“If there is some art involved, I'd like it to be that it came through the cracks of daily work.” – Martin Mull, Born Aug. 18, 1943.
Routine is important.
Consistency is important.
You want to be elbow deep in work when the muse shows up with inspiration.
Because she won't wait for you to warm up.
Your ideas won't wait until you're good enough to execute them.
They'll just show up, so you'd best be working when they get here.
And it's also true that you shouldn't be trying to create amazing, staggering works of undeniable genius every time you set out to do something.
Instead, go for consistency and frequency.
Give your growing audience something to look forward to from you.
Make them expect you often.
And like Mull says, you'll be amazed when true art slips out through the cracks of this disciplined, daily intention to work your way through every day.
Your skill increases with practice, and if you're working at it every day, you're getting more practice than most.
So you're practicing.
You're trying.
You're striving.
And it's fun.
Because you love it.
The audience loves it.
Occasionally something truly special pops out.
But even when it doesn't, you're producing good, solid work.
You serve an audience who depends on you (and they get what they expect).
And that's really the goal. The journey is more important than the destination, because you'll spend more time traveling than arriving.
Focus on the work.
The rest takes care of itself. Most of it, anyway. The hard stuff does.
More or less.