I Am

I really find myself wondering sometimes where the people of substance are online these days, especially those of a creative nature. I know way too many writers, artists, filmmakers, and so forth that seem to care more about creating a facade to hide behind than they do about creating really good art. I don't get that. When I think of professions that lead to tons of admirers and money to wipe your ass with, I don't think of any of the arts. It really does feel like "I want to be an artist" is becoming code for "I have no marketable skills, nor do I want to work for a living, but I don't want to admit to either of those things". 

Whenever that realization occurs to me, I become aware of how rare it is to have accomplished the things that I have. Not only do I have real skills and real ideas, but I've actually found a way to make those things marketable. And I'm not even close to being done yet. There are so many places I can see myself taking my creativity in the future and I actually have a good idea of how to make successes of those endeavors as well. So many of these sham artists have no idea how to do the same. No wonder I have haters. 

On another note, I'm also realizing that writing really isn't the struggle for me that it apparently is for other people. Any time I see other people that blog or write discussing their technique, there's a lot of talk of outlining, and planning, and editing, and re-editing. If anyone talks about having free-written something off the top of their head, they also talk about how rare that is for them to be able to do. I've  personally never written any other way.  

I don't need to. I am able to get things to sound the way I want them to on the first try. Even the stuff I write for my clients is basically written in one shot and given a quick once-over before I call it done. I always assumed other people were the same way, at least in regards to their blogging and their personal writing, but I guess they're not. And for some reason, I'm feeling appreciative here in this moment of the fact that I am. I can't imagine a world in which writing does not come easily to me and I'm grateful that I don't have to.