Hi Marty, how can somebody get out in the real world and play guitar for a living (i mean writing instrumental albums mostly, what other ways can you survive off tech/instrumental guitar?) sometimes i feel like I am the only one listening to this music. I am 16 and have been playing for eight years. I started to get involved in the technical stuff about 10 months ago. and have been playing 5+ hours a day, consistantly (even with school). I feel all of my practice and skill will be useless, and i will be forced to either stop playing guitar, or write music I just wouldnt feel right making. every day i transcribe music and learn so much from it, it just makes me wonder even more, do i really need to be this good, if i dont need to be this good, why do i want to be better, what is it going to do for me, will anybody even care about me?

Very good question. My advice is to play the music you personally like the best. If you plan make any kind of living in the music business, be prepared to make many compromises, not only in music, but in your personal life. You can never learn too much, and you can never get too good at your craft. Keep learning, and play your favorite music as much as you can, but keep your mind open to many things. Good luck!