Him: "But I never have time to really do any of these."
Me: "True, it's tough when you work...but you should try if you like doing these."
Him: "Well, yeah, I guess when it comes to creativity, I tend to refrain from really getting into it because, I guess, I'm afraid of being a failure or something."
Me: "Well, there's no..."
(I pause and think.)
Me: "Well, actually, there is...but you gotta try anyway!"
Much as I wanted to say there's no failure in creativity, my instinct told me there is. I couldn't ignore that voice in my head. But now I think about it a few hours later, and I guess there actually is no failure in creativity if that is for our own personal use. But when it is for someone to see--that's where all the bad books, bad drawing and badly taken photography come in, and I understand why my friend gets cold feet, as it is probably in our instinct to share our creativity. The fear of sharing something not good enough has stopped me many times from posting here even though I know this blog gets only a handful of readers.
The fact is, though, it's still better to share, because creativity often evolves when it's shared. Comments from my writing peers, both positive and negative, have empowered me a lot in such constructive ways. Being creative is often accompanied by wanting to be good, and to be good, you have to accept the possibility of you being "a failure" and still create the best you can.
I'm telling this to myself as I ramble, and wishing that I had given this as my piece of advice to my friend. That would've sounded a bit better than "You gotta try anyway."
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I agree with you. the only real failure is letting fear of rejection or failure get the best of you and stand in the way of your creativity. Creative people have to be able to endure failure for that is going to be the case at least half the time and probably much more. And people are so random, one person might look at a piece, cherish it with all their heart and tell everyone they know that they have seen the mountain top thanks to the artist and another looks at the very same piece and vilifies it to everyone he can. Syouganai jan. All your friend can do is do what he feels and the rest is in the Creator's hands. Your advice was spot on Kana! Nice post!
ReplyDeleteWhat you say is very true. An artist has to be brave to share their work, because they are sharing a part of their own universe and it's hard to bear criticism of something so personal. Even when things are not perfect, however, it is helpful to share, I think. After all, there may be an aspect of good in it that an artist might not see from self-doubt. So, the feedback can be useful. An artist has to be careful not to stop creating just from the fear of failure, especially since in the process of creating many good things can come from mistakes and we can learn a lot about our craft each time we practice it. I say "an artist" but I'm really advising myself... good topic, Kana!
ReplyDelete@Loco
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, and I'm sorry it took me this long to respond. This is what happens when you assume nobody reads your blog, ugh. You nailed it with "shoganai," Loco! It is truly the perfect phrase for anybody who creates and worries about how others feel about their work.
@Kimi
You are so right in saying artists are sharing a part of their own universe and that makes it hard to take criticism. I guess that's why it's tremendously wonderful when this part of one's self is accepted, and even better, appreciated by others. I was definitely advising myself when I wrote this, too, and I'm so happy to be hearing back from two artists I admire!