On April 8th I watched Billy Collins’ Masterclass on reading and writing poetry. I had a lot to learn because I’m very bad at both of those things.
I’ve written at least one very bad poem every day since starting the class. They’re not bad on purpose. I’m really trying, I promise. I don’t just vomit out a few lines and call it a day. Some times I will spend a couple of hours rewriting. But it’s all so new to me so there’s no way they’re going to be any good.
But that doesn’t mean I should give up. The only way I’ll one day end up with a halfway decent poem is if I keep writing all these bad ones.
The same was true for my stand-up, sermons, and writings. Ira Glass talks about that frustration when you first start making stuff and your taste is better than what you’re making. You know what a great movie looks like so you’re painfully aware that the movie you just made is trash (or song, or painting, etc.). That can be so discouraging. You want to give up. But the only way to close the gap between your taste and your art is to keep working.
This is the main way I think about creativity: I’ve got 600 terrible poems living inside me, all piled up in the pit of my stomach, and underneath all those embarrassing poems is where the good ones live. The only way I can get to them is by letting the bad ones out. This saves me from getting discouraged every time I write a crappy poem. It’s more of a relief. Oh, thank God. I let another one out. We’re one step closer to getting to the good ones.
Here’s a video of me talking more about this:
Do you know why I’m writing poetry in the first place?
Is this how I’m announcing to the world that I’m leaving behind comedy and speaking, moving to Paris, buying a cape, and becoming a SERIOUS POET? No ma'am. Not even close. I don’t want to share these with anyone. Honestly, there’s no good reason I’m doing it. I just want to see if I can.
Austin Kleon wrote about the wonders of having a good ol fashion hobby
"A hobby is something creative that’s just for you. You don’t try to make money or get famous off it, you just do it because it makes you happy. A hobby is something that gives but doesn’t take.”
It’s nice to do something creative that has absolutely no pressure on it. There’s no deadline. There’s nothing riding on it being successful. You’ll never make a dime from it, and you know that from the start, so it can remain a low stakes exercise for fun. Sure, there’s a chance sharpening this tool in my writer’s toolbox could one day come in handy, but I’m not doing it with that in mind. It’s just nice.
So, why not pick up a hobby? Start writing short stories about the secret adventures your pets go on and don’t tell anyone about it. Do it for the sake of doing it. But keep doing it even if it sucks, because who knows how good it could be one day.