Life is hardly more than a fraction of a second. Such a little time to prepare oneself for eternity!
Critics? How do they happen? I know how it happened to me. I would send a poem or story to a magazine and they would say this doesn't suit our needs precisely but on the other hand you sound interesting. Would you be interested in doing a review?
The success of the movie industry comes from the story. And the story comes from somebody putting something down on paper.