Writing Can Be Like Painting
I throw words onto the page as paint goes on a canvas. I could make an incoherent mess or write in a completely cohesive and classical style.
There’s a story in a picture, much like there is in words.
A word is a brushstroke. Where the mastery enters is putting those brushstrokes together, one after another, until it’s good enough for you to smile at.
Yes, if a work can be good enough for you, for your standards, then you did it. You did what you set out to do. That doesn’t mean you mastered the craft, but it does mean you made something that matters (even if it’s just for you).
Painting takes on many styles and has undergone many time periods in which people led change and innovation in different styles.
So has writing. So has the written word — in all languages and styles and cultures.
Prominent figures have risen from both writing and painting, both from expressive arts that have shifted people’s hearts and minds for centuries.
Next time you write, think about the freedom you have. Think about the canvas and the idea that you are only limited to what you can imagine. From there, your words can come to life in so many different ways and inspire so many in a million different forms.
