Rec
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Recently, I haven't been feeling inspired to make music or play my instruments, idk why, rough few weeks ig. And as you might have seen, I also haven't been inspired to write some recs.
Erich Fromm once wrote that an artist must have knowledge in their field, and that they have to create, despite not having the right tools/object of creation, because if a painter spends years waiting for the perfect muse, when they find it, their skill won't be enough. This was an analogy to love, but I think it also applies as what it is at face value. If you don't create, you won't get to know what you like, to love the world through your art, and even if you find the perfect idea for a song, painting, etc. You might not be able to make it without that knowledge
Feb 10, 2025
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Rec
🔮Just make something, if you want to you should force yourself. Inspiration won’t usually strike before you are creating, but during the process. Even if it comes from way outside, you’ll probably only figure out how to channel it when you’re already in the middle of something. Seek the experience of making, not having finished products— and so once you've begun, you’ve already accomplished it, you’re creating something (i.e. being creative). You form a habit and things get better and you inspire yourself.
unless you once had a divine muse that has since passed you by, then maybe you’re out of luck
unless you once had a divine muse that has since passed you by, then maybe you’re out of luck
Jan 7, 2025
Rec
🎨First things first: it doesn't matter the quality, the quantity, or the end result. If you create, you're a creative, full stop! Don't tell yourself you're a copier, think of it as adopting little pieces of the things you love and using them as inspiration to drive you. As long as you're not straight-up plagiarizing, there's nothing wrong with using something you love as a stepping stool to grow your own abilities, or as a palette with which you paint your own world.
Also, it's totally normal to feel stuck in a rut, or unoriginal, or to fall out of love with something you've made, or to feel doubt start seeping in. And it sucks! I'm often stricken with the realization that I'm one voice in a sea of millions, and I feel insecure that people will see me as lesser. Or worse: overlook my creations entirely. It makes me lose momentum in my creative process, and makes me feel more disheartened and nervous to put my stuff out there in the first place. "What if I put my heart and soul into this and nobody sees it?" "What if I bleed onto the pages and the consensus is "it's mid"???" "What if I'm wasting my time, and come back in two weeks and think this is utter garbage?" "What if people think it's too close to <other person's work>?"
But then I remember... we're kind of ALL out here, putting our hearts into stuff, trying new things, throwing around ideas, and hoping something sticks. And that's how pretty much EVERY work of art is made! And while it's awesome to get outpourings of support on the things you make, and recognition makes your work feel worthwhile... nothing is going to make you feel more fulfilled than putting your heart and soul into something you're passionate about, and seeing it through to YOUR satisfaction. Ultimately it's not about what other people think, it's about keeping that passion alive in you, and cultivating it so that it never dies.
So what can we do about burnout? Or lack of inspiration? Or when the hope levels are too low? Unfortunately all my "tips" are more abstract than practical step-by-step fixes.
Personally, I recommend steadily and eagerly engaging in the things that you tend to "copy" in the first place. Stop for a moment, and picture the word "enthusiasm." What comes to your mind? What makes you feel that way? Chase that feeling down like it's your most treasured keepsake floating away in wild rapids! Watch shows with artstyles you aspire to. Listen to songs that get you daydreaming. Get out in nature during the sunrise/sunset. Go see animals in a zoo/aquarium, or go people-watching in a mall/park. All the while, don't stop THINKING and MAKING THINGS. Doesn't have to be cute, or fleshed-out, because the beauty is in the moment. Snap candid photos, sketch freehand vignettes of what you see, jot down prose inspired by your surroundings, do whatever you can to keep your momentum without losing the joy associated with it.
The more you let yourself create freely, the more comfortable you'll be in the future when faced with the dreaded Block, the bumps, the discouragement, or anything else that may try to slow you down. And honestly? If you still find yourself stuck, good news: you're still a creative! And that will hold true as long as you desire to be.
TLDR: Don't stop making beautiful things, and if you get to a point where you feel you can no longer make beautiful things, make "ugly" things and surround yourself with things you see as beautiful.
