Keep a level head while creating under pressure to perform… Without drugs or alcohol.

“This isn’t quite real” is a good trick to play on your mind. “They’re not serious, I’m not serious. It’s all a game. Trick of the mind. Nothing to worry about.” Remind yourself you’re just a human, and they know it. You’re just writing a song, not humanity’s rescue plan. (That pressure is a different thing.) It’s just a movie. It’s just a YouTube video. Get perspective. Can they do it? Maybe. Can they claim they could do it better? Absolutely. Does that make it true? No. Even if they could, this is your song, your movie, your YouTube video, not theirs.

Remind yourself what it’s like to be on the other side of the velvet rope. Are you looking to humiliate your idol if they write a bad album or what not? Probably not. They’re probably not thinking that way, either. If they are, screw them.

Remind yourself what people are. They’re just people. This is just a song. You are just a human. Find perspective.

Then, can you do a much better version by tomorrow? Next week? Will they love the new version a ton better? Who are you doing a favor to if you publish early? Yourself or them? Is it about you wanting to get out of under the pressure or their best interest? Can you give them something bigger, better, faster, or more if you make them wait a little while longer? “For your own good, kids.”

Give yourself time to be better. They can wait. They will wait because they’re excited and awestruck by your previous work. Because they loved your last thing, they’ll excitedly wait for this new one. That is a great problem to have. Even if they go quiet, they’ll be back once you release something great again… Just give yourself time and make it great. For them. Not for yourself, for them. Make it good, because they deserve it to be good.

And remember this one last fucking thing. They are not your fans as a favor to you. You are the favor. You are you as a favor to them. What you create is a gift to them, but they deserve a good one. The love you put in your work is the love you give… Sell to your fans. ;p The money they pay you for it is the love they give you back for being awesome, for making their life just that little better.

Even if it is just a song.

Now, after the piece is published

Some fans will try to critique it. They may try or succeed to sound your equal in intelligence even if they are not famous for it. Some may wind up sounding disrespectful while trying to sound smart or smarter than you. Sometimes, the critique is from respect. I remember once noticing a tiny error in one of my favourite singer’s technique, something he could fix in an hour if he paid attention to it. I had to share it. His female fans argued it’s a style issue, some insisted the error wasn’t there… but tell you what…. by the next video it was gone… and never returned. Style choise my ass. 😉 He never said anything but how cool was that?

Having said that… women. They are trying to out-understand a male star with a “she who understands him best will get to marry him (next)” -idea. It’s both annoying and amusing but… there you go.

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