All the stuff I love most in game storytelling is never the big-picture stuff; it's the stuff that feels like curlicues, stuff that's just there because it's a game and because you can do it.
Tom BissellRead
To create anything — whether a short story or a magazine profile or a film or a sitcom — is to believe, if only momentarily, you are capable of magic. These essays are about that magic — which is sometimes perilous, sometimes infectious, sometimes fragile, sometimes failed, sometimes infuriating, sometimes triumphant, and sometimes tragic. I went up there. I wrote. I tried to see.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Creating art involves a belief in one's own power to transform ideas into reality, embracing both the struggles and triumphs of the creative process.
This quote by Tom Bissell reflects on the enchanting and complex journey of creation, where the act of bringing something into existence invites a sense of wonder and belief in one's magical capabilities. It acknowledges the varying emotions and challenges artists face, from moments of brilliance to feelings of failure, while recognizing the intimate relationship between the creator and their craft.
Themes
CreationMagicArtCreativityChallenges
In practice
Example use cases
In an inspirational speech to aspiring writers at a workshop.
More from Tom Bissell
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Every morning upon awakening, I experience a supreme pleasure: that of being Salvador Dali, and I ask myself, wonderstruck, what prodigious thing will he do today, this Salvador Dali.
Salvador DaliRead
If I were reading a book and happened to strike a wonderful passage I would close the book then and there and go for a walk. I hated the thought of coming to the end of a good book. I would tease it along, delay the inevitable as long as possible, But always, when I hit a great passage, I would stop reading immediately. Out I would go, rain, hail, snow or ice, and chew the cud.
Henry MillerRead
I want it to sound like an orange.
John LennonRead
There are those who write because they believe they have something so marvelous that it will make them famous and wealthy, a lauded commodity who will be invited to a lifetime of cocktail parties.
Edward P. JonesRead
Someday I'll design a typeface without a K in it, and then let's see the bastards misspell my name.
Frederic GoudyRead
You have to make sure you have the characters you want. That's really the most complicated part.
Joan DidionRead