This is WAAAAY better than any commencement speech I ever got.
Neil Gaiman recently received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from Philadelphia’s University of the Arts and io9 has a video of the commencement address he delivered to the graduating class. And its awesome, as you’d probably expect from Mr. Neil.
Gaiman’s speech is about succeeding in the arts and, in this day of uncertainty and sturm und drang in the publishing industry (and creative industries generally, as old models of distribution and control die off and are replaced by…well, the Wild West) is remarkably upbeat. It gives one hope that doing things your own way can not only work but come with immense rewards, and that there are elements of your artistic life that you can control along the way.
And his advice about the secret to freelancing is hilarious and true, at least based on my experience as an editor.
– S.