The Challenge Of The Creative Genius
Writing is a lonely and often painful job. Most are unaware of what this means...
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I am NOT a creative genius.
…but I do have one.
That mode of thinking has stumped many a friend, family member or stranger who has read my works or interacted with me. For decades I’ve told people that I am a ‘simpleton creator’ with the vocabulary of a fourth grader.
This is still true.
Yet when I had a principe of a private school edit all my books, combing over 1000 pages of text, who discovered at least 1-2 error PER PAGE, I asked him two things:
Where you able to stay immersed in the story, even with so many errors?
Did you enjoy the story?
The answer to both questions was a resounding, “Yes!”
…then did the errors matter?
Yes and no.
You want to deliver the very best work you can, but do you make those efforts at the cost of the creation itself? I…don’t know.
My job is to show up and do the work. It is not my job to make this a success.
People would argue with me on that point, and many do…but it doesn’t do them any good. Why? Because I believe the genius of the projects I work on do not come from me. The ideas and worldbuilding I live in most days comes from a divine, outside source,…but I’ve never been able to clearly express what that is, or how that works.
Until today.
Having a lovely talk with Deleyna, a member of our community, she asked if i’d seen the Ted talk by Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat Pray Love: the path to the vibrant, fulfilling life you’ve dreamed of.). She sent me the link, I watched it, and she described many of my own experiences, struggles,…and how I believe about my creative process.
…and I wanted to share it with you.
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I'm so glad you liked it! That is one of my favorite talks to listen to for encouragement. Not only for her words, but for her open emotion. This is a person who is tremendously successful, and she still has these emotions!