Pardon my absence, but to be honest, I have been sitting back taking notes all while realizing that fighting for the actual "art" side in art vs. commerce is a losing battle. Both my opinion and experience have led me to believe if one really wants to make a successful living as an artist, one has to do all sorts of opposing things that constitutes what it means to be an artist. If you personally did anything at first because you absolutely loved doing it, once money came into play, it was no longer love but now considered work because the dynamic changed.
A quick example would be if you loved to photograph Eagles soaring in the sky and then someone came to you and said, "Hey, you can make a lot of money taking photographs, but you have to stop "photographing" eagles and start doing videography with turtles and puppies playing in mud instead." You'd be like, "What the hell, that's not what I like doing at all."
Although some people might jump at the opportunity, others would view it as selling out and going against their principles. In hindsight, the individual is still technically "shooting" yes, but not really because in reality he/she is no longer "photographing" and the subjects aren't "Eagles in the sky" so in the end, he/she still is really compromising his/her passion.
To elaborate in depth, I'll start with this site. Apparently, in order for http://www.stopsellingdreams.com/ to be able to compete in the world of "websites", I have to post early and often certain content or material that I was taught in journalism school to steer clear from: Fluff and flash and trash. (i.e. Not "real news" or stories of substance.)
By "real news" I don't mean JUST hardcore journalistic, Brian Williams "news" either. I mean any type of stimulating story that initiates and provokes analytical thought whether it be about mostly entertainment (my forte)or sports, politics and world events as well.
I will say quite frankly, I don't care about Kim Kardashian going to the movies! For whatever reason that continously makes front page news. I really don't care about Paris Hilton's dog wearing a matching pearl necklace to take a walk in Central Park. Coincidentally, that would make the back page.
And seriously, this sort of "story" seems to be ALL that you will see on these sites garnering millions of views (The Fluff). Now if Kim Kardashian started an anti-war, energy company that could make the world better or help terminally ill children foresee their dreams before its too late, then that would be a different story, and I would love to post stories with that particular type of content.
For the record, I have nothing against Kim K or Paris, but stopsellingdreams.com (S$D) is website dedicated to those people seeking motivation to succeed and follow through with their dreams ALL while also calling out the bluff and Bologna factor striving artists commonly encounter while searching for the path to greatness.
So how and why should stopsellingdreams.com have to compete with sites that focus solely on posting fluffy, sensationalized content that doesn't provoke thought in order to be considered a truly "successful" website.
How does Kim K going to the movies, dating a new Basketball player or Paris Hilton being seen with pink shoes on help any of us become better artists/photographers/models/singers/entrepreneurs or the next great thing?
I personally have not been motivated to post ANY content because of that competitive edge that has literally been stripped from under me if I don't compromise and conform to what the other websites post. Not to mention the fact that most of the headline titles these sites use are misleading and just used to gain views which is more propaganda for commercial gain as opposed to true and meaningful, artistic value.
Since this site is stopsellingdreams, I do have to be completely honest, until a million dollar check comes in to dictate the new direction of this website, (which like I stated earlier, commerce always dictates art) I will continue to post MY thoughts as I see them when I feel like posting them.
To sum it up, always remember to just keep it honest with yo'self and everything else will follow and fall into place. These are just my thoughts... And thanks for your support!
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