Because so many people just want to be a celebrity and have no interest in acting as a skill or anything--he said it's like if he showed up in Florida and said, "Hi, I'm here. Now I'm an astronaut." So there's the disconnect between reality and fantasy that's bound to lead to disappointment at best. There's nothing wrong with a little realism, really.
So interesting! This 'disconnect' is becoming more developed, I think, fostered by movies, TV, etc...so many kids grow up thinking "I can do anything!" and just expecting it to happen. So many kids' shows continually put forth this attitude of "You can do anything if you put your mind to it!", when in reality, there are limits. Oh, so I can transform into an elephant? Or stand naked on the Moon? There are boundaries for everything, and that's a great point you bring up...fantasy vs. dream.
Recently an LJ friend of mine who is attempting to get published found an eye-opening statistic from one agent's website. The agent/agent's staff receives 800 query letters a month. Of those 800, the agent will ask a certain number to send in a partial manuscript, and of those, generally one will be chosen to be represented. And that's just for representation, not necessarily publication.
An 800 to 1 shot. Certainly you can give yourself a nudge in the odds by targeting appropriate editors/agents, by working the query letter into the best possible piece of writing it can be, etc. But the reality of art is, there are lots more where you came from. None of them will have your exact stats or your precise perspective, but honestly, so many people are writing/acting/drawing/singing/etc. these days that if you goal is to succeed you cannot be sustained by dreams alone. And to 'blow off' the opinion of people who probably know better than you is most likely a foolish thing to do. The fan world is a more welcoming and less critical world by far than the real world of money for art, at least in my opinion.
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Date: 2005-01-19 12:42 pm (UTC)So interesting! This 'disconnect' is becoming more developed, I think, fostered by movies, TV, etc...so many kids grow up thinking "I can do anything!" and just expecting it to happen. So many kids' shows continually put forth this attitude of "You can do anything if you put your mind to it!", when in reality, there are limits. Oh, so I can transform into an elephant? Or stand naked on the Moon? There are boundaries for everything, and that's a great point you bring up...fantasy vs. dream.
Recently an LJ friend of mine who is attempting to get published found an eye-opening statistic from one agent's website. The agent/agent's staff receives 800 query letters a month. Of those 800, the agent will ask a certain number to send in a partial manuscript, and of those, generally one will be chosen to be represented. And that's just for representation, not necessarily publication.
An 800 to 1 shot. Certainly you can give yourself a nudge in the odds by targeting appropriate editors/agents, by working the query letter into the best possible piece of writing it can be, etc. But the reality of art is, there are lots more where you came from. None of them will have your exact stats or your precise perspective, but honestly, so many people are writing/acting/drawing/singing/etc. these days that if you goal is to succeed you cannot be sustained by dreams alone. And to 'blow off' the opinion of people who probably know better than you is most likely a foolish thing to do. The fan world is a more welcoming and less critical world by far than the real world of money for art, at least in my opinion.