The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying.

We must do our work for its own sake, not for fortune or attention or applause.

The professional has learned that success, like happiness, comes as a by-product of work. The professional concentrates on the work and allows rewards to come or not come, whatever they like.

We’re all pros already. 1) We show up every day 2) We show up no matter what 3) We stay on the job all day 4) We are committed over the long haul 5) The stakes for us are high and real 6) We accept remuneration for our labor 7) We do not overidentify with our jobs 8 ) We master the technique of our jobs 9) We have a sense of humor about our jobs 10) We receive praise or blame in the real world

The artist committing himself to his calling has volunteered for hell, whether he knows it or not. He will be dining for the duration on a diet of isolation, rejection, self-doubt, despair, ridicule, contempt, and humiliation.

Fuck the marshmallows.

...she (the artist, the writer) doesn't wait for inspiration, she acts in the anticipation of its apparition.

The awakening an artist must be ruthless, not only with herself but with others.

The artist must be like that Marine. He has to know how to be miserable. He has to love being miserable.