It’s pretty nice to be talented. If you are, enjoy, but it won’t take you that far. Work takes you a lot further.
Natalie Goldberg
That’s great if you’re talented, but do you put in the work? It really doesn’t matter how talented you are—-if you don’t do the work, then you are not that writer, that blogger, that artist, etc., that you aspire to be.
The work doesn’t even have to be all that great. It can be awful crap and that’s ok because it’s called practice. Most of the work we do is practice. We’re learning how to perfect our craft our job, our skill.
A Quarterback doesn’t get on a field and throw a winning touchdown without practice. But even in practice, they aren’t throwing a touchdown right away. First, they need to learn how to hold the ball before they can throw the ball. And those first throws won’t be for much distance.
And, even after that Quarterback leads his team to win after win, he’s still back the next week…practicing. Perfecting his game. Staying in shape.
The same is true of writing or painting or any other endeavor you want to try. Want to be a pilot? You don’t fly a jet the first time you sit in the pilot’s seat and you certainly don’t fly before you’ve done a lot of studying on the ground. You don’t write a best seller the first time you put a sentence together. To master your craft takes hours upon hours of work. And for artists/writers that struggle with self-doubt too? It can seem even longer.
If practicing can work for a Quarterback then it can work for a writer or an artist. Practice in any way you want. For a writer that might mean Morning Pages, Creativity Prompts, or Journaling. All that truly matters is the effort. Write the same word over and over again if you have to, at least you’re writing.
For an artist, it might mean sketching or practicing that one thing that eludes you. My brother doesn’t draw hands well. That means he has to practice to get them right. Drawing hands over and over again. Practice the same sketch or paint that paint stroke over and over again, at least you’re painting.
Vincent Van Gogh practiced painting in color for a year. Think about that. A year. One whole year, just practicing painting colors. Prior to that, he painted in the dark style of the Dutch masters of that time. He had to learn how to use color. So he practiced. Over and over and over again. Until he felt that he had the coloring and the shading right.
What have you practiced for a year?
I suffered from writer’s block when I was younger because I couldn’t stifle my inner critic and kept trying to edit each sentence as I wrote them. I stopped even trying to write because of it. It wasn’t until Julie Cameron and her concept of Morning Pages showed me how to write out the crap that I started writing again.
Morning Pages gave me permission to write crap and not worry about editing. The whole process was very freeing and also taught me the value of dedicated writing sessions. I started getting up earlier and earlier in order to have enough time to write before I had to get ready for work.
The very process of writing those Morning Pages got me writing. They also taught me the value of dedicating an hour or two each morning to writing before work. It’s my practice. I can piece it together and edit it later in order to create something that flowed. But in the morning, it is all just practice to me. I flow right into it from Morning Pages. Writing to explore where I wanted to go with my content. Taking an idea and seeing what developes whether I use it in the future or not.
But what if you feel stuck? What if you show up every day at your canvess or novel and nothing comes out? Read this post, What to do If You’ve Lost Your Creativity. It will give you self-care ideas to guide yourself back on the path of creativity.
Were you an artist today? Did you practice your art? Please let me know if this content helps and if you need more. 
I am EVERYTHING today. I have a pen in one hand, a glue stick in the other and I won’t tell you where I’ve got the paintbrush! 😉
Seriously though – Your words here are very true and I wish I had figured it out when I was much much younger! If something didn’t work first go or I ‘couldn’t do it’ first go, I used to walk away. Now, I see ‘failures’ as steps in doing whatever better next time. I needed this post 40 years ago – where were you!
40 years ago? Trying to perfect each sentence and dispairing of ever being a writer (I was a teenager, it was all angst!) I’ve only started learning these lessons in the past 16 years.
Yes I know – we were very sidetracked by getting it ‘right’ at school. In some ways I am glad of that but I think we should have had ‘stream of consciousness’ English classes where getting it ‘right’ wasn’t an issue.
So many bloggers talk about Morning Pages and what a difference it makes to their writing. I think it’s a wonderful idea to put your thoughts down – however randomly – putting pen to paper is so rewarding.
Hi Jennifer – I really enjoyed reading this post again and I’m amazed that THREE years have passed and we’re still blogging away madly – I guess we’re practiced (and getting better) at this whole blogging game at least. Now I just need to work on a few other areas of life because I have more time these days.
Thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I’ve shared on my SM 🙂
Still blogging. Now that I’ve found it, I hope I never stop!
Good post. I agree with Gilly Maddison’ comment. We should have had ‘stream of consciousness’ lessons at school. I believe that’s where we developed out over-zealous inner editors: at school!
I think you and Gilly are onto something. Even what they called Journaling or Brainstorming in school had too many rules around them to truly be journaling or brainstorming.
Our talent is nothing without effort. Sure, a person may be able to go a certain distance on talent alone, but eventually they will hit a ceiling through which only effort can break through…
Exactly!
I’ve always found that hiring a painter is much easier 🙂 than actually doing the painting yourself. Just kidding good post and good point, way too many lazy people think they can just wake up and be some trade “ninja.” I blame reality TV or Kentucky!
I’ve heard of ghost writer’s before, but not ghost painters. Don’t you blame everything on Kentucky?
It’s an easy target 🙂
That’s exactly the reason I wear a helmet and shoulder pads every time I start a blogpost. Joking aside, though, you’re absolutely right. Expecting perfection from the very first sentence is a way to ensure writing paralysis, not a masterpiece.
As a blogger I am trying to write more and I have noticed the more posts I write the better and easier it gets. Thanks for the insight.
Exactly. The more we practice, the better we get.
I love my Morning pages. And blogging. And summarizing books. My ways of writing might not be the same creativity of others, but I’ve learned it’s me – I “play with words”! Now I need to put the same thinking into some other creative pursuits… the playing with approach to practice.
What wonderful insight. I love that you “play with words.” Now you can “play” with paint or modeling clay or…
If you want to write you have to do that – write. I write every day, in my journal or on my blog or in my latest novel – which, incidentally, is due in for structural editing at the end of this month. Every day. I use different voices in each which keeps my brain active & it means that I’m never “blocked”.
Exactly. Writer’s write.
I’d not heard of morning pages before Jennifer, so am very pleased to hear it has helped you over the years. I totally agree that hard work is crucial to all that we do. Shared this for #mlstl
Jennifer, morning pages, or stream of conscience writing is akin to throwing crap against a wall to see what sticks. You never know what little gems will appear and then focused writing can begin. No work, no reward should be our mantra for this stage of life. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. #MLSTL
I like that, no work…no reward.
I’ve always found that consistency and persistence always pays off. It may not make you famous but it gets you much farther than if you do something sporadically.