
All you need are 1,000 true fans - vpdn
http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2008/03/1000_true_fans.php
======
pchristensen
Followup:
[http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2008/04/the_reality_o...](http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2008/04/the_reality_of.php)

Some nagging details: [http://whatever.scalzi.com/2008/03/12/the-nagging-
details-ab...](http://whatever.scalzi.com/2008/03/12/the-nagging-details-
about-1000-true-fans/)

------
aw3c2
Robert Rich wrote a long reply to this: <http://robertrich.com/1000-true-fans-
an-answer/>

It's been 2 years since I read it but if I recall correctly it was worth it.

~~~
wallflower
> The sort of artist who survives at the long tail is the sort who would be
> happy doing nothing else, who willingly sacrifices security and comfort for
> the chance to communicate something meaningful, hoping to catch the
> attention of those few in the world who seek what they also find meaningful.
> It’s a somewhat solitary existence, a bit like a lighthouse keeper throwing
> a beam out into the darkness, in faith that this action might help someone
> unseen.

Wow. Best essay on honesty in passion vs life I've read in a long time. Thank
you for posting this!

------
jdietrich
Not remotely news. I appreciate the sentiment, but this is a two year old
article from someone who has been heavily linked to on HN. I've been seeing a
lot of this sort of thing lately and it's really starting to get on my wick -
this isn't nearly as egregious as links to 30+ year old hacker folklore, but I
still find it irksome.

~~~
wmf
Until there is a "Hacker Canon" site to collect these links, people will keep
posting them here.

~~~
petercooper
This has been done on the Ask HN front:
<http://www.gabrielweinberg.com/startupswiki/Ask_YC_Archive> .. But having a
large, tagged groups of HN-posted "must reads"/reference library would be
cool.

------
vpdn
"...the point of this strategy is to say that you don't need a hit to survive.
You don't need to aim for the short head of best-sellerdom to escape the long
tail. There is a place in the middle, that is not very far away from the tail,
where you can at least make a living [..] It's a much saner destination to
hope for."

------
sreitshamer
The message I got from this was: find a niche and deliver a great product for
it.

