@Lincoln55 -- First, your thought on the 'arrogance level' as measured by yourself is not in the least like that measured by others on the outside. I prefer the definition that anyone who writes more or less regularly/habitually is a writer, regardless of how they see themselves. Carrying it a bit further, a creative writer is anyone who attempts to convey abstractions through the medium of the written word.

A 'good' writer is then one who can transmit the abstract ideas effectively. This ability is further defined by the vocabulary employed to do the job. It should then be apparent that the greater the vocabulary possessed by the writer, the more effective he/she will be in presenting verbal pictures to a broad spectrum of readers' minds without needlessly challenging them, while at the same time, not seeming condescending.

A writer's success is defined quite differently. I have known impressively good authors who have never tried to publish a single word. Are they successful? Ask them. It is not for us to say. Perhaps writing a story that satisfies them is all the success they are after or that they need to feel fulfilled. There are others who think that if they are not earning a living that affords them a 4-bedroom, 3-bath, sprawling ranch style house, with a 3-car garage stuffed with the latest best, and an Olympic sized pool near the beach, shopping, and entertainment centers---but comfortably far away from the riff-raff---they are miserable failures.

Suffice to say, I never seek authors who don't qualify according to my scale. Now, one could say, but what is your scale? Indeed, what is it? Again, it is enough to say that the rejection rate I seem to have maintained over the years runs between 85% and 95%. For independent reactions regarding what sort of an acquisitions editor I am to work with, you can ask any of the authors I have dealt with in the past.

Wisdom, gained through experience?

@Petter I was a newspaper reporter for decades

@TheDoubter Snap! I was a publisher of 2 magazines and an entertainment guide from 1987 until I retired and passed on the business.

@Petter -- Been lurking, have you?

@evidentialist I love a good lurk - with or without a lech. ?