Real talk

I got my first two-star rating yesterday. It definitely won't be the last, and I'll probably get some one-stars at some point, and that's fine. Okay, yes, a part of me really didn't like reading what the reader had to say about my first book. Maybe my character was a little unbelievable, and I'll fully own how awful the ending is (I tried to write it differently, I really did). I'm not going to lie and say this review didn't hurt.

But you know what? I made a book. And I did it entirely on my own. And I'm proud of it. And I've spent a long time teaching myself to accept that not everyone is going to like what I put out there. I don't write because I want to please everyone. I write because I have to, and it's a part of me trying to be free. 

That book may not be the best ever written, but it's mine, and I made it, and I'm proud of the time and energy and soul and bravery it took to get it out into the world. No one can take that away from me.

So here's what I have to say to all my fellow creators out there: You make things, and that's AWESOME. Not everyone in the world is going to love them, but if you love them and are proud of them, that's all that matters. Own your creativity, no matter what form it takes, and never let the world take away your passion. 

No one else could make what you make, because no one else is you.