Creativity motivational quote.

Jonathon B

I'm not normally a quote guy but I really liked this one from Ira Glass of "This American Life" so I thought I'd share it with my fellow illustrators.

“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.”

DanetteDraws

https://vimeo.com/85040589 <<here it is in video form

I like that advice too.

Jonathon B

@DanetteDraws Cool thanks !

Leontine

Thank Youuuuu!

Dulcie

Very true, thanks for sharing!

Naroth Kean

Thanks for sharing Jonathan

audrey dowling

I definitely recognize myself there. I have always drawn, I have always been told I was good at it and have always seen the potential in myself too. But I never passed that stage and I regret all that time wasted. I wish someone had told me something like this back then, cause I had no idea. It would definitely have motivated me to go further in a creative career. Now I am basically starting from scratch, at 37, and it's sometimes overwhelming to see the amount of things I have to catch up with in "so little time" (ok I;m not that old yet but you know what I mean ^_^ )
thanks for sharing Jonathon

seanwelty

@audrey-dowling I was going to reply to this thread, but your comment reflects my experience exactly. I am now in a career that makes me more than enough money, but does not scratch my creative itch. When I was 18 years old I wanted to pursue art, but was scared of the starving artist stereotype. I entered a more "practical" field.

bharris

Thank you. I really needed to read this from a fellow illustrator this morning! I'm getting ready to have the first book I've ever illustrated go out into the world, and it's not amazing by any means, but it's the first step.

audrey dowling

@bharris that's great! did you write it as well? if not, how did you get the opportunity?

bharris

@audrey-dowling I didn't write it, just a local author in my home town. She is doing a self publish, but she is involved in major writing groups and with the community, as am I, so I hope it will do well for our area for just the fact that it's local. It wasn't really the style that I want to be known for so I'm looking forward to moving on and learning more.