Comments on: Dealing with the lonely pursuit of creative work

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 13:18:00 +0000

I hear you about the time spent trying to create solitude! Thanks for stopping by!

By: Andrew

Andrew — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 04:14:34 +0000

In my world, it seems most of my time is spent trying to acheive solitude before my family “needs me for something”. Ever since I began creating music, writing songs, and recording I’m not as alone as I thought. Jesus and the Devil are as real as the 2 souls inside me that quarrell at times. I like to spend my time alone, but will spend time playing Smash Brothers Brawl with my cousins or spend time with my girlfriend.

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[...] Much of creativity is about contradictions. We need distractions but we can’t be distracted. We have a system but we can’t be systematized. We need solitude but we need people. [...]

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By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Tue, 04 May 2010 12:31:25 +0000

Yes, Scott, you’ve hit on two key points that I didn’t cover as well as I would have liked to:

1. You don’t have to be alone and lonely, at least not in a virtual sense.

2. Loneliness and lack of confidence: I think there could be something to that.

By: Bill Wren

Bill Wren — Tue, 04 May 2010 11:45:55 +0000

Fascinating discussion here. I think it comes down many factors being involved: the kind of work (solo? collaborative?), the kind of person/people and so on.

I think even in collaboration, the seed has to begin somewhere and that is usually done solo. The fleshing out is where the collaboration comes in. Film is a great example of collaboration: everyone is involved. But even there, it begins with a script and where there are several screenwriters still someone initiated it with a first draft, short story or some kind of outline.

I just came across an interesting comment in a John Barth essay where he stated that literature has four characteristics, one of which is solitude. He said it was the only art form he knew of that was produced in solitude and received in solitude. The relationship between the writer and the work and the reader and the work are solitary. Not sure what significance that might have … but I found it interesting.

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Tue, 04 May 2010 11:25:59 +0000

All true. I’ve been part of creative teams (heck, even a member of a band for a brief time) and I get the collaboration vibe. I’ve also been a project manager and experienced that as well.

I think the solo writer (especially one who hasn’t been published) or the solo artist are the ones who have to deal with solitude the most.

By: Scott M

Scott M — Tue, 04 May 2010 03:24:19 +0000

A lot of my creative work has either been in comics or theatre, both of which are (or often are) collaborative. There is a lot to be said for a “single vision” that comes out of solitude, but even the solitary creator will have a support system of friends, family, and editors that will serve as a sounding board. With today’s internet capabilities, we never have to work in solitude if we don’t want to. We can train a webcam on ourselves, leave MSN on in the background, use Google Wave to write a document with someone else.

I remember being fascinated by a concept in Scott McCloud’s comic book, Zot!, which was published about 20 years ago; a musician character called Max was practising in real time audio and video with other musicians over his world’s version of the internet. With screen-sharing and Skype and various other technologies, almost any artist with a computer could do the same.

I wonder if loneliness, especially now, is simply one of the many strategies that Godin’s lizard brain throws out there to mask the true issue: lack of confidence. And paradoxically, the best way to build confidence is to push through the insecurity and Get Things Done.

By: Michael Martine

Michael Martine — Tue, 04 May 2010 01:23:40 +0000

I think conceiving ideas is usually done alone, and trying to bring in collaborators can be tough because they may not believe in your idea like you do. But then, when you have them, there’s an incredible camaraderie and an “us against the world” feeling that’s impossible to have when you’re working alone.

And even in groups, there is usually a leader whose vision is being followed by the rest of the group. That can be a pretty lonely place to be thanks to group dynamics. Think about roles like project manager or lead designer or producer.

By: Mark Dykeman

Mark Dykeman — Mon, 03 May 2010 23:32:57 +0000

I’ll go for “part of a larger truth”. As I’ve mentioned in some of the comments, I certainly believe that creative work can be done in groups (as per the examples that you describe). However, there’s a point early on when you don’t really know what you’re doing and where it’s going to go and I think that can be a difficult place to be. And, of course, there’s always the solo creator.

So, I think you can bring up lots of good examples that are pro and con, no?