Also, it's totally normal to feel stuck in a rut, or unoriginal, or to fall out of love with something you've made, or to feel doubt start seeping in. And it sucks! I'm often stricken with the realization that I'm one voice in a sea of millions, and I feel insecure that people will see me as lesser. Or worse: overlook my creations entirely. It makes me lose momentum in my creative process, and makes me feel more disheartened and nervous to put my stuff out there in the first place. "What if I put my heart and soul into this and nobody sees it?" "What if I bleed onto the pages and the consensus is "it's mid"???" "What if I'm wasting my time, and come back in two weeks and think this is utter garbage?" "What if people think it's too close to <other person's work>?"
But then I remember... we're kind of ALL out here, putting our hearts into stuff, trying new things, throwing around ideas, and hoping something sticks. And that's how pretty much EVERY work of art is made! And while it's awesome to get outpourings of support on the things you make, and recognition makes your work feel worthwhile... nothing is going to make you feel more fulfilled than putting your heart and soul into something you're passionate about, and seeing it through to YOUR satisfaction. Ultimately it's not about what other people think, it's about keeping that passion alive in you, and cultivating it so that it never dies.
So what can we do about burnout? Or lack of inspiration? Or when the hope levels are too low? Unfortunately all my "tips" are more abstract than practical step-by-step fixes.
Personally, I recommend steadily and eagerly engaging in the things that you tend to "copy" in the first place. Stop for a moment, and picture the word "enthusiasm." What comes to your mind? What makes you feel that way? Chase that feeling down like it's your most treasured keepsake floating away in wild rapids! Watch shows with artstyles you aspire to. Listen to songs that get you daydreaming. Get out in nature during the sunrise/sunset. Go see animals in a zoo/aquarium, or go people-watching in a mall/park. All the while, don't stop THINKING and MAKING THINGS. Doesn't have to be cute, or fleshed-out, because the beauty is in the moment. Snap candid photos, sketch freehand vignettes of what you see, jot down prose inspired by your surroundings, do whatever you can to keep your momentum without losing the joy associated with it.
The more you let yourself create freely, the more comfortable you'll be in the future when faced with the dreaded Block, the bumps, the discouragement, or anything else that may try to slow you down. And honestly? If you still find yourself stuck, good news: you're still a creative! And that will hold true as long as you desire to be.
TLDR: Don't stop making beautiful things, and if you get to a point where you feel you can no longer make beautiful things, make "ugly" things and surround yourself with things you see as beautiful.
Jul 19, 2025
Rec
💡I think a lot of us think of idea generation as separate from creating, and that in order to create, we need a good idea to execute on. I try to remember that creating is actually a mode of idea generation, that sometimes sitting down to make things opens our brains to inspiration instead of the other way around.
So I think the thing is just to make time and space to get into a focused state to make things — and specifically to make BAD things without having a plan or a great idea beforehand.
So I think the thing is just to make time and space to get into a focused state to make things — and specifically to make BAD things without having a plan or a great idea beforehand.
Top Recs from @lanzalasalagua
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I always find weird when people talk about child-like wonder and how it fades, truth is, it does, but it doesn't have to. It fades when you are a teenager who thinks they know everything and for most people it doesn't return. I've found that child-like wonder is just, paying attention, let me explain. What was the last time you checked a license plate for a funny number o letters? what was the last time you checked out the pattern in a leaf? How it feels to have bug crawl on your skin. When you pay more attention, you start to wonder the whys, the hows and the whos. Please don't let life just pass you by, at least give it a good look. Why do you think the light in this room was purple?
Jan 18, 2025
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Idk why but everyone on the internet thinks it's sooo cool to not care, not try and not know stuff. It's cool to try, doesn't matter if you fail, if u never try, u'll never know if you would've failed
Apr 14, 2025
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Last year I started to learn piano, again. I first wanted to learn piano around 2020/21, I got a cheap keyboard and started with online lessons, or just whatever I could find, this time was weird for me, so when I saw that I was bad (really bad), I just abandoned it. Last year I got the opportunity to take piano lessons for basically free, so I took them. When I started I was bad, actually, the worst one in the whole class. But I had a passion that was palpable, and still is. The course finished, and I was still the worst one, but I still keep playing piano, daily, why?
First of all, I like it, second, it reminds me I'm human, there are things that I'm naturally good at, this is not one of them, but I really don't believe in talent, being bad at something just means the room for growth is almost infinite. And maybe you have figured it out, this isn't true only for the piano 🐝
Jan 18, 2025