Words of Wisdom

I came across this quote today, and thought it was a fitting quote for those of us trying to eke out a living in a creative field.  Especially those of us just starting out:

"Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. 
All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. 
A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn't have this special thing that we want it to have. 
We all go through this. 
And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. 
You’ve just gotta fight your way through."

- Ira Glass

So, back to the studio I go.
089 - watercolors

3 comments:

  1. It's a bit of a scary quote hey!! You just think arghhhh!!! But I've heard a few different ones... a tutor told me it take 10,000 hours of drawing to become good at it (I wondered if that include hours and hours of scribbling as a child!!!) and an artist friend told me it took him 20 years to find his style (of painting).. YIkes!! But then there are poeple who just do beautiful things right from the begining....? Lucky ducks!! But what I think is you just have to just do what is in your heart and what you love... because why would you do it for any other reason.. and if others like it, Woo Hoo bonus :)

    Anyway back to the drawing board for me too...

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  2. i needed to hear this. i am finally painting again.

    ira is wise.

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  3. Whatever keeps you moving forward is good--always searching, always trying, always believing. You've got it. Thanks for the post.

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