Creation and creativity are staples of writers, and yet they are so difficult to understand or explain. I find myself looking at the creative process in a number of ways. One of them I call the essay in the aether.
Sometimes find that things write themselves. It's like he whole story already existed, and all I really had to do was snatch it out of the ethereal world where it lives. I like this kind of creativity because it almost feels like cheating. The hardest part is wragnling an good idea in the first place, but after that, it does all the work for you.
This reminds me of Michelangelo, who believed that a fully-formed sculpture existed in every block of marble and that his job was merely to free it. Creativity feels that way to me. Writing is less about shaping and sculpting and more about taking intangible perfection and bringing it to earth.
Unfortunately, this is not something that can be taught. Only people who are touched in the head can snatch the ethereal. If you aren't, you'll have to find some other way to create. But if it's any consolation, nobody can truly rely on finding the essay in the aether. It's like relying on a muse or an inspiration; when it's there, it's great, but when it isn't there, you still have to write.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment