Be The Best In A Field

Our culture has a general attitude of "it's already been done, so why do it again". This method of thinking can be beneficial, but also very frustrating.

Because we are in constant search for something new, we have to come up with new ideas to keep people interested. For example, we can blend styles. A story no longer has to be a fantasy or a horror or mystery; you can blend those genres in whatever ratios or degrees you want. You can try to make your own genre. Experimentation is required and desired.

However, the downside to this is that people care more about the idea than the execution. People hear that a story is a horror/fantasy and they are excited by it. The author is can sell the name of the genre so well that the actual story itself can be sub par. People would rather do something different than do it well, as though that will make them stand out more (which, sadly, it often does).

Still, I submit to you a challenge. Choose a classic genre, a classic story, and do it better than anybody else ever has. Make people care about it more than other versions have. If you can make your execution powerful with a plain idea, then your execution of a story with a new idea will be fantastic.