Artistry

Lately I've found that I am much more capable of writing based on visual prompts than textual ones. Images of vivid worlds and wonderful creatures fill me with inspiration, and they make me think about what kinds of stories might be told in those worlds, or take place in them. What events might have brought those worlds about, and how an outsider might think of it looking in from the outside. They make me want to be able to make a reader see those worlds in their minds as they read. But I'm not particularly good at descriptions. It's good practice for me to be doing this, but it's also quite frustrating knowing the world I want to see, but not fully getting the image of it as I read back through my writings.

It's times like this that I wish I were more of an artist.

I've never been very artistically inclined. I often describe myself as not being able to draw a good stick figure. I've never understood color theory, or how to make lines align the way I want them too, or even really how to make a basic silhouette. I'm not one for measuring out my lines, as I have seen some artists do, although my free hand style often means that proportions are hilariously incomprehensible.

Further concepts, like shading, depth of field, and perspective are entirely outside of my field of vision. My handwriting alone is poor - what hope have I of ever making something beautiful?

Yet it seems as though everyone around me is capable of drawing. They complain frequently that they cannot, but in comparison to me, not a one of them can argue that they are lacking in skill. They may not be able to create lifelike paintings, but they can at the very least create an image with a recognizable shape. Meanwhile, I can create vague shapes that look like something a third grader might draw while they are bored in class.

I would never wish to trade away what little skill of writing I have for skill in art. I love being able to write, and I love the act of writing. I love the idea, however implausible it may be now, that I can paint landscapes and portraits directly onto a reader's mind with my words. That somehow I can impress my own imaginations on another person without ever showing them any sort of image.

But sometimes it would be nice to be able to put that image onto a piece of paper.