There is no more valid metric to predict what someone else might enjoy than us liking it ourselves. - Rick Rubin

We can’t weigh Source material based on the initial impact it makes on arrival. Sometimes the smallest seed grows into the biggest tree. The most innocent idea can lead to the most consequential writing. Trivial insights can open the doors to vast new worlds. The most delicate message could be of the greatest importance. Even if the seed is nothing more than what we notice — a momentary perception, an unexpected thought, even the echo of a memory — it’s enough. Most often, the hints of inspiration and direction from Source are small. They appear as tiny signals traveling through the void of space, quiet and subtle, like a whisper.

Some find this phase to be the most difficult part of the process. They resist letting go with a stubborn ferocity. Up until this point, the clay is still soft. Everything can change. Once fixed, we lose control. This fear of permanence is common beyond art. It is known as commitment phobia.

Our thoughts, feelings, processes, and unconscious beliefs have an energy that is hidden in the work. This unseen, unmeasurable force gives each piece its magnetism. A completed project is only made up of our intention and our experiments around it. Remove intention and all that’s left is the ornamental shell.