Creativity & Community
Creative community vs. gatekeepers. Gertrude Stein's salon-building meets Shelley's romantic idealism.
Gertrude SteinvsPercy Bysshe Shelley
The Question
I've been rejected by every literary magazine and agent I've submitted to. My MFA workshop loved my work, but the "real world" doesn't seem to care. I've started building a small community of other struggling writers—we meet weekly, share work, encourage each other. Some of my friends say I'm wasting my time with "losers who will never make it" instead of networking with successful people. But these are my people. We understand each other. We push each other. I feel more creative after our meetings than after any "networking event." Is my little community valuable, or am I hiding from rejection by surrounding myself with other rejects? How do I balance building genuine creative community with the practical need to connect with gatekeepers? — Anne
My salon in Paris was full of unknowns who became Picasso, Hemingway, Fitzgerald. The gatekeepers came to us because we had built something vital. Your community is not hiding—it is creating. Keep meeting. Keep pushing each other. The world will eventually notice what you've built.
47 votes
I published my own work when no one else would. I shared it freely. I built community with those who shared my vision. Your friends who mock your group worship at the altar of success already achieved. True artists create new paths. Your community may be that path.
52 votes
99 votes total