I’m studying Rocky for an upcoming episode of the podcast.
Although Stallone wrote the script, the studio didn’t want him for the part; his voice was too low, his eyes were too droopy and he was too short. He knew what he could bring to the role though, so he tuned out the negative voices around him, and prevailed. The rest, as they say, is history.
Novelists deal with external critics too. This is an art form; criticism is inevitable. I don’t spend any time worrying about that.
The internal critic is a different beast entirely. It’s far more sinister and more powerful. If we don’t think we’re worthy, if we don’t believe in our ability, our careers are dead in the water.
Imagine if Sly had believed the studio executives.
