Rafael Fajardo

That is the young writer’s dilemma as I see it. Not just his, but all our problems is to save mankind from being de-souled as the stallion or boar or bull is gelded, to save the individual from anonymity before it is too late, and humanity has vanished from the animal called man. And who better to save man’s humanity than the writer, the poet, the artist, since who should fear the loss of it more, since the humanity of man is the artist’s life’s blood?

- Faulkner at Virginia: Transcription of speech from audio recording wfaudio23_1

The misinterpretation of inspiration is bred into our culture. In school we are taught by the examples of others, given information to digest and remember, instead of being handed problems to analyze and interpret on our own. As children we are taught to fear failure and to learn from the mistakes of others instead of experiencing them first hand. Many times curriculums centered around creativity and exploration are pushed out of the way to make room for ones rooted in practical application and applied theory. An example of this logic is painfully evident in design schools that focus more time on learning design applications than nurturing creative exploration and development.

- Consumption: How Inspiration Killed, Then Ate, Creativity | Viget Inspire