The Creative Instinct

Here’s a simple, harsh truth - if your art, writing, music (or whatever your own creative shtick is) doesn’t demand almost instant attention, it will be passed over by just about everyone.

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Have you ever wondered if all the stories sent in to short story competitions get read?

I’ll give you the answer - NO!

How about films in short film competitions - do they fare any better? NO.

Music demos? YES! Just kidding - NO!

And do paintings get properly viewed? Of course not.

Is that fair? Is it right?

Who cares? It’s a fact. And no matter how your art reaches an audience, there’s a gigantic lesson to take from this - grab your audience’s attention fast, or don’t bother.

The Truth About Short Story Competions

Many years ago I used to act as a filter judge for a well established short story competition. That is - I sifted through mountainous piles of short stories in order to find the gems that got passed on to the real judges. I got 25 pence a script - around 40 cents. Money was worth more then, but even so, if you wanted to make any money you had to work fast and make very quick decisions.

90% of the short stories never made it past the first page. And I trashed a good proportion of them on the strength of the first paragraph. Let me tell you, I was not alone.

Why? Because they did nothing to command attention. Most of the stories simply didn’t have a good opening - which was a shame because many of them were otherwise good stories, I guess. But here’s the logic (and it fits with real life too), only a story