July 2011
45 posts
25 Lessons For Creatives by Patti Smith →
niteflight.tumblr.com
1. Never apologize for being an artist.
2. Look for the magic.
3. Your life is a canvas.
4. Don’t fake being unique, you already are.
5. Try not to let having to earn a living get in the way of your creative work.
6. The role of the artist is to see what others do not.
7. Don’t just be a mirror of society, transform it.
8. Keep your head in the clouds but your feet firmly on earth.
9. The work is what matters.
10. Art might not always make you cool or popular.
11. Delight in a trusting creative partnership.
12. Believe in the “blue star” of your destiny.
13. You might struggle to find your medium.
14. But you will find signs that point you on the right path.
15. You will experience low periods.
16. You will question yourself.
17. You will get blocked.
18. Be suspicious of early success.
19. Don’t pause to take spoils.
20. Don’t look back.
21. If you miss a beat, create another.
22. The truly talented don’t need to show off.
23. Never sell out.
24. Life is not simple.
25. Practice, practice, practice til you hit your stride.
What does “selling out” mean anymore ?
“
Be Nobody’s Darling”
Alice Walker
Be nobody’s darling;
Be an outcast.
Take the contradictions
Of your life
And wrap around
You like a shawl,
To parry stones
To keep you warm.
Watch the people succumb
To madness
With ample cheer;
Let them look askance at you
And you askance reply.
Be an outcast;
Be pleased to walk alone
(Uncool)
Or line the crowded
River beds
With other impetuous
Fools.
Make a merry gathering
On the bank
Where thousands perished
For brave hurt words
They said.
Be nobody’s darling;
Be an outcast.
Qualified to live
Among your dead.
Alice Walker
Be Nobody’s Darling
