the moment i first understood the myth of meritocracy i think was when i read the "Eragon" books as a teenager, and it said on the back that the author had started writing them at 15 and it became a bestseller. this stressed me out so much, I also wanted that kind of success in writing at such a young age & kept thinking I should also be able to do it, that I must be doing something wrong – and then YEARS later i found out his parents had a publishing company and financed him touring through the whole U.S before the books became successful











