Writing Wisdom from Ira Glass



I found this quote by Ira Glass on Billy Mernit's terrific blog-- Living the Romantic Comedy. Ira Glass, is of course, a writer as well as a public radio personality, and host and producer of the radio and television show This American Life.

The quote really resonated with me, and I thought other writers and creative types would enjoy it as well. Here it is, in different form:

Nobody tells this to people who are beginners -

I wish someone told me.

All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste.

But there is this gap.

For the first couple years you make stuff, it's just not that good. It's trying to be good, it has potential, but it's not.

But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you.

A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work, went through years of this.

We know our work doesn't have this special thing that we want it to have.

We all go through this.

And if you are just starting out or if you are still in this phase, you gotta know it's normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work - put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will fashion one story.

It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap - and your work will be as good as your ambitions - and I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I've ever met.

It's gonna take awhile. It's normal to take awhile.

You've just gotta fight your way through.


I couldn't have said it any better!

Later,

Karen