I think, in the end, an artist has to learn to trust his/her inner voice. It has to be the true arbiter of what is good or bad; which so highly subjective anyway. Others (editors, betas, 'critics') can help in terms of basic execution, but I think the art itself belongs to the artist, who has the only true vision of it, and can be the only one to be able to truly articulate it.
Personally, I think performance art (acting, music, etc.) must be really susceptible to issues of external validation. There's not a lot of people that see the performance before it actually happens, so what is out there is out there. On the other hand, the non-performance arts (painting, writing, etc.) has the other side of the coin. So many people can end up seeing it before it's unveiled, that the artist can get incorrect or conflicting input that might make them doubt themselves before the thing is even put out there.
Again, I think the artist must learn to make art ultimately for themselves. I think this must be the only way to be truly happy in your art. The good feedback/reviews are then just icing on the cake, and the bad reviews are just someone else's opinion. And not the most important person's (the artist's).
Living near Hollywood, but totally out of the business, I've spent some time thinking about the psyches of actors, writers, directors, producers, et. al. The really good ones are never doing it for the external validation. They do it because they have something to say, and they know how they want to say it.
You are what I consider a prolific and grounded author. You seem to write what you WANT to write, rather than what others might think you SHOULD write. I think that is the road to contentment.
I think, for the most part, I do write what I want to. I've tried to stretch my boundaries to write things that I normally wouldn't, but rarely has that come back to bite me in the butt.
I think my ultimate question is how do you not lose sight in your vision if a lot of people think it's rubbish? Maybe it's just time. I've certainly changed a lot over the years. Or maybe it's the conviction of the belief. If we truly believe in what we're doing, how can somebody else's opinion break that?
Personally, I think performance art (acting, music, etc.) must be really susceptible to issues of external validation. There's not a lot of people that see the performance before it actually happens, so what is out there is out there. On the other hand, the non-performance arts (painting, writing, etc.) has the other side of the coin. So many people can end up seeing it before it's unveiled, that the artist can get incorrect or conflicting input that might make them doubt themselves before the thing is even put out there.
Again, I think the artist must learn to make art ultimately for themselves. I think this must be the only way to be truly happy in your art. The good feedback/reviews are then just icing on the cake, and the bad reviews are just someone else's opinion. And not the most important person's (the artist's).
Living near Hollywood, but totally out of the business, I've spent some time thinking about the psyches of actors, writers, directors, producers, et. al. The really good ones are never doing it for the external validation. They do it because they have something to say, and they know how they want to say it.
You are what I consider a prolific and grounded author. You seem to write what you WANT to write, rather than what others might think you SHOULD write. I think that is the road to contentment.
Tis
Reply
I think my ultimate question is how do you not lose sight in your vision if a lot of people think it's rubbish? Maybe it's just time. I've certainly changed a lot over the years. Or maybe it's the conviction of the belief. If we truly believe in what we're doing, how can somebody else's opinion break that?
Reply
Leave a comment