The Death of Dreams
Following your dream seems to be a big thing these days, in story, song, and motion pictures. Time after time again, we are called to never give up, not sell out, be true to ourselves, and be original. And yet, time after time again, I hear the opposite.
"Why would you want to give up a good job to write?"
"Why do you spend so much time in front of the computer?"
"You're never going to succeed, why bother trying?"
My Dream is my life. My life is my Dream. My Dream is to write full-time. Sure, sometimes I lose my way just like everyone else. Sure, sometimes I let those voices inside my head get me down (you know, the ones who like to say my dream is impossible and will never happen.) Sure, I've gotten distracted by material things that have no basis in my dream. Sure, I've fell into the utmost depths of despair and listened to those voices until I wanted to scream. We all have.
What's different between me and you, though, is that I haven't given up. And I have no intention of doing so.
My Dream will be my life until I die. Even if I don't make my goal of writing full-time by the time I'm 30, I'll try for 35. If I don't make that goal, I'll try for 40. Etc., etc. I will never give up in the pursuit of this dream. And not one single person in my life or outside of it has the right to ask me to do so.
What are your dreams? What were your dreams ten years ago? Do you regret not doing something that you know you should have done or finished? Do you have dreams you've betrayed in exchange for security?
Was it worth it?
It's never to late to remember your dreams. It's never too late to stop, look around at your life, and reevaluate how you spend your time.
"Why would you want to give up a good job to write?"
Because I believe I can make a living doing something I love. And if I had to trade a steady paycheck for a spotty one, but still be able to work doing something I love, then I would be an absolute idiot not to take that chance. There are always jobs to be had. And it's not failure to have to work part-time, or even full-time for a while if things are tight.
How do you see yourself? To paraphrase Charles DeLint, do you define yourself by what you do to make a living, or by what you want to do?
I am not an Office Assistant/Admin Assistant. I am a writer. What are you?
"Why do you spend so much time in front of the computer?"
I actually spend less time on the internet than I do writing. I write at least two hours a night, most nights, maybe more if I'm really into a story.
I think it's the "fault" of a creative personality. If I am sucked into a story, I don't want to do anything else. This includes go to work, by the way, but I usually go anyway. But when I get home, I'd like nothing better than to sit up in the office (or work from the Visor) and type. That's a relaxing evening to me.
Relaxing is not watching television or going out on errands that could wait until the weekend. Nothing personal to the person involved, but when I get caught by a story, you'd be just as well to leave me alone until I resurface. I would be so much nicer to you afterwards.
"You're never going to succeed, why bother trying?"
My stock answer, "How do you know? Can you predict the future? If so, then give me the winning lottery ticket numbers and you'll never hear another word from me again."
I've heard this from all angles, and I think people who say these things should be shot. The real question is this: I didn't succeed in my dreams, so why should you? It's pure and simple jealousy for the most part. Did I force these people to give up their dreams? Nope. Did I twist their arms behind their backs and make them admit defeat? Nope. But by blatantly pursuing my dream, I remind these people of what they have lost, and that bothers them.
Here's my answer to those people:
It's never too late to follow your dreams.
I don't care if you're 95 and half dead. If your dream was to write a book and you abandoned it somewhere along the way, well, write your book. No one's stopping you. Some dreams might have age-related restraints, of course--I wouldn't recommend a 95 year old go bungee jumping or anything--but you can work around just about anything.
Just because I'm following my dream and have no intention to give up doesn't give you permission to cut me down to your level. I'm not playing that game anymore.
I know how hard it is to succeed at my goal. I know very well how many people fail per year. I know all about it.
But I'm not giving up.
Ever.
And although I've said this before, not one single person in my life has the right to ask me to do so.
Following your dream seems to be a big thing these days, in story, song, and motion pictures. Time after time again, we are called to never give up, not sell out, be true to ourselves, and be original. And yet, time after time again, I hear the opposite.
"Why would you want to give up a good job to write?"
"Why do you spend so much time in front of the computer?"
"You're never going to succeed, why bother trying?"
My Dream is my life. My life is my Dream. My Dream is to write full-time. Sure, sometimes I lose my way just like everyone else. Sure, sometimes I let those voices inside my head get me down (you know, the ones who like to say my dream is impossible and will never happen.) Sure, I've gotten distracted by material things that have no basis in my dream. Sure, I've fell into the utmost depths of despair and listened to those voices until I wanted to scream. We all have.
What's different between me and you, though, is that I haven't given up. And I have no intention of doing so.
My Dream will be my life until I die. Even if I don't make my goal of writing full-time by the time I'm 30, I'll try for 35. If I don't make that goal, I'll try for 40. Etc., etc. I will never give up in the pursuit of this dream. And not one single person in my life or outside of it has the right to ask me to do so.
What are your dreams? What were your dreams ten years ago? Do you regret not doing something that you know you should have done or finished? Do you have dreams you've betrayed in exchange for security?
Was it worth it?
It's never to late to remember your dreams. It's never too late to stop, look around at your life, and reevaluate how you spend your time.
"Why would you want to give up a good job to write?"
Because I believe I can make a living doing something I love. And if I had to trade a steady paycheck for a spotty one, but still be able to work doing something I love, then I would be an absolute idiot not to take that chance. There are always jobs to be had. And it's not failure to have to work part-time, or even full-time for a while if things are tight.
How do you see yourself? To paraphrase Charles DeLint, do you define yourself by what you do to make a living, or by what you want to do?
I am not an Office Assistant/Admin Assistant. I am a writer. What are you?
"Why do you spend so much time in front of the computer?"
I actually spend less time on the internet than I do writing. I write at least two hours a night, most nights, maybe more if I'm really into a story.
I think it's the "fault" of a creative personality. If I am sucked into a story, I don't want to do anything else. This includes go to work, by the way, but I usually go anyway. But when I get home, I'd like nothing better than to sit up in the office (or work from the Visor) and type. That's a relaxing evening to me.
Relaxing is not watching television or going out on errands that could wait until the weekend. Nothing personal to the person involved, but when I get caught by a story, you'd be just as well to leave me alone until I resurface. I would be so much nicer to you afterwards.
"You're never going to succeed, why bother trying?"
My stock answer, "How do you know? Can you predict the future? If so, then give me the winning lottery ticket numbers and you'll never hear another word from me again."
I've heard this from all angles, and I think people who say these things should be shot. The real question is this: I didn't succeed in my dreams, so why should you? It's pure and simple jealousy for the most part. Did I force these people to give up their dreams? Nope. Did I twist their arms behind their backs and make them admit defeat? Nope. But by blatantly pursuing my dream, I remind these people of what they have lost, and that bothers them.
Here's my answer to those people:
It's never too late to follow your dreams.
I don't care if you're 95 and half dead. If your dream was to write a book and you abandoned it somewhere along the way, well, write your book. No one's stopping you. Some dreams might have age-related restraints, of course--I wouldn't recommend a 95 year old go bungee jumping or anything--but you can work around just about anything.
Just because I'm following my dream and have no intention to give up doesn't give you permission to cut me down to your level. I'm not playing that game anymore.
I know how hard it is to succeed at my goal. I know very well how many people fail per year. I know all about it.
But I'm not giving up.
Ever.
And although I've said this before, not one single person in my life has the right to ask me to do so.
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