Oil paintings look the best to me when I have things roughed in. The real danger zone comes between when the paint is roughed in, with all its potential, and the final finishing highlights are put in.
That's when things go south. And the only place it can go is south, because I haven't screwed it up yet. I think that's when people tell themselves they have no talent and give up, whereas I slog on, damnit, ignoring my lack of talent. Paintings. Guitars. Books.
The thing about paintings is you can see how they look immediately, and you can hear your guitar, but you can't tell how a book reads in the moment. So again, you have to let it rest to forget it a little.
I really hate that part. But here we are, ignoring the book so I can see it with fresh eyes, after which I will be cursed to keep pounding on it.
Apparently if you have someone narrate it as an audiobook, it can sound fresh even to the author, but that seems like a Large Investment for a draft.
Ignore away! Until it is time to slog again.
("The capacity to tolerate minor discomfort is a superpower." [Oliver Burkeman] - which *definitely* applies to keeping-on-going when the thrill of a new hobby is gone and you can clearly see the distance between what you were aiming for and what you managed to accomplish. It may be a while before you can fly/turn-invisible/have-x-ray-vision, but you're putting in that time, anyway.)
Posted by: KC | May 13, 2022 at 01:10 PM
KC - oh I have a lot to do before I'll judge myself by what I'm trying to accomplish. I think that will happen when I run out of ideas of how to improve it, and that won't be anytime soon.
Posted by: TheQueen | May 13, 2022 at 10:13 PM