talent and dedication (the other kind)

[mrissa]

The problem with not being a big believer in talent is that when people compliment one's talent, one is perhaps less pleased than one ought to be. See also: personal beauty.

(It's not that I don't believe talent exists. It's that I don't believe it's good for particularly much. My response to "so talented" is approximately, "That's nice, dear, but here in Grown-Up-Land we work for a living.")

But possibly I am just in a sour mood because my back is pretty far out of alignment. These things do happen. Happily, there are professionals who are employed to remedy these very situations. And even in a sour mood I'm finding things to enjoy.

To cheer myself up, I went and poked around to see what stories I had in mind to write for specific people, and there are a goodly number. I have decided I like doing this, but not when the people know it's coming, necessarily. I'm making an exception for the one I'm working on now, because Carter's stories are almost always fun, so it's okay that wilfulcait knows it's hers. But mostly I prefer, "Surprise! I wrote you a story."

Comments

[skzbrust.livejournal.com]

The problem with not being a big believer in talent is that when people compliment one's talent, one is perhaps less pleased than one ought to be....

Will you marry me?

Failing that, how about a hot, passionate, intense, yet ultimately unfulfilling and angst-inducing affair?

Er, in other words, yeah, me too.

[talimena.livejournal.com]

Oh yes. I've heard "you're not living up to your potential" (and said it to myself) too often to have a compliment on talent or intelligence be much appreciated.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Wow, last time this came up you promised me "tawdry" as well. Should I consider this a promotion or a demotion?

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I've had the opposite problem: that I am just so talented when either 1) I think I tossed off something that's moderately crap or 2) the other person isn't willing to do a thing about it. "You're so talented!" "Will you publish this, then?" "Er, no. But you're very talented!" Sigh.

[talimena.livejournal.com]

That would suck. Especially the second, I'd guess.

[mamapduck.livejournal.com]

I hit the point in college where I was going to slap the next person who said, "You're so smart/get such good grades you don't need to study!" No, stupid, I am getting an A on the next test *because* I'm going to go spend the next 4 hours studying.

Talent is a wonderful thing, but it's not a stand alone. I have writing talent which does me not a damn bit of good because I'm not putting the work in. You have writing talent which is evident in the work you do- the *work* being the key thing. Talent enhances labor, it does not substitute for it. It's like wrapping paper.

(Why yes, I am writing this pre-coffee...)

[skzbrust.livejournal.com]

I figured "tawdry" was why you turned it down, so I'm trying to clean up my act.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

And for me this got complicated, because some of my college stuff really didn't take much effort to learn, and neither did some of my grad school stuff. But some of it did, and I learned the difference.

But yes, you can have the best ingredients in the world, but nobody's going to want to eat the baking powder if you don't make it into a cake.