Tom Petty Quotes

We had a huge audience, we sold truckloads of albums. If we do something that's cool, people will listen to it. If we don't, we would be selling people short.

We never expected the show to be this great. We think it is successful because kids can identify.

I can't imagine working without and audience.

You have to keep surprising your audience.

There's a special joy you get having a show on the air that people are interested in and wanting to know what happens next. You really want to enjoy that while you have it.

Some people don't like my songs because they think they're too simple or easy or not that thought-out. I feel like the way I write is pretty simple, in some ways, because I'm trying to connect. I want a lot of people to hear it, and be moved in some way.

We do play to our audience. It's very important. You can't create music in a vacuum.

I was thrilled with how the first series of 'Sherlock' was received. It was such great fun to film, which makes it so rewarding when something you enjoy is so well received.

You write alone, but you write hoping that there will be readers who will connect with what you write, and it's so wonderful and amazing - I can't even tell you - when that actually happens.

The artists that I relate to and love the most are the ones where I can listen to the record, and I can know them better, and for me, that's writing it.

I can see people sharing my comics and talking about them, which is very gratifying.

Films are not meant to be watched only by fans but by everyone. Fans are those who like what we do. When we do things that only they like, then we are becoming their fans.

I'm never going to be inspired by some obscure film, which isn't to say I don't enjoy that sort of thing. I just want to share my work with everyone.

This goes for our songwriting as well as our success as a band - the minute we stopped chasing what we thought people wanted to hear and started writing things that moved us, that's when people started paying attention.

If you're doing what you love, and people can see that and relate to it, that's the most important thing.

I always think of myself as an audience first. If I like something, my assumption is that others, too, will like it.

I think of it this way: When you hear that people have downloaded your comic, appreciate that thousands are eager to hear what you have to say. The poetry club down the hall may not have the same problem. That's a good problem to have.

I love shows. I love being with fans. It keeps you inspired.

Yet ["One More Try" ] really seemed to connect with people, which is a wonderful thing and a marvelous coincidence.

I'm glad that I'm able to entertain and be a part of people watching shows and enjoying the work.

I think it's all about the people who listen to your music, and loving playing and writing. Once you've got those two, and they're your main two priorities, then radio and TV and all the other stuff that comes with it will come. But that's not the be-all end-all.

I think at any point, as an artist, whatever the medium - just having an audience means the world.

I hope to be with you as a writer for a very long time, and I hope that you will enjoy reading my work, because readers are the highest form of life on this planet.

The important thing is having genuine regard for your audience.

All I can say is if the part doesn't delight me in some way, or I can't feel any compassion for it, I just can't do it.