What to Do When You Feel Unoriginal
With advice from people much more famous than I am.
When I was in college, I had a boyfriend who was enamored with the concept of originality. Particularly with the idea of his own originality. He was writing a novel — well, actually he hadn’t written any of it, but he was not only certain he would write it, but that it would be masterful. Groundbreaking. The next Great American Novel, except better because it would be wholly original unlike most other Great American Novels. As someone who was already starting to view herself as a writer, I wanted to hear about his idea; I wanted to chat craft and story. He wouldn’t tell me. He said that talking about it — particularly to me, someone who might dare to venture an opinion or suggestion — would impinge on his originality and therefore his ability to create a wholly original novel.
I know: I had horrible taste in boyfriends. But in my defense, I was nineteen and he was cute.
“If contemporary artists sincerely seek to be original, unique, and new, they should begin by disregarding the notions of originality, individuality, and innovation: they are the cliches of our time.” — Octavio Paz (poet)
