I am enduring a creative process of my own. I can't remember the last time I've blogged so consistently--mind you, I've started seven blogs since 2007, none of which I have updated regularly, and this is only my fourth PKT post, in three weeks--but duty called. In the beginning, I was stuck between organic intention and a grand, marble pillar, duly styled, "The Industry." Other hurdles were the red pills "Recognition," "Royalty," and "Career." There was no way I was going to risk those possibilities for the sake of finding myself through experimentation. Either you'll find (or lose) yourself, and not find much money at all, or, you'll luck up on reparations; yet fall victim to buttered palms. But who's talking money? This is art. And art, while an immutable meal ticket for a select few, should foremost, be fun. Contrarily, I stressed over blogging--so much that I was reluctant to produce. And I experimented with my career as an author instead.
Now here we are, back to the basics, the highly-volatile it-is-what-it-is of the web--the blog. And this go 'round, my lines are a little more unorthodox, and I'm less focused on how many SAT words I can dole out in four paragraphs or less. The result: Relevant content on which I haven't wasted valuable time pulverizing with thought--lest there be no production.
When I got an opportunity to do what I love, for someone else, serving an organized, progressive concept, something snapped. The fear to blog, and to blog freely, suddenly disintegrated, and then I found myself back at the tool, telling the world what's on my mind. Even the most seasoned creatives fall victim to the illusions fear, *insert discipline here* block, and the like. And when this happens, the dopeness factor increasingly grows irrelevant as the muse processing facility shuts down. Some of us continue chopping away at a titanium wall of nothing. Some of us become alcoholics. Some of us simply hang up the towel--even if only as a planned hiatus. And there will come a time when a break is in order, but we must be aware of the source of our creative fatigue if we are to bounce back, and do so with force.
Last week, we solicited for the arts community's input on its motivations, its processes. This activity continues, with last week's questions, and a few additions, below.
* How do you decide which pieces (and this applies to any artist) deserve enough of your attention to actually be completed before the apocalypse?
* What makes you excited about the genre/discipline with which you chose to express yourself?
* What about your chosen path (or mental state) drives you wild enough to test even the most formal boundaries of your craft?
* What hinders your creativity? What jump-starts it?
How do you participate?
* Get your Twitter account. You can sign up for one here: http://www.twitter.com/
* Follow Publik Transit @PublikTransit
* Follow me @cjenkinsiv
* Keep an eye out for future posts, and join the discussion, responding to either @PublikTransit OR @cjenkinsiv.
* That's it!
Have a happy Tuesday! Let's meet back here Thursday, and see what we can flesh out.
- Cambridge Jenkins IV, EIC
