Lifes path

Does anyone here struggle to find who they are in life, for example what they want pursue. Goal etc.. Personally myself I am heavily involve with photography but alot of my work that I put out there don't get the recoolgnitiob that I think it should...

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Permalink Reply by Nicola on July 26, 2010 at 7:16am

Thank you and I certainly hope so!

Golem_3 said:

Nicola said:
...Anyway,I walk in faith and positive thought always. Keep pushing and don't give into the temptation to have bitch sessions. Cry,holler,roll on the floor,etc. Then get up and keep right on moving.

Thats wonderful.
good stuff.
Your books will be on Amazon and in Barnes & Nobles in no time.

btw, WELCOME to Afro-Punk.

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Permalink Reply by Kodachi on July 27, 2010 at 4:13am

I am in the exact same boat as you!

Nicola said:

I am on my path. I'm pushing my writing and that's always been my dream. The only issue I have is folks telling me black writers only write urban fiction. Huh? Horror,YA,sci-fi,steampunk,fantasy and urban fantasy are my genres. I'm also Goth/Agnostic. A weird black chick who writes even weirder stuff catches hell,lol. But you know what? I keep on marching to my imaginary Gothic/Rap metal band. I don't give a what.

I grew up in the hood and I have zero desire to write about it. I don't know why it's being glorified in videos,books and movies. EVERYBODY whose ever lived in the hood has one unifying desire. They want to get out!

With regards to writing,I've heard all kinds of stuff that seems designed to drag a writer down. Black people don't read horror. Lie. Look at LA Banks success. Black people don't read YA paranormal romance. Yes,they do. It's just that we don't see ourselves represented whatsoever so we avoid it. It seems like naysayers like to come at me with all kinds of doomsday scenarios.

Anyway,I walk in faith and positive thought always. Keep pushing and don't give into the temptation to have bitch sessions. Cry,holler,roll on the floor,etc. Then get up and keep right on moving.

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Permalink Reply by LesYpersound on July 28, 2010 at 2:24pm

"recoolgnitiob" wtf is that? lol. is that like a fashionable way to spell recognition? :P

but yeah ralph, keep on w/ some photo essays that tell stories and shop it around to local papers and magazines online. have a tumblr or website or whatever is affordable for you right now. i think ppl are always interested in interesting stories if you want to do photojournalism at first and then save up ur money for portraiture equipment and stuff. :] and if you can apprentice w/ photographers in your area i can't imagine how that kind of networking wouldn't be good for you.
good luck!!!

and about me... yeah i'm at an impasse w/ my ideas when it comes to careers. i'm putting my health first for the time being and re-adjusting my ideas of what movement looks like and letting go of my expectations or ideas of how things ought to be right now (esp when it comes to these ideas of "forward motion" and "progress" or "productivity"). :)
what's been pretty tough and new for me is being intentional or conscientious with my choices and what can be learned even out of "failures" and where i stumble in my personal, professional, or whatever life.

g'luck everyone.

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Permalink Reply by Phactz on July 29, 2010 at 5:15pm

I'm stuggling with my lover right now...over dumb shit as usual.

my main "problem" right now? I feel like I've wasted my twenties. I wasn't that affected by the recession, I have good friends, and a lot more that people would kill for.

looking back around my early-mid 20's, I don't know why I was so "miserable" and just feeling pathetic. I certainly was doing better than a lot of people at the time. I had my own place by 22, had a decent car, graduated from college and still have that job that makes $60K a year. things were good. I had guys and girls calling my phone non-stop. I had it all and I still do. I'm ashamed at myself for the crap I was putting myself through. it was dumb.

at this point, I'm happy to be able to go out with friends and get drunk as shit, to come home and end up spending the night next to the toilet (not really, but you get the idea) throwing up $20-$30 worth of Alcohol. I'm happy I have freakin' internet.

I'm finally happy to be alive, as I should've been those few years back. Fuck I should've been happy to be alive and have a loving family and friends from the beggining instead of "fighting causes".

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Permalink Reply by Rosenda on August 4, 2010 at 6:18pm

I am struggling big time because a heartbreak situation unhinged my entire life and I have to really start over on everything. It has brought up me finally facing and taking more seriously what I want to do careerwise in the next few years and going back to school to learn skills for what I'm interested in doing. For me that's scary cause I'm older. But when I'm ready to start in earnest, I'm going for it. Learn what I need to get started.

It's part of life, we go through things in different levels and intensities at different ages and stages. For real.

My goals for sure did change over time and I am hit with them really hard this year, the main two in my life.
One I can do something about starting next year, and the other one I don't think I can really. You all know it's about love, that second part of it. But I alone have to deal with that.

Ralph if you have already worked really hard at your photography, and you know you appreciate what you've done so far but you want more, just keep working at it. Find different places to show your work, people, galleries, other artists groups in or around where you live and also online. As for feedback like someone mentioned on here also, and keep open on learning and improving your skills and also on where/how you take your photographs, subject matter, etc all of that.

Another thing you might to do is talk to some other photographers, either ones who are already in business or at a school/college/university who are teaching, also ones that are involved in any local galleries and artists community groups. You might get some inspiration or suggestions that could help jazz you up, either in terms of the quality of your work, or in terms new opportunities to show your work and get exposure.

That kind of thing happened to a friend of mine I work with, she got more buyers of her artwork, sometime after she met some other new artists groups that were organizing group shows, and they knew she was interested, and she came up with new stuff she said because there would be a theme at some shows, and she created work inspired by those themes and it sounds like that really helped her get exposed to new people who didnt see her artwork before and also get new ideas for creating. Good luck on this, Ralph!

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Permalink Reply by Fashionfreak on September 3, 2010 at 6:35pm

I've struggled for a while but I figured out that I want to be a writer last year. I started blogging then moving onto submitting articles to sites and magazines (including Afropunk) to sharpen my skill. It's hard trying to make money off of it. I am only 21 and right now I am just doing it for free for exposure.

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Permalink Reply by Rosenda on September 7, 2010 at 3:41pm

That's a great way to start for exposure. My friend did that too, and over time she ended up meeting other people who provided her with more opportunites to show her work, like in group shows or publications, and at first it was a lot for free, but eventually she got paid work as a result of people seeing her stuff that way.

Fashionfreak said:

I've struggled for a while but I figured out that I want to be a writer last year. I started blogging then moving onto submitting articles to sites and magazines (including Afropunk) to sharpen my skill. It's hard trying to make money off of it. I am only 21 and right now I am just doing it for free for exposure.

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Permalink Reply by LesYpersound on September 7, 2010 at 4:26pm

i'm starting to get it when folks say stuff like "just give it the best you got." you can't control ppl's reactions, trustworthiness. you can't predict the future or change the past. all you can do is try and be intentional w/ your actions in the present moment. and at this present moment you're living and can be as engaged w/ the world, your self, or your activity as you choose to be. so why not live fully in that moment. :) it's "imagine sisyphus happy" applied to normal life. love the little details and moss growing on your the bolder you're shoving up the hill. notice the strain on your muscles and the beauty of the hill you're on. and when the boulder rolls back down smile and notice how fucking awesome it is to be in this moment right now--living. or maybe that's not exactly what folk meant by "give it the best you got", but simply don't leave anything to be regretted later b/c you didn't act b/c you were afraid.

because like bukowski is so widely quoted (esp by me on this board, lol): there's nothing worse than too late. and our bodies and minds are finite. nothing eternal about ourselves or our spirits that we know for sure... so do what you can now. :]