Wednesday 28 October 2015

On Creating


Every personality test I have ever taken has told me that I'm more logical than creative.  According to them I'm more inclined to live a life of logic than one of vibrant art and ridiculously exaggerated meaningfulness.  But then, maybe that's because I always give answers that I know will lead me to that outcome.  My entire life has revolved around the basis of maths and science, and it probably will continue to, but I think I'm going through a phase where I'm so sick and tired of it all.

While writing that previous paragraph I moved to five different locations, looking for a place where I could write in silence.  Downstairs there was this clock which just. kept. ticking; outside there was this immensely irritating fly; and from everywhere in the house I can hear the subtle noise of a drill coming from some form of construction a while away.  It's strange how you don't hear these noises under normal circumstances, but when all you want is silence, every little sound becomes irritating.  I need the silence because I feel like creating accurate streams of words relies on concentration.  I guess in that sense I really am more logical than creative, because I can't spurt streams of meaningful, artistic words on a whim without thinking.

Lately the cliche idea of being artistic has been strangely appealing.  There's those excessively tumblr, aesthetic, minimalistic themed looks like Brooklyn Beckham's instagram account; there's the girls in hoodies and doc martens with their hipster glasses; there's the deep and meaningful people who write oh-so-deep-and-meaningful works of art; there's the indie people listening to their indie music; there's the seemingly intellectual people who pretentiously 'love' the classics - but when I think of this all I think is fake.  Even if it's not fake, all I see is a try-hard mechanism because each of these supposed self-expressions seem like such a cliche.

This morning I took a science test before coming home to watch Stuck In Love, which is a creation about creators.  Even though I don't know what they mean, those last lines of the movie are absolutely beautiful.
I could hear my heart beating.  I could hear everyone's heart.  I could hear the human noise we sat there making, not one of us moving, not even when the room went dark.
I just think it was the perfect way to end the movie.  And when the screen went dark, I didn't move for a while, because I was thinking about the 'not one of us moving' bit.  I mean, how genius is that?  Something about the noun 'human noise' also sounds so honest.

Now, if anyone were to be the perfect example of creators, I'd say it's the fictional characters in that movie.  I love the idea of living on a beautiful beach, being able to write outdoors or inside the topmost wooden bedroom with a lovely view.  The only problem, I guess, is that to be a writer you actually need to be good at writing.

The other day my mum brought home a copy of the latest Vogue Australia because Taylor Swift is on the cover.  I love the profiles Vogue writers do on influential celebrities and models, because they're always so perfectly written.  That's the thing when it comes to writing: you need to be able to convey your message wholly and eloquently.

In my case, I can't help but think that my words aren't smooth enough.  I'm not telling you what I mean.  I don't know if you understand because it's so difficult to put ideas and complicated concepts into words.  It's even harder to convey feelings.  Maybe that's why people write poetry - because it's a way to show feelings without having to be specific.  They list words to create an overall mood, and the rest is up to the reader to interpret.  But I don't think I'll ever become a poet, because there's a fine line between feeling real and feeling stupid.

Flipping through the rest of the Vogue issue all I saw was fashion, and more fashion.  I love the glossy look of the magazine, and I love the words they use, but I can't say I understand much.  I can see myself being someone who could love fashion, but I don't.

I did find this article on Kate Winslet and her new movie The Dressmaker though.  She says something about always being driven by the creative, about having the desire to act in works of art, incredible projects.  I feel like eventually all actors get to this stage - according to a lot of their personal interviews anyway - because once they get over the idea of being what they are, they begin to see what they can make of their chosen career, how much deeper they can go.  The same goes for the rest of us and everything we do.  We begin to get attached.

Kate also talks about needing experience to be able to invent the characters she plays.  I guess in some ways acting would involve a whole lot of experiences in itself, because sometimes playing make believe can become real if you're doing it right.  Bill, the father from Stuck In Love, says something similar: "Flannery O'connor said nothing needed to happen in a writer's life after they were 20.  By then they'd experienced more than enough to last their creative life." he said, "A writer is the sum of his experiences."

That's what I think creating is.  Creating is just what people do to show their experiences, the feelings they've felt, the things that mattered to them.  We notice so many different aspects to people and culture, and I feel like we all deserve to use what we observe to create a message, 'a window to our soul', which is another line from Stuck in Love.

So when it comes to creating and cliches, I reckon what's real is when people mean it and understand it.  Creations are made when people put their full excitement and knowledge and logic behind a work of art.

Love,
M

30 comments:

  1. When I scroll through Instagram, all I see is pictures of the same things from different accounts. Being all monochrome and tumblr and minimalist is nice, but not creative. I agree with you, creation is a comes from excitement, from love, from experience. I envy people who can have found their way of letting all that out. I'm still searching.
    You seem to be very intrigued by writing. I can only say, I envy your style and the way the words fit together in your posts a lot. It may not completely show us what you are feeling, but it sounds right. It sounds real and perfect in the way it is.

    Love, Mia

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    1. Thank you so much Mia. I guess writing is probably the art form I am most acquainted with because it's also the most logical, and using words to describe what is obvious to me and not to others seems simpler than real art in a way, even if I can't accurately do it. I'm glad it sounds right to you.
      I really quite like the minimalistic look - like those black Nikes with the white ticks, or the 'inkwell' filtered instagram posts - but you're right. It's a look not a creation. You can create in a look, but sometimes aesthetically pleasing is all it is: aesthetically pleasing.
      I envy those who can wholly express themselves too.

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  2. OOOOOOOO. Nice post!

    Honestly, I really love your writing style -- it's casual, fun, honest: perfect. :) You convey your thoughts, ideas, and emotions extremely well. I feel like I'm a friend sitting next to you and listening to you speak. Hehe; keep up the lovely work. <3

    Annnddd, I totally agree with your take on creativity. But really, it's such a strange and unique thing... What's creative to some may be a total waste of time, space, and energy to others. I guess another important thing is finding an audience: someone (or a group of people) who appreciates the time and effort you put in to create. :)

    Just my thoughts. :)

    ~Ashyy
    apieceofmysky.blogspot.com

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    1. Hey I like that idea: about creation being your own, and its purpose being to find people who appreciate it. I guess creativity really isn't clean cut, but has more to do with the individual and what they find important.

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  3. Really nice post!

    Honestly, I do like your writing style. You may not be saying it all to us, but you do express your feelings and ideas properly. You're also very honest in your writings, and that's something I really admire because, as a blogger, I sometimes find myself trying to fake my "voice" in my posts, trying to make myself sound more interesting/ fun than I really am. Still, I always remind myself to be honest and hope for the readers to like my real "voice".

    About creativity, it is a very unique thing. It does come from one's personal experiences and emotions, that's why not all artistic creations are the same. Some of them might look similar, but they would hold completely different meanings for their creators.

    The Journeys of a Girl

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    1. I guess the whole "voice" thing unusually hasn't been an issue for me since I started blogging, because I never took in the idea that real people were actually going to read this thing. It was more of a highly organised website, much like my 'newspaper' phase or my 'everyday journal' phase. This one has stuck though, and now it's an effort to stay as honest as possible without censoring parts out. I guess creativity isn't quite a sensitive topic though, so it's easy to be honest.
      Creativity really is unique to each individual, but I still think it should have excitement and experiences behind it. No matter how much work you put in, it doesn't mean everyone will love it and that's okay.

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  4. The line you shared from Raymond Carver's book,that line, i just find to be so powerful and fierce!There's something in the way those words are linked that makes my mind blow up into a million pieces lol.If that makes any sense.No wonder i made a post about it :D.

    I agree with you about how being artistic today can seem fake or even is fake. All of a sudden being 'a creative and artistic soul' is a now a trend.For me,that takes all the fun away from being creative.It's like there's a right way and a wrong way of being creative. And there isn't. I remember taking art in high school and being extremely excited about it.Until we started being graded on our pieces and suddenly i had to paint and do collages the way the teacher wanted me to.I started imitating what the 'top artistic' students were doing.It all became so drab and i questioned why i chose art in the first place.I had completely forgotten how much i enjoyed my own kind of art because i was so busy trying to recreate someone else's art.Moral of the story,just do you boo.It's just like you said, real art is when people mean it.
    Great post hun!xoxo

    http://nownotforever.blogspot.com

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    1. Ah after reading your post the other day I had this immense need to watch Stuck in Love - and I haven't wanted to watch a movie that badly in ages. So I watched it, and how can you not feel completely inspired to do SOMETHING after watching that movie. I'm guessing Raymond Carver is a real person much like Flannery O'connor was. I think I want to read his short stories now, whatever they are.
      As for cliche artistic souls, sometimes I feel like I'm no different. But you're right - there's no right and wrong to being creative, so doing whatever you want really is your form of art, as long as it actually means something you're proud of.

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  5. Aw love that, your last line was too brilliant, and made me think before proceeding ^_-

    ratherstrangeblog.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. Aw thank you. But I reckon the last line of Stuck in Love was better.

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  6. I love what you write. I always take something valuable away. I understand what you mean about how people who are artistic seem to try really hard to fit in. In a way its nice to not have standards to live up to.
    -Vanessa

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    1. Thank you Vanessa. I'm glad you're taking something away. I don't understand why someone would create something to fit in, because if it's already been created then why bother.

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  7. I love this so much, M. I'm always wishing that I was more artistic. And I have to agree with you, being artistic nowadays comes across as so fake a lot of the time. Thanks, Instagram...
    Honestly, I love your writing style though. I cannot TELL you the number of times that I have read one of your posts, and just WISHED that I could write like you do!! I really love it. Sometimes I can't even bring myself to comment haha because you've already expressed everything far better than I ever could!!!!

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    1. No shade on Instagram. I love Instagram.
      And thank you Grace! You don't want to be able to write like I can, you want to be able to write like you can. Expressing any genuine opinion in words is the best contribution you could give.

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  8. Dear M,

    I agree that we should create what is real and what we truly mean. But, some people are forced to create a different version, let say of art or drawing, because they want to escape reality. I have to admit I am one of them. I create, I write poetry thinking people would not know what I really meant. I even exaggerate metaphors. Sure, we create to be appreciated, to show that we can do something. I get your point. I do!


    Just do whatever you want to do. :)


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    1. Thanks Jhecel. When I said "there's a fine line between feeling real, and feeling stupid." that was just my view on myself with poetry, because there's no doubt some people are actually amazing at it. Even writing bad poetry is worthwhile, but I'm just saying I don't think I'd be able to. I guess creating really is about doing whatever it is you want to do and finding an audience who appreciate it, as a previous commenter said, or not seeing as an audience isn't completely necessary. So yeah maybe some people create to escape reality, but I reckon all our creations stem from something we know, and letting that out is how we escape.

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  9. I agree with you about Instagram- it seems like all of the pictures look exactly the same. Probably because everyone just wants to fit in and it seems like nobody puts any effort or love in those pictures or probably anything else they do. I feel like I just take photos of the things I feel passionate about- maybe that's why my feed is full of photos of my cat.

    Stuck in Love is one of my favourite movies of all time and I'm still not even sure why. Maybe because while watching the movie I felt like I could idetify with almost all of the characters, even though I don't have any similar traits to them.

    Sara Wallflower

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    1. Instagram is supposed to be a reflection of what you're doing, and I really believe people do use it that way. It's just that nowadays people do similar things with their time and that's okay. It's a whole other culture. Cats on Instagram are beautiful. As for Stuck in Love, I just think it's extremely well made. I personally can't identify with any of them, but I love the things they say. You're a full step up being able to relate to them.

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  10. I LOVE this! I just read about this movie in another blog and now I have to go and see this. I'm vvvv confused about my creation style (it's tumblry 99% of the time) and my writing. I write a lot but it doesn't make sense, sometimes I'm okay with it not making sense but sometimes it hurts because I want my words to glow. Thank you so much for writing this!!!

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    1. Tumblr looks are just so appealing and satisfying though. And if you're putting your head behind your words, of course they're going to glow. Thanks so much for commenting xx

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  11. this is so true! the first two paragraphs are so relatable... ugh, i hate it when i'm in the house, trying to write, but i get disturbed by something or the other every thirty seconds. i kinda want to watch stuck in love now, haha

    http://thatcrazygiraffe.blogspot.co.uk/ (high five on having the same blog theme!)

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    1. hahah noise is so annoying, hey? My dad and his extremely loud TV always gets on my nerves. GO WATCH STUCK IN LOVE IT"S AMAZING

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  12. Wow. For someone who doesn't think they write smoothly?
    Let me just say, firstly, that I loved this. I can't tell you why, I'm not sure. But I love this.
    Secondly, what you said about poets? Well, I'm a poet, and what you wrote is so true. You just put into words the reason I write poetry at all.
    Lastly, you're right. About everything you talked about in this post. At least, that's in my opinion.

    Even if you're not planning on being a poet, don't ever stop writing.

    -T. x

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    1. Thank you so much T. Poetry sounds like such a beautiful art form, and I feel like I'm nowhere near artistic enough to be able to write it. I guess full sentences will work for me. But all those times when I'm too lazy and my sentences turn into shortened lists - maybe you could call that poetry? I'm glad you understand x

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  13. This was great. And I feel you. I'm not even sure how to explain how I feel you, but I so feel you. I read it and it just makes sense. I think there are two kinds of creative people. For some, it just comes out naturally. Others have to work at it a little more. But I don't think that effort makes us any less creative. Sometimes I think it makes us more so, because we have to try and think and plot to get our art out the way we want it to be.

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    1. I don't think creativity really can be classified because it's so subjective to the audience. I do think the more thought you put behind it, though, the more you love it as the creator. So thinking through the themes and ideas really does make your art more appreciated by you.

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  14. I think your conclusion sums it up well! Your writing is great too. I don't think you have to choose between being good at science/maths and being creative. All these discoveries and inventions by scientists and mathematicians - creativity was definitely needed!

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    1. I guess I don't, do I? And I guess scientists and mathematicians are artists in a way. So maybe they enjoy creating art too?

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  15. I liked reading about your journey to finding out what it means for something to be created and creative. As a writer and avid reader myself, I would like to think that in some ways, we are all creative. It might come in different forms, but there is an understandable beauty in everything we do and the way we choose to do it. So I think that goes for maths and science as well.

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    1. I do think everyone is creative in their own way, because creation comes from new ideas, and we have those all the time. It's the works of art that I wonder about. I wonder whether people are creating for the sake of being a cliche, or creating because they're inspired.

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