Or, the ability to feel fear and to forge ahead anyway.
That would be my answer to the question of what inspires me as a writer.
Of course there are a multitude of authors and screenwriters that I look up to in regards to their talent. J.D. Salinger, Philip K. Dick, Alice Sebold, Dennis Lehane, Neil Gaiman, Shane Black, Haruki Murakami, John Kennedy Toole, Lisa Carey, Ryu Murakami, David Brin, Ray Bradbury... the list is close to endless, but those who conquer fear top it.
... Like the teacher who faces a class of a few dozen, disinterested, hormonal students, and refuses to give up on them.
... Like the comedian who, alone on stage and under hot lights, presses on to find a connection between an audience of several dozen, or several thousand vastly unique people.
... Like the astronaut who travels into the harsh, vast reaches or space, or the student who risks everything to study in a country that holds a culture incredibly different to his/her own.
You know. The brave ones.
Recently I came across this interview with Sasha Grey. It's a pretty long clip to watch, close to an hour I think, but I couldn't tear myself away from it. She was very articulate and candid about her career, to the point of being almost poetic at times. Here is a person who set out a career plan for herself, and went after it intelligently and with the focus and drive of a homing missile.
Not to mention I was also amused by her thoughts on recent SpongeBob commercials in regards to sex-based advertising.
In any case, I think this kind of fearlessness and relentless determination to follow through with her goals is essential for all artists. In a world where people usually have no hesitation to be ruthlessly critical of others' projects, performances, and aspirations, one absolutely has to be gutsy to want to become an artist. I think that's almost as important as loving what you do.
You love creating art? Okay. But are you ready for anyone and everyone under the sun to judge it, and to perhaps openly hate you for it? It sounds dramatic, sure, but think of all the times you've talked about a movie and the other person says something like, "Oh god, I'm not seeing that. I hate [insert actor/actress here]."
Have this person ever actually met the artist? Usually not. Yet he/she has no qualms with talking openly making assumptions about the person based entirely on a single performance, or sometimes even just celebrity gossip. I admit I've been guilty of this too.
Now, I haven't seen any of Sasha Grey's movies, including Soderbergh's The Girlfriend Experience, but I can only imagine some of the venom some people may hurl at her due to her career as an adult film star. Yet, she doesn't give the appearance of being the slightest bit perturbed by the prospect of this, nor does she clam up or become embarrassed when people ask her about her experiences in the adult film industry. Think of any time you've been on stage, or had to give a presentation in front of strangers, or read your writing aloud to the class. It can be scary, even when you don't have a career that some people may openly oppose. Pretty daunting, eh?
Yet she doesn't seem daunted in the slightest. And that, if I may say so, inspires me.
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