probably my best interview ever…

This post reminded me a little of this quote. What they’re saying is not entirely the same, though the last line of your quote from the interview has something in common with the following.
Robert White, ‘Damaged Archangel’, Australian Book Review, February 2007:
“What is a ‘literary life’? The phrase is invitingly open. Some writers seem to live their lives with a studied circumspection, as if creating a work of art. Everything is crafted to present only what the writer wishes to reveal, exactly as in creating a literary work. Oscar Wilde and Jack Kerouac may seem odd bedfellows, except in this one regard. Oscar’s bon mots and flamboyantly witty social gestures mirror those of his written personae, to the extent that his life is his art and is art is his life, exactly as he almost said. Kerouac’s crucial discovery may have been that getting ‘on the road’ could lead not only to a bestseller that influenced a generation, but that it could also shape the perception of his life, where the public and private became synonymous. […] For both Wilde and Kerouac, ‘style’ is the word that links the literary and the life.”
The life, I suppose, is in many ways a part of the marketing. And it is indeed inseparable from the art.

Too right, Hugh.
Maybe marketing is tough for artists who have nothing to say – in which case…
There is a serious part to this though – if anyone can’t face marketing their stuff then perhaps they haven’t found the right expressive ‘voice.’ So they should keep ‘working their ass off’ at it until they do.

Hugh:
I agree with what you are saying here and will definitely go check out the whole interview.
One thing that just keeps bouncing around in my head is this, “The way artists market themselves is by having a great story, by having a “Myth”.”
The thing I keep going round with is the concept of whether these stories or myths that help the “marketing-savvy” artists use are conscious decisions or just them? And, if it’s simply people flocking to them because of who they are, rather than a conscious decision they make, does this go far past marketing?
The challenge, in my mind, comes for artists who want to market themselves. Can they decide on a story, or are they out of luck if their life doesn’t easily lend itself to a story that resonates with people?
Kevin

Thanks for the interview and the whole Lateral Action thing, not to mention inspirational doodles and such. All of you are awesome.
Coming from a creative background, it was difficult to swallow and digest the need for marketing. It took a while to learn that your great idea doesn’t matter if you can’t get it out to the right people. In fact, great ideas are sometimes the easy part. Executing and communicating it to the right people in the right way is often the bigger journey.
Imagine creating the best board game ever for two people, but you can’t explain to anybody who has time how to play. All of a sudden, your board game sucks. Learn how to solve the communication problem and your board starts to rock.

Great interview, Hugh! I’m really looking forward to your book.
-Paul.