“It all comes down to how much you need to inflict yourself on the world. You’re good enough. If you kiss the right ass, you could certainly make a career. Get some show. Teach. Like me, for instance. I’m nt a failure. I’m in a very envied position. You have some big-dick fairy-tail idea of the art world, so you don’t understand this yet, but hanging in, surviving, so you can keep working, that’s all there is. Sure, there are stars, most of them hacks, who make silly amounts of money, but for the rest of us, it’s endurance, perdurance. Do you have the guts to perdure? To be dismissed by some pissant and keep coming? To be dumped by your gallerist? To scramble for teaching gigs? It’s not very glamorous. Is this what you want? You’re good enough for it. You’re not the new sensation, but you’re good enough to get by. But you have to be strong. And petty. That’s the main thing. Are you petty enough? Are you game? Are you ready to screw me again? You must be.”
-Sam Lipsyte, life coach
