3 subjects here which I will tackle one by one in this thread

1) Competition among writers
2) ‘How can I ever catch up’
3) Worrying about the wrong things

Ready?

1) Competition among writers/ oversaturation.

Good news. There is no competition in writing. Or at least their doesn’t have to be.

Art, like life, is an ongoing process of individuation.

‘Finding your voice’ = becoming yourself.

By definition, no one can compete with you in the business of becoming you.

‘The genius is the one most like himself’ as Monk said.

Competing/race to the bottom/ copycat tactics will all ultimately fail.

True art is anti-mimetic. Or at least it strives to be.

Further, you don’t need much of an audience in absolute terms.

You need 1000 people who are loyal.

This is eminently achievable given enough time.

It’s all about filtration and being selective. Authenticity.

A wide net gathers more trash, as well as more fish.

2) ‘How can I ever catch up?’

Not only is art not a competition, its also not a race

Let go of the sign-posts& milestones mentality. Mastery takes a lifetime.

I’m nearly 34 & I’m just starting to get somewhere. I’ve been doing this for *years*

I’m glad it’s taken this long.

Had I started sooner and succeeded sooner I would have debuted with inferior work

It takes as long as it takes

My writing skills are still nowhere near where I want them to be

Mastery never ends

It’s good to be underrated and overlooked

You grow in the dark. Like a mushroom

There is no ‘catching up’ because everyone is on their own path.

As I said it’s the quest for individuation and finding your true voice

‘The genius is the one most like himself’

A mantra. A North Star

Everyone can publish. Not everyone can be a writer

Most are too short-term

3) Worrying about the wrong things.

Worry about whether the work is getting better by your own standards.

And you *know* what this means.

Everything else is incidental

Metrics are alluring but meaningless. Feedback from humans is everything

Worry about that

And be patient

Thanks for reading.

My real work can be found by clicking the picture below.

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