Is this what the creative act is — a heart at war with itself? Not just within the content of an artwork, but through the process itself. Is the impulse to create a form of self-struggle through which we play out our own existential uncertainties? When we make art, we are simultaneously trying to make our selves, to craft our own being according to principles inexpressible as mere logic?

It is difficult to achieve an authentic, creative life in a world that overwhelmingly privileges commercial gain, measurable success and indiscriminate attention of any kind; a world in which the value of a creative work is defined more by the capital it produces than...

1. Love the process. You must love the act of creating and not merely the idea of it, not merely the daydream of a completed work. Success is not guaranteed, although hard work can increase your odds and there is nothing wrong with ambition. But success usually comes...

Inspiration is an often talked-about phenomenon crucial to any exceptional creative enterprise. Beyond a basic dictionary definition, it can be difficult to elucidate and conceptualize, its objective qualities muddied by the experiences of divergent personalities in diverging fields–from science to business to the arts and beyond; not to mention the inherent complexities of individual temperament, inclination and personal taste. In this post, I offer a brief summary of inspiration as I have experienced it, aiming to provoke thought rather than inspire certainty.

I’m drawn to create as more than just a pastime. It’s something I feel encoded in my DNA with an almost mystical imperative. Why then, do I often have to drag myself to the page or camera? Why is it that more often or not, it’s agony to get started on what I love doing. Why do I dread it, skirt around it, avoid beginning at all costs?