Skip to main content

Denied!

Today I learned that I do not meet the requirements to become a member of the Online Critics Society. Even though I've written enough reviews and I publish ample amount each year, I assume it's the quality of my writing that doesn't meet their standards.

This may have been the best news for my writing career. Instead being a writer who is also a critic, I can now be a writer who likes to post his thoughts about TV and movies. There's a difference; at least there's a difference for me. The past year I've been blocked by trying too hard to come up with the right phrase or allusion to past films and television that my output has been just okay. Now that I know that I'm not good enough for the Online Critics Society, I don't have to pretend to be something that I'm not.

I'm not a critic.

Although I was disappointed about being turned down, that disappointment lasted just minutes. Immediately I began thinking about the scripts and stories I wanted to write and I wasn't worried about posting my thoughts about Falling Skies (although I have to get to that).

This is a good thing. A relief.

I'm not a critic. Phew.

Comments

Ted said…
I would much rather have "writer" as my vocation title than "critic."

Popular posts from this blog

MARATHON FOOTNOTES (for those who didn't think I would really footnote a stream of consciousness thought): Footnote #1 Academy Award Winning Best Picture Films from 1969 to the Present: Midnight Cowboy, Patton, The French Connection, The Godfather, The Sting, The Godfather II, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Rocky, Annie Hall, The Deer Hunter, Kramer Vs. Kramer, Ordinary People, Chariots of Fire, Gandhi, Terms of Endearment, Amadeus, Out of Africa, Platoon, The Last Emperor, Rain Man, Driving Miss Daisy, Dances With Wolves, The Silence of the Lambs, Unforgiven, Schindler’s List, Forrest Gump, Braveheart, The English Patient, Titanic, Shakespeare in Love, American Beauty, Gladiator, A Beautiful Mind, Chicago, Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. Footnote #2 Members of the band YES, from 1969 to the present: In 1969, Yes is formed with Jon Anderson on vocals Peter Banks on guitar, Bill Bruford on drums, Tony Kaye on keyboards and Chris Squire playing bass. This group records...

A Trip Through the "My 90's Tapes" Collection Pt. 9: Mötley Crüe, "Girls, Girls, Girls"

Column 3, Row 13: Mötley Crüe , Girls Girls Girls. I was never a big fan of Mötley Crüe. I liked their radio hits, but I never listened to one of their albums in their entirety until 1989’s Dr. Feelgood , which was orchestrated in a way to dominate radio stations and suck in casual fans, like me, who had trouble getting past the Crüe’s purposeful sleaziness. That said I always admired them more than the other Sunset Strip bands. Bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee were such a formidable rhythm section and laid down a solid groove to all their music. Guitarist Mick Mars had a knack for making his guitar hiss sinister, matching his perpetual scowl. Vince Neil was nothing to write home about as a vocalist, which made his unpolished singing just a little more intriguing than most of the other front then who dominated mainstream rock in the mid-late 80’s. Girls Girls Girls was released in May of 1987, just in time for a long summer of Mötley Crüe taking over the mi...

A Trip Through the "My 90's Tapes" Collection Pt. 10: U2, "Rattle and Hum"

  Column 1, Row 17: U2 , Rattle and Hum U2 are one of two acts that immediately conjure memories of my late friend, Matt (the other one is Dylan). Matt and I knew each other since first grade. Despite the comings and goings of other friends and girlfriends, we held on to that friendship until the early 2000s. It's a remarkable feat, when you think about it. We both left our suburban Cleveland hometown and moved west (he to Seattle, me to L.A.) and lived very different lives. What I remember of Matt was him chasing the that spark that brought him joy and wonder. He was always curious, sometimes to a fault, at least when I knew him. I can't tell you what he was like toward the end of his life; we'd lost touch. All that I have are the memories of the haunting young man I knew from young adulthood. Matt and I came of age in the mid to late 80s, as U2 made their commercial breakthroughs with War (1983) and The Unforgettable Fire (1984) and then became the most significant band ...