What it comes down to is:
Do you really have anything to say?
You can imitate all you want.
Great for the technique.
But there comes a point when you'll have to
strike out on your own, and find out what it
is that you want to communicate.
And you'll know when that time comes,
because there's a very good chance you'll
become very afraid.
And you may also have nothing but pain
for a while.
And maybe at some point you'll feel like
you've had enough, and give it all up.
That's what way too many people do,
and that's why they don't become
the artists that they could.
It's a test of character really.
Not unlike parachuting out of a plane.
Do you have the guts to express what you
really feel, or are you going to pad it
with what you've seen others express
already.
If you pad it, they might call you an
artist anyway.
And if you pad it, you can bet you'll
be accepted by a great many people.
But the real challenge is moving forward
without the acceptance, into a place
no one has been, and introduce them to it.
01/17/02