Never fear rejection, for there will always be someone who will take you and yours in.

Rejection is always a manifestation of someone's withdrawal of friendship or good will, and never a manifestation of the quality of your work.

You write and you paint subject matter that is increasingly difficult to discover what your weaknesses are.

And you work on those weaknesses.

Never mistake melodramatic emotions as emotional truth. They are formulaic, mannered, derivative, and decadent.

Never stem the flow of creativity. It would be like trying to prevent a volcano from erupting.

Once you've found and estabished your original style, stop experimenting. Your own, individual style should be consistent through the rest of your life, though your subject matter may not be. That is how you will eventually be recognized as a major artist.

Writing is painting and painting is writing, and the twain often meet.

Every person is always in the context of his past, his present, his family, his occupation, and his dreams, and if you know none of that about a person, you really don't know that person at all.

Do you really know the characters you write about?

Do not deconstruct without good cause or rhyme or reason. A lot of material is best left not being deconstructed.

As such, never deconstruct on a whim. If you do, the work that results will be flimsy, derivative, and illogical.

Write and paint primarily because you love to, not because you need to in order to pay your bills.

Write to be read, and paint to be viewed, and that is really all there is to it.

I cannot think of better, far-reaching, joys than writing, painting, and magic.

Recalling Seasons And Occasions

Wake up in the morning as though you were waking up to Christmas Day, New Year's Day, your next birthday, your first day of school or work, or any special day of your choice.

Record first your feelings, then your immediate thoughts, then free-associations, then the persons you wish to share this day with.

Are you able to recreate this moment or this day with all five physical senses?

What are the body signals (tingles, buzzes, goosebumps) that come with your reflections? Can you activate these signals at will should you want to in the future?

What is the color of this day?

What is the symbol of this day?

What is the scent of this day?

What is your wish for this day?

You are never at a standstill as long as you continue being creative.