Saturday, April 09, 2011

Inspiration, Creativity and Good Writing



There really aren’t any shortcuts, 
despite what you may hear. 
The only thing standing 
between you and your dream 
is hard work and persistence. 
~Michael Hyatt





I'm a freelance writer and poet. I've had a few dozen items published. I've blogged for five years, organized several seminars and writing workshops and host a monthly writers' group in my home. When it comes up in conversation that I am a writer, I sometimes hear another's dream of how they would like to write a book "someday." I want to tell them they'd better start last year. They usually comment about "waiting for inspiration." On one occasion, a colleague even asserted that what she wrote was a total gift from God. She didn't re-write anything. She was quite sincere and I'm sure she meant well, but the work she had self-published was, at best, mediocre. In essence, she was marketing a first draft.

God gets a lot of credit for poor writing. Creativity and inspiration are meant as starting points, not the sum total. Ask any author. Ask any artist for that matter. There are reasons why Michelangelo's David and the Sistine Chapel or Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey are masterpieces. They took intensive time and effort. Good writing of our generation is no different.

Michael Hyatt is the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers and a best selling author. He gives great leadership and industry advice on his daily blog and has nearly 98,000 followers on Twitter. He blogs on the myths surrounding creativity and work. It’s well worth the quick read. Check it out here: http://mhyatt.us/ifFRJt

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