“What is hurried has to be hackneyed.” — G.K. Chesterton
You cannot create something original on a whim. It takes time and energy to come up with something truly novel. The extemporaneous is touted as original and authentic, but it's easy to imagine. While I don't always know the precise script, I can pretty quickly imagine someone spouting off. But I cannot, even now, after much thought, imagine a different color. That creation, if it were possible, would take a great deal of thought and intention. In other words, true creativity takes time. It is not the product of ejaculatory, unchecked impulse. Anyone can do that. And most people do.
"Be regular and orderly in your daily affairs that you may be violent and original in your work." — Gustave Flaubert
An original idea is often the product of disciplined mind. One cannot merely be spontaneous without falling into tropes. There is nothing more unnatural than being told to act natural. And nothing is less cool than being caught trying. The stream of consciousness is polluted by the corporate dumpings of drivel. Insight and inspiration is nowhere to be found in that brackish. Creativity is purified by the process of filtration. And that takes time and intention.
There is no microwavable version of majesty. You cannot build an original world in a moment. Like Rome, original stories are not written in a day. So, if you want to be a hack, do it all in a hurry, but if you want to be a legend, invest in the creative process like it's a luxury. No one rushes a bubble bath. A hurried tale is a harried one. Like the vapor of your breath on a crisp morning, it is not long for this world.
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