The Inspiration Trap
I think I've learned something about inspiration.
There's this popular conception of writing/music/art that it's driven by inspiration. Ideas from the heavens. Bolts from the blue.
I thought that, too. So, for years, I was bemoaning the fact that I didn't have any inspiration to write. I expected to have inspiration every time.
The more I worked on the book, though, the more I realized that depending on inspiration meant that I was depending on something that was out of my control.
Maybe the initial idea for a book comes from inspiration. But artists aren't driven by inspiration.
They're driven by work.
There's a process of going from the story controlling you to you controlling the story, and that process is all work. It's sitting down every day at the same time and going through the same process, even though some days are better than others.
It's not sexy. It's not romantic. It's steady, and in that steadiness inspiration occasionally appears. The important thing, though, is that it's not required. Show up or don't show up. I'll still be here.
I really wish I had understood this thirty years ago. It would have changed my life.
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