"What if he had given up after writing eight or nine plays? The world would never have heard of Arthur Miller or Willy Loman."

From

Desk Of Roland Tec
Department Of Membership

So Much Heartache So Little Time

By Duane Kelly

The Dramatist-May/June 2013

"First off, I should confess that I succumb to self-doubt regularly, but also only temporarily. An innate characteristic I have, which serves my writing well, is perseverance (some friends would use the word "stubbornness").

I have three tactics I employ: Arthur Miller, Paul Cezanne, and navel-gazing. Arthur Miller because his first professionally successful play was All My Sons, which I think was the tenth or eleventh play he wrote. What if he had given up after writing eight or nine plays? The world would never have heard of Arthur Miller or Willy Loman. Paul Cezanne because he was never confident that he was a good artist or people would appreciate his work, yet he painted virtually every day and today his paintings command higher prices than many works by Van Gogh and Picasso. Navel-gazing because making up stories and putting them in playscript form satisfies me at an intellectual, emotional and spiritual level that nothing else in my life has ever done. I make myself recall that feeling on days when I'm tempted to abandon my writing."