Letters to the Editor
-
you will never know
You won't know when your first novel is published. You won't know when you get a glowing review in Publisher's Weekly. You won't know when your mom says she loves your work. You will always, always wonder.
There are three issues here: First, can you get published? I believe that you can. Almost anyone can. It's a matter of knowing the market and learning the craft.
Second: Can you make a living writing? That's a big maybe. Most of the working writers I know have additional jobs or skills that pay the bills. The exception is a screenwriter who got very lucky. He's also the least skilled writer (in my opinion) of the bunch. Probably the most skilled writer of the bunch is a poet. He has had some interesting life experiences - once he lived under a bridge in LA, accosting strangers on the street to write poetry for cash. He's doing better than that now, because he's making a living doing something other than writing.
Third: Do you have something to say? Only you know that. Believe in yourself. Cultivate balls of steel.
It also helps to find a friend who believes in you. The best feeling in the world is when another writer, whose work you admire, reads your work and says, yes. Yes, that moved me, I envy your talent, I'd like to grow up to be you. Writers aren't always the nicest people in the world, but they have this gift to offer you - they know good writing when they see it, and most of them are too passionate about their art to lie and flatter you.