@Tenderiser and @BayView have. Good work team!) But I'm guessing from this: That there's a bit of a misunderstanding here between what you're arguing and what most people here want. They don't want 'a writing job'. I've got one of them - and yes, I'd go so far as to say anyone with a bit of skill can get one, or at least a sideline. I write sales copy for people, been doing it for a few years now. I'm pretty good at it, I make decent money and I spend all day writing things. But I don't make money telling the stories I want to tell. Writing sales copy is a job. Writing fiction is what I do for fun. They're not the same thing.
Well, I mean this is pretty simple. You should work hard to make a living off your passion and doing what you love. Really, be dammed the statistics of it or how crazy the odds seem. I think if you want it....you can do it, hell that might not be true exactly but it beats thinking to far down the line. Think realistic but never lose drive for the unexpected to happen. I don't care if you write, play sports, make movies or whatever. I think you should keep striving to climb that ladder, if you want. Some folks are over night hits, for some its a slow build and a lot of others are still waiting. I think everyone on this site as their own goals and working hard as they can to get to them. With all that said. It is silly if you're not gonna to take up other hobbies or jobs in the meantime while you work towards whatever goals. You need a way to make money because its probably not very easy to work towards those goals when you're homeless or your fridge is empty. Ya know? A back up plan is just that...a back up plan, you don't stop moving forward on what YOU want because you're doing something else. You do both! I think its pretty damn rude to say people aren't committed to what they do because they decided to have a plan in case what they wanted didn't happen right away. That's ridiculous! The people who work hard to support themselves and others plus dedicate time into what they really love are the people who deserve to make it the most in what they love. Because they've worked really hard despite having other responsibilities. I'm not saying you need a plan if ya don't want one....that's fine, God bless ya. (lord knows I don't know fully what I'm doing yet besides writing my first book and minimum wage but one step at a time.) But to honestly say that so many hardworking people (in writing and out) aren't dedicated to their craft is just not cool.
Yes but when you are so afraid to climb that ladder that you ignore it completely for something else. that is when it is sad. I know a few people who want to be great at different things (one of my college friends wants to be an actor but is so afraid that she would fail that she really doesn't want to try but still has a passion for entertainment).
No one's talking about ignoring it completely. We're all here on a writers' site. Most of us are writing. Trying to lead a responsible, balanced life isn't the same as ignoring ambitions.
Hey dude just call it like I see it. No harm done of course on either end. No, you shouldn't be scared to pursue your passion and I doubt most people on this site are...I've been here a long time now. I've seen a lot lot of very dedicated and talented people on this site and in real life who work very hard and deserve for all that work to pay off. And they deserve it! So, I just don't think it was cool to say that people here weren't committed because well pretty much what @BayView. You gotta be responsible for other things as you work towards your ambitions...most of all the older you get, more responsibilities come.
Also a bit of a strange discussion to go back and forth with, also a bit off topic from the thread? Of course that's to be expected on with us ....lol I think it best if we simply cut our selves on the subject, perhaps? I don't believe it will go anywhere except in circles. Just a suggestion of course, I am a mod but haven't seen anything BAD in my eyes yet or nothing! It is all gooood! But just a observation to say lets stay chill!
Going to school means you yearn for development of your personal skills. How this would make you a tool? If you feel it might help you in reaching your goals, goddamnit enlist already.
Good Lord! It's Norman Vincent Peale's great-grandson (complete with testosterone-boosting militarized avatar)! Still living at home, are we? Dorm life? Or maybe off-campus housing funded by mum and dad? I was going to write a post about all the challenges and compromises one faces over a lifetime, but I decided against it. You'll find out. But I will leave you with two facts: 1) there are uncounted droves of aspiring writers (and other artists) who have "wanted it and searched it out", who have really and truly believed in themselves...and failed. Positive thinking is only positive for the thinker. 2) The vast majority of published writers do not make their living exclusively from writing. I know a few myself. See you around the campus.
Maybe I'm just shit at networking, but I've never really found this to be the case. I think as far as networking goes, if you're good at it, you can do it anywhere. And if, like me, you're not, you could be dropped in the middle of any networking heaven and still come away scratching your head wondering why your contact list got shorter.
I agree wholeheartedly. In my life, I've: survived two step-parents, neither of whom liked me, run away from home, survived on the street through two Canadian winters, hitchhiked across Canada, lived on the bad side of town in several cities, done so many menial jobs I've lost track of them all, worked for a university biology department as a research assistant, worked in the arts (acting, directing film and stage, musician, screenwriter, play author, commercial artist), worked in the car rental industry where I got to drive everything from sub-compacts to 5-ton trucks with split axles, took flying lessons, worked for the federal government doing grunt work, and gone back to school four times, three of those as a post-secondary student. And all that has given me tons to write about.
Again I find it sad you have no faith in yourself. Wasn't that the big American dream (knowing some on here are from the U.K.), to go out and do what you wanted to do and make a living off of that? Yet so many feel compliant with NOT doing that and instead putting their tail between their legs and saying it's too hard. It's sad and I feel sorry for you. I also find it appalling how so many of the "writers" of this thread find a need to step on and belittle someone who wants to make a living as, something we all love and want, a WRITER. Maybe it's because all of you couldn't do it yourself. Maybe you're too scared to go out and try. Or maybe there is another reason entirely that I don't know of. But it doesn't mean you have to belittle someone with a dream of something greater than just getting by in life. It's quite sad.
No one is belittling your drive, your dream, or your optimism. People are belittling your gross simplification of life to "just try harder". Your apparent inability to understand that positive thinking does not guarantee success is insulting because is takes everyone who has ever not lived their dream and says "You didn't try hard enough", no matter what their personal circumstances. If you want to believe that your success lies entirely on your own efforts, and that's how you drive yourself, than that's fine, but it's an opinion which is insulting when forced onto another person. As for the American dream, I don't think I've met anyone who didn't consider that propaganda horseshite that had its day a hundred and fifty some years ago.
Most of my writing skill is self taught besides a few film and screenwriting classes I took in college when I was more interested in that medium (and of course general schooling for 17 years). But last spring I signed up for a novel editing course at the local community college that was a 3 hour class once a week for just 6 weeks. The teacher had been an editor for a number of years and has published several books of her own so she was the real deal. I was also only one of four students in the class so it was very focused and individualized. I found it very helpful and would suggest it to anyone who was writing a novel.
