I’m going to say something that may sound a bit odd and out-of-place; I know I definitely surprised myself when I realized I believe this, and I even struggled with it for a little while. I don’t know why it was such a big deal for me. After all, it doesn’t greatly affect my lifestyle. In fact, it doesn’t really affect my life at all, nor anyone else’s.

The thing is, you don’t have to be original. There is no need – I repeat, no need – to be original. When I speak on this topic, I am specifically talking about originality in your art. Maybe you paint, maybe you write, maybe you play music.

In the song “Wona,” Matt Field (in his cool voice) sings, “You don’t wanna suffer for your art / You don’t wanna vivisect your heart / And then if you’re falling apart / You’re probably trying too hard.”

That’s just the thing. There should be no such thing as the tortured artist. Art is really quite simple, as it is the effect of being yourself. The trick of it, the trick of art, is to be yourself; originality is never a part of it. If originality is a side-effect of your art, then so be it. After all, originality is part of your essence. You, in and of yourself, are original. “There is no one alive who is you-er than you.” Thank you, Dr. Seuss.

So, I guess what I’m trying to say is that you should never, ever, strive to be original in your art. When you try to do something with your art, it ends up becoming anything but what you really intended.

Think of it from a writing perspective. Let’s say you sit down to write a song. There, we’re combining writing and music. When one sits down to write a song, one may have a clear idea of the message he or she wants to portray. However, once that person attempts to concoct original chord progressions, rhyme schemes and fancy words, the message may very well be totally skewed. That’s one reason, for example, I admire Bob Dylan so much. Although I can’t stand his voice, his lyrics seem true and natural. It seems to me as if he didn’t try to do anything fancy – he just wrote what he was feeling.

That is exactly what I feel should be done when producing any form of art. Think of it in relation to anything else in your life. You (hopefully) don’t watch only the lesser-known, hipster movies in an attempt to be original. Hopefully, you just watch the movies you enjoy! You (hopefully) don’t only wear the latest styles and fanciest brands. Hopefully, you wear whatever the heck you feel like wearing!

So, to use the example of writing again, one should write what one feels like writing. Maybe your next short story’s message has been said before, but maybe it’s exactly what you’re feeling at the moment. Landscape paintings have been done before, but perhaps a particular setting strikes you as particularly beautiful. Your art should represent you, your feelings and beliefs, and what you desire to say. Originality should never be a goal within that.

So, the next time you sit down to make something, don’t trouble yourself too much and don’t think too hard. Just be you. In the words of Bob Dylan, “Don’t think twice, it’s alright.”