Creativity Killed the Cat

Curiosity can sometimes seem harmless compared to the potency of creativity. I bet you never heard of the cat that died because it was compelled to update its web site each week. Or the feline friend that passed on after coming up with over 50 titles for its next book (before even having a chance to start writing it!). I feel that it is easy to deal with curiosity: stay or go; seek or hide. One finds out the truth or doesn't. Then, if they're still alive, they move on.

Creativity is a silent killer. When is a painting really finished? At what point does a writer decide that the poem they are writing is complete? Are works of art, literature, or architecture ever really done?

The same justification for explaining a misinterpreted "lie" is the same as one I could easily come up with regard to my next book: change. In this instance, I'm not afraid of change - I readily embrace it. It's the concern that I won't be able to change the cover, the title, the concept, the chapter structure, or any single word after I'm done without some consequences.

Fourteen versions or revisions before 100 copies are sold? Ridiculous; it's true. This is not a matter of perfectionism. It's the power of creativity. Paintings could always take more color or texture. Poems could often include an additional stanza. Songs could sometimes take on another few lines.

This cat loves creativity. Does he fear it as well? It's time to think outside the litter box.