Citation Needed

I made the above as a birthday gift for my son, because I’m still unemployed and cannot buy him something he’d like. Fortunately, he said he really liked it. It’s several things: it’s the official colors of three Bay Area teams; it’s his fraternity letters; and it’s three of the sports he enjoys. It’s also my first attempt at learning to use watercolors, which has been an eye-opening experience.

Just before starting to write this newsletter, I sent out what I called a ‘declaration of intent’ to one of the few places with which I’ve had an initial interview. I wanted to let them know that I’m definitely still interested in them, and that I’m not trying to speed up the process in any way. We’ll see if it bears fruit.

I turned the above into a print and gave it to my partner for Christmas two years ago. It turned out great and she really liked it. It’s been interesting trying to get my artist’s eye back in operation after so long. I’m re-learning to visually dissect everything I see in an attempt to see if I can figure out how I’d do it myself.

Most artists start out copying the work of other artists as a means of learning. The best artists incorporate what they’ve learned and use it to make their own work different. Some artists simply keep repeating the work of others and manage to make a living at it. I’m always very conscious not to let my influences show too obviously, but it’s inevitable. But the world of art is incredibly vast, and no one can know it all, so probably few people will realize where some of my stuff came from.

What I’m reading: True Detective: Night Country is almost over, and I went from loving it to just wanting to see how it ends. Once it’s over I’m going to re-watch the first season as a point of comparison. I like dissecting work to see why some things were enjoyable and other things weren’t. I’m not ready yet to judge this fourth season of the show yet, but I suspect I know why I’ve fallen off it. Stay tuned.

Oh! And I’ve found a new way to look at this tv show idea I’ve been struggling with. I think it’s going to be more fun to write now, and thus, hopefully more fun for the viewer too. I used to think that changing your story idea too much meant that you didn’t know what you were doing and probably shouldn’t call yourself a writer. Then I realized that everyone has ideas all the time, writers or not, and if an idea sits in your head too long it changes. That’s fine. You’re a writer if you keep wrestling with the ideas and finally beat them into submission. You’re only not a writer if you give up.

Thanks for reading this newsletter. I like imagining that it sparks ideas for creative projects in other people, but I suppose I’ll never know. And now, here’s your reality check: The Backwater Gospel