Well, Tavis Smiley interviewed jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins last night. Mr. Rollins is now 81 years old, and he blew Tavis away when he said, "I still practice. Every single day. At least 2 hours, sometimes more." Tavis said, "Even now? After decades of success, you still feel like you need the practice?" Mr. Rollins said, "Oh, yes. I've always got to improve."
That's exactly what I tell my Creative Writers. I'll never reach a point where I'm 100% satisfied with my craft (and neither should they). But that's the beauty of writing, the excitement of it. For the rest of my life, I'll know that there's always something new I can learn - about the craft, about myself, about the process. How boring would it be, if we didn't need to practice? If we'd already reached our full potential?
I'm glad I'm an imperfect writer. And that there's still so much more for me to learn...
So very true. There's a reason why your books either get better or worse. You're either doing the right thing and practicing more or you're not practicing and trying to improve.
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