In this song, Jessie J talks about how hard school was for her, and how much negativity she got when she aspired to be a singer. And now look at her. Of course, because she's made it, people are coming out of the wood works and pretending to be her best friend, claiming a stake in her fame, trying to piggybank off her talent.
Of course, realistically, not all of us are going to be JK Rowling rich and famous, but this still applies. For example, while we have the supportive family members and friends, there's always someone who tries to 'nicely' remind you that it's a hard world to succeed out there and that you have to be very lucky. We read it in blog posts everyday. You have to be lucky. Talent is only part of it. I know I have received raised eyebrows and looks of concern and pity when I say I want to be an author. The look that says "oh honey, that's a lovely dream, but don't quit your day job." There's even some people who say it! But you know what? It makes me more determined and when I am published, I can sing this song and think that while people excuse their disbelief for concern, I know really it was negativity.
And you know what we do with negativity? We demolish it with positivity. There's one thing blog posts often fail to talk about. And that's the need to believe in yourself. Because if you believe and you're determined, it will happen eventually.
NEGATIVITY - WE BANISH YOU!!
How about you guys? Received any negativity when you tried to tell someone about your dream?
I love this post and that song. My family members are pretty supportive of me wanting to write. But truthfully, I don't talk about my writing much with the other students at my college.
ReplyDeleteI’ve told very few people and they didn’t seem to care. Oh well. :)
I'm sort of a closet writer. Not like I try to hide it, I just don't announce it and a lot of people don't realize I want to be a writer. Mostly because when I tell someone that I'm wriing a book they get that "polite" (totally condescending) smile and say that's awesome and ask what it's about when they don't really care. They look at me like I'm stupid for even trying. It doesn't discourage me, though. I just kind of stopped telling people. I have a few family members that are really supportive and think I can do it, but there are a few that I suspect tell me that they think I can, but are lying.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! Negativity comes in all forms. I think as writers we can be sensitive to it, and at times we interpret people's words as negative when they aren't. Either way, banishing negativity is a must if you want to create a fabulous story.
ReplyDeleteAwesome post! I've never head that song but I agree. As writers we'll probably meet lots of people who will tell us that we can't do it but if we really want to get published, we can!
ReplyDeleteI don't talk much to people about my dream. It's hard enough to combat my own negativity sometimes :)
ReplyDeleteI get the "just self-publish" a lot. Self publishing ain't what it used to be, but it still feels like a total diss. I just remind them about Amanda Hocking and the Kindle millionaires.
ReplyDeleteBefore I started writing, I wanted to be a professional actress on Broadway. I have the voice, but the look? Heck no. I'm a size 22 (20 on good days) and have ratty, mousy hair and a square face. I can't tell you how much I struggled with people giving me negativity. I wanted to give up, and felt like I should. Finally, I decided to settle with being a Drama Teacher. It's not settling anymore--it's truly what I want to do.
ReplyDeleteAs far as my writing goes, I've been fortunate to be surrounded by people who believe in me. I have gotten rejections from agents, of course, but I know there are a million reasons for that other than my writing (such as their personal tastes). But I've been lucky enough to be given a huge amount of support, more than I ever expected or deserved.
Thanks for the post! I truly believe we all can make it if we persevere :)
While my husband and I try to teach our kids to develop and not hide their talents, my father-in-law said to my 10yo daughter, when I was going to my weekly writers' group, "Oh, you mean that group for losers who can't get published?" Nice one, Grandpa. Since then, I've been a little more cautious about telling people about my dream. I only discuss it with fellow authors and positive people who are close to me.
ReplyDeleteI was scared to receive negativity, so I kept some dreams a secret. Now, I've made them "live," and I love the results. Good post!
ReplyDeleteLike a lot of the people in this post have said, I kept my "writing hobby" sort of to myself until I got an agent and met some writer friends online who were in the same situation as me. Being surrounded by that posititivy gave me the boost to deal with any negativity that came my way. Most of my negativity came when I was younger and not one of the "smart" ones in school. I'm sure my non-AP high school teachers will be shocked to hear that I'm being published, haha. It's okay, though. I was always kind of ditzy, lost in my imagination. Loved to write fiction, but only on my own terms. Essays? Yuck! And apparently there's plenty of negativity to face after you're published, too. So thank you for this post...we can ban together to banish the negativity!!!!
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