Write for the love of it
Dear Writer,
Life is really, really short.
Money is just for buying stuff.
Making art--just for the sheer joy of putting beauty into words and words onto paper...for the passion of sharing truth with others...for the hope that goodness will inspire the world--this reaches up to
the Eternal Now and lets you glimpse beyond.
You don't need to make money for your art to be worthwhile. You just need to make art.
I'm not suggesting that you give up supporting yourself or your families and wait around for manna in the dessert (though, golly, I'd love some manna). Rather, I hope you realize that the value of your work can't be reduced to the value of the money you earn (or don't earn) from it.
Michelangelo was swindled out of most of the money he should have rightfully earned. Luckily, he just kept creating. And his art is still giving to the world.
"The purpose of art is nothing less than theupliftment of the human spirit."
-Saint John Paul II
I really needed to read this today, esp. since I am not sure the stories I am writing right now will ever be bought. But I am having such a good time studying and writing, it is worth every minute I spend on it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSuch wonderful advice, Faith. By now, I've had many flash fiction stories and some poems published. The vast majority of them were unpaid. But I keep writing. That's all we can do. Even if no one ever reads it.
ReplyDeleteExactly what I needed to read today, Faith!
ReplyDelete