Let the Jury Decide

Too often, artists jury themselves out of shows or competitions. They see a show they would love to do. Or a competition they would love to enter. But then the self-doubt begins to take over. Those nasty little voices that many of us carry around with us. “Are you crazy?" "You’ll never get in." "They won’t like your work." "You’re not good enough.”

Who says so?

Until you are on the jury, let the jury do that work. If you want to try and get into a show, or enter a competition, go ahead. Do it. You may not get in. I have one show I enter every year. And each time, I end up on the wait list. Purgatory. Not good enough to get in, but almost….But I keep trying. Eventually I may cross that line.

Enter that contest. It will push you to go further in your work. You will look at it with more scrutiny, and maybe learn something that you normally would overlook. And who knows, you might just win a prize, or receive recognition for your work.

Submit your work to that magazine. They have 6 to 12 issues to produce every year. Each issue has 15 to 20 articles. Who is to say that your work is not good enough? Let the editor decide that.

Your job is to get into the studio and do the very best work that you can. And continue to try and make your work better. To explore the boundaries of where you can go with your work. And then to put your work out there. Let others see and appreciate what you have created. You might experience rejection. Sure. But you might just be jumping up and down with joy when you get that email or letter that says “You’re in.” If you’re like me, you’ll get both! Go ahead. Take a chance.