Your opinion is invalid or REALITY CHECK!

     For those of you who haven't guessed it yet, I am an Author.  I write, people give me money for the crazy things that go on inside my head.  Heck even this blog earns me money from people who read it thanks to the various ads you occasionally see along the sides or the bottom.  I have been writing and getting paid for it since I was 16 years old and sold my first article (Appropriately called “If you don't vote, don't complain”) to the old GRIT newspaper.  (Not going to try explain the GRIT.  If you are curious, research it)
     So having said this, let me put this as plainly as I can.  If an Author writes something, but offers no commentary on it, then you may feel to interpret its meaning anyway you like and even think you are right.  HOWEVER, if the author plainly tells you exactly what his intent was and that intent disagrees with your interpretation, YOU ARE WRONG!  Period, fini, end of discussion.  You don't get to say what his intent “actually was.”
See that is the arrogance of non-creative people.  You all think that your reality is more important than the people who create those worlds and words that you could never hope to create on your own.  You take someone else's work and impose your rules and delusions on it.  You think that you have the right to make the rules and interpretations about other people somehow fit into your own limited world.
     Like I said, if an author/painter/sculptor puts a work out there with no background or explanation of intent, then anyone can be free to interpret its meaning to their hearts content.  Hells, if said creative type person does put out the intent of the work, you are still free to interpret but you are not allowed to say the creative person's intent is wrong.  You aren't allowed to say, “Well I know what she said she meant” but I know what she really meant.
So the next time you want to say, “That ain't what he really meant,” check yourself before you wind up looking totally stupid.  Oh I know you didn't think you looked totally stupid, but I am interpreting what you REALLY meant, and that was that you look completely stupid.