Advice to Artists: Inspiration

And so, what about sudden flash inspiration?

Is it really more important to learn careful craft?  Is sudden, flash inspiration not real?

                    Well, yes and no.

                                        Sudden inspiration is real.  But careful craft is more important.  For a good reason.

                                                                                                                                                                                    It is mastering careful craft that will bring sudden flash inspiration.

Sudden inspiration is real.

But it will only come if you are looking for it.

And sudden inspiration will come more and more the more you practice careful craft.

Without practice in careful craft, inspiration will rarely come, no matter how much you look for it.

But if you practice careful craft, and practice it thouroughly, sudden inspiration will come.  It will come.  As long as you are looking for it, sudden inspiration will come, and it will come more and more.

    Trust me, I know what I am saying.  The more I have practiced writing, the easier sudden inspiration has come.  Practice enough, and it will come abundantly.  If you are looking for it.  And practice enough, and each sudden inspiration will inspire you more and more.  Each will become a burst of inspiration.  So yes, practicing careful craft is more important.  Because that is what will make the sudden inspiration come.  If you are looking for it.

    So go on, practice careful craft.  Practice it with all your heart.  And keep looking for that sudden inspiration.

        Because if you practice your craft, and you look for sudden inspiration, it will come.  If you practice enough, it will start to come.  And it will come abundantly.

And if you are a natural like me, learn craft by feel and practice.  If you're a natural, you'll understand once you try.  (In time at least.)    Trust me.  We naturals exist, and I'm one.

(And: crafting it consciously is just as mysterious and magical to us naturals!  Trust me!  I just witnessed it for the first time!  I was blown away!

Just like Virgil was supposed to do!)

                    Sincerely,

                                David S. Annderson

P.S.  I am an INFP.  INFPs and ENFPs are very good at going by feel.  I have practiced going by feel.  If you are like most people, and learning the rational rules works better, and you have practiced crafting by techniques you have learned, than with craft, you will be able to CRAFT the miracle sudden inspiration!  Trust me- learn craft by the rules, and you will, with practice, be able to CRAFT the miracle sudden inspiration with your rational mind and your rational understanding of your own emotions!

That's what is happening when I, having developed craft by feel through practice, find sudden inspiration- my INFP Intuition is Crafting the miracle inspiration!