Getting over creative struggle

. 1 min read

I'm one of those people who are all but paralyzed by the fear of actually doing something creative. I fear I've lost the little talent I had; I fear messing up the idea I have in my head; and I fear producing something that's shit. So needless to say that Resistance is powerful.

But Resistance ain't got nothing on me!

That is to say, lately I've tried to turn this whole fear thing on it's head: instead of fearing I'll write something that's shit, I'll do my best to write something that is shit.

Unnatural dialog. Illogical plot twists. Shallow characters. All of it.

And guess what? It's so much fun!

Instead of stressing out about making the perfect Nobel price winner (which is a ridiculous idea in and of itself), I try my best to screw the whole thing up. What's the worst that could happen? That no one will read it, because I will never publish it?

And if the best should happen, I'll have invented a lively dialogue, an unpredictable protagonist, and some weird Vonnegut-level plot advancements.

Art is what you make of it. Doing things differently, in a way no one has done before, might be the thing that earns you your eternal glory.

RK