One thing I know to be true, every writer desires to be heard, now whether that is the deepest desire of the writer’s heart, of that I have no clue. I only know the deepest desires of my own heart and one of those desires is to be heard by the world, another is to see my work turned into film, and the others are for me to keep to my self.
All artists, no matter the type, strive to have their work become something fantastic, something that everyone in the world will be excited to see, read, hear, touch, or taste, something that will change their world view maybe, all artists want to be recognized in some way shape or form. They say all artists are introverts that stay in their rooms and shun the outside world, but if you go to conventions of nearly any kind, there are artists at every turn hoping that you will be interested in their work.
Writing is hard! Others will give advice about what we should write, say ‘oh, you should put me in your book,’ or tear our dreams down to the bare metal because they don’t want us to meet our dreams. I’ve had all three of these happen to me. My first story changed so much because of what others were telling me that it became unrecognizable from my original idea and thus put a hold on that story because it just wasn’t talking anymore. I was writing for others and not myself.
Today I am working on a story that is all mine, and while I do take the constructive criticism that others give and use it if it has merit, I’m ignoring the naysayers and those who think the story should be all about them, and I am writing the story I want to tell.
When a writer, or any artist for that matter, tries to please those around them then their work becomes crap. (Pardon my bluntness) When a story wants to be written, it wants to be written a certain way and, yes, the author has a vision of what it will be, but the characters take on a life of their own and nothing that is written is what was planned, but it’s usually better. I like to think of that as divine intervention, but others may think differently. It’s the characters’ stories to be told, not exactly the authors. That’s what I think Socrates meant by even when we don’t know the meaning. We may not understand the message but in the end it will be clear and others may catch on quicker than the artist did.
An artists work has the ability to speak to those who view it. Painters, writers, fragrance designers, make-up artists, chef’s, and even those in the engineering and construction business are artists in their own right. Look at a building or a piece of machinery, or billboard that someone has designed and put together and tell me that’s not a piece of art. Anything that is built from scratch and left for the enjoyment of others is a piece of art. Vehicles are works of art, buildings are works of art, food is a work of art, and fragrances are works of art that can initiate an olfactory memory. If you enjoy any one of these things then you are supporting the artists who created them.
Now to get back on track with my thought, all of these things were created because the artist had a vision and they put that vision out there without out influence from others. Some gave in and changed the vision to meet the desires of other but some are pure. My desire is to put out pure art from my visions and hope and pray that others will find it as interesting as I do. Not because it was changed to meet their expectations but because it is a direct link into the artists mind.
My greatest desire may never come true but that doesn’t stop me from striving for it. No matter how badly I feel, no matter how hard the journey, and no matter how others strike at my dreams, I have to keep going. Hope is the only thing that keeps us going in this crazy world. So I have to have hope and never give up. It’s so hard not to give up when everything tells me it’s impossible and that the odds are not in my favor, but I must keep going because it is my heart’s deepest desire and it hurts physically to try and deny it.
Thanks for reading my Jumpin Jilhosophet Journiers!
God Bless!