Art is a Conversation with Ourselves

“Art is the window to man’s soul. Without it, he would never be able to see beyond his immediate world, nor could the world see the man within”.

• Quote attributed to Claudia Lady Bird Johnson

One thing I have often noticed, when working over three years as an indie writer, is how I see myself in the art I make. This is not new, I am well in favour of authorial intent when it comes to studying texts.

We are all influenced by our lives and surroundings when we make something, often subconsciously and sometimes not. I have found myself thinking about my work on and off. Whenever I look back on my stories, anything I have done a year ago, I see so much of me in that moment. All of which was completely absent from my express intention when I wrote it.

I am not going to say what exactly I see when I reread Where Dreams Are Lost, Only My Eyes Move or the book I was working on before Eight Nightmares: Emerald Baptism. I just find it rather fascinating to contemplate how we, as humans, talk to ourselves through the creation of art. I think it is a wonderful exploration of what it means to be human.

Art is a wonderful expression of ourselves. I think that is why art, the creation of it, and the consumption of it are so important to the expression of culture. I guess what separates an excellent artist from the bad is how well they recognize the unavoidable fact that they will be putting themselves into their creations. How they best cover it up.

People don’t want creators to be overly valuable, but they also don’t want there to be nothing. What separates the artist from the AI prompts is the willingness to put oneself out there, bleed onto the page, and expose all their darkest feelings and fears for the whole world to see (potentially).

I am not going to talk in-depth about what every single story means to me personally. I am still discovering the ways my subconscious bleeds out. How many layers of metaphor do I use to dress up my feelings? But the important thing is that it is there. It is one reason I want to take a break from horror after I am done with Eight Nightmares and Crimson Dolphin.

It is remarkably taxing to keep diving into your fears, sharing the moment with the characters you are responsible for. You decide if they can live or die. It is rather exhausting, to say the least. Don’t worry, stuff like Beneath the Ashen Sky, The Demon Saga and Parable of the Gods are still on my mind.

That isn’t to say my fantasy/sci-fi stuff is going to be free of what I fear. It most certainly will have a lot of stuff I think and feel about the world. These can be anything from religion to government structures, media literacy and how Twitter is going to destroy us one of these days. I am not interested in lecturing you. My art is supposed to entertain.

But it is also supposed to intrigue, thrill, and start conversations. Art is entertainment, but it doesn’t have to be mindless. I want there to be intelligence in the arts and I want to encourage my readers to consume art (my work included) with an intellectual flair.

Stories, especially ones with something to say, or something that offers a challenge, from Lolita to Crime and Punishment are narratives that stay in your mind.

Makes you see things differently than you might have otherwise. I don’t claim to be like the authors of the books mentioned. I am just your average idiot with a dream of being a full-time writer.

But I want to challenge myself and my readers. I am all too aware that my life and feelings are part of each story I tell. The loyal readers (when I get some lol) will notice patterns and common themes within my stories.

Those who follow my socials will undoubtedly see aspects of what I think connect all of my stories. The artist who is vulnerable with himself has the potential to be great. The artist who allows himself to be vulnerable with others through their work will hopefully create an engaging narrative. People yarn for authenticity, and what can be more authentic than the vulnerability of your soul, dressed up in the guise of fiction?

I am not sure what more I can say on this topic, it’s all of my thoughts on a subject very dear to me. Art is the window into the soul. My experience has made this clear to me; I see this from my writer friends. I see it in the authors I have studied throughout my life. We might not art to live, but we do need it to keep sane.