Good morning! I found the essay below by following my nose from Whiskey River, that fount of wisdom and profundity I visit each morning. Although Franck has written specifically about artists, I think this has application for all those who create. I hope you enjoy Franck's Ten Commandments.
Martha
These Ten Commandments on seeing/drawing were revealed to me on a mountain, but also in a meadow, on a beach and even in the subway. For their revelation did not come all at once, but in installments, as it were, over the years, and always while I was busy drawing, and invariably on holy ground. But that may be because, while drawing, all ground is holy: unseparated from the Whole.
1 You shall draw everything and every day
2 You shall not wait for inspiration, for it comes not while you wait but while you work
3 You shall forget all you think you know and, even more, all you have been taught
4 You shall not adore your good drawings and promptly forget your bad ones
5 You shall not draw with exhibitions in mind, nor to please any critic but yourself
6 You shall trust none but your own eye, and make your hand follow it
7 You shall consider the mouse you draw as more important than the contents of all the museums in the world, for
8 You shall love the ten thousand things with all your heart and a blade of grass as yourself
9 Let each drawing be your first: A celebration of the eye awakened
10 You shall not worry about “being of your time”, for you are your time
And it is brief
- Frederick Franck
12 comments:
Wow. I love this! Thanks for sharing it. I especially love #2. And all the rest.
:-)
As you noted, it works equally well for writers.
2 is especially good advice for those who dither before putting pencil to paper and writers who suffer from writers' block.
Love no. 9 and it could easily be adapted to any artistic endeavour.
Oh, this is very beautiful and inspiring, even for me who rarely draws anymore. Yes, #2 and #9 are the best. I'm going to copy and print this to keep and look at every day! Thank you, Crow.
I do believe I like this guy. Thanks for pointing him out!
I'd like to contribute on this but I've re-written two chapters and gone down with something horrible. Like General MacArthur, I will return (I hope).
Very wise advice for everyone. You can't eat from last year's garden either.
That is lovely. :-)
I concur with all of that except No2.
It could all apply to writing or anything really.
I cannot write before I've chewed it all over in my mind.
But....
....thinking about it, maybe I am falling in line with No 2 in that I'm writing within my mind without waiting for inspiration.
No 6 really strikes a chord.
Basically this all boils down to thinking clearly about a subject which is erroneously considered to be all emotion. The emotion comes later in the eye of the beholder. The person who does the work should, in Graham Greene's words, have a small chip of ice in his/her heart. And as Catalyst says most of these rules work equally well for writers.
I think I've already exposed you to my personal creed but returning self-confidence allows me to take the risk of boring you yet again. With writing I believe that the time devoted to revision should be equal to, if not in excess of, the time taken to do the initial draft (so forget all the EBB stuff about "first fine careless rapture"). Also, the key to revision is the expectation of finding, perhaps even the desire to find, errors and bits that can be improved. Plus the subject touched on in various ways by other commenters: if it isn't written it doesn't exist, something that often needs to be rammed home to those have dreams of engaging in "fine" writing.
Good morning, everyone:
I was thinking of all writers when I posted this find.
My biggest problem in writing is self-doubt - that, and applying the seat of my pants to the seat of the chair, and just getting it done, for crying out loud.
Glad so many of you took something from what Franck had to say. I hoped that you might.
:)
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