It is likely that, if you’ve been making art for a while, you have felt the seasons change but might not have had the language or permission to see that seasonal change for what it was. It may have felt like things had simply dried up—that rain wasn’t falling and the ground was hard. Everything took ten times the effort and even when your efforts did bear fruit, that fruit was sour.
Certainly, it is possible that such signs are symptomatic of a dry creative season. There are seasons when letting the land lie fallow and unseeded is appropriate as well. But I think those seasons have more to do with exhaustion. My experience has been that I mistake seasons of “creative dryness” for seasons in which it is time to make something else. So, rather than simply waiting for the next moment of inspiration or next deadline to move you into creative work, move yourself out of your normal discipline and do some painting, drawing, shoot- ing, playing, etc. After all, you are a creature who creates—that is the core of who you are. The medium you choose to use for art is secondary.
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This is an excerpt from my book Title Pending, which is available now.