Later Bloomer

I once found embarking on this creative journey in my 50s terrifying. To compensate for my lack of youth, I thought I had to ooze originality.

Then, when I published my first blog-post anthology on Amazon, I got this two-star review: “First class ideas let down by horrible, repetitive prose.” I spent nights staring at that cryptic message. I face-palmed on the keyboard, upsetting the cat who upset the wine, and found insight in the creeping puddle of Pinot Noir.

I believe in this project. I believe in everyone who answers the call to create, no matter what age. And no troll is worth the waste of good wine.

Animator Nina Paley maintains that human culture evolves through “making tiny transformations (sometimes called ‘errors’ ) with each replication.” 

This is where art imitates life—we discover our uniquity (our unique expression) through mutation, tiny errors in replication. It’s not our job to ooze originality. If you believe Jim Jarmusch, nothing is original.

Is my prose repetitive? Probably. But I’m still evolving as a writer. Sometimes  I’m frustrated by how long the tiny changes take, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. There’s a whole new creation (book, artwork, life form) on the other side.

So don’t be afraid to pick up that pen, that brush, that lump of clay. It’s okay if you need to copy or repeat at first. 

Mutation leads to uniquity and uniquity leads to art, as this compelling two-minute clip by Nina Paley demonstrates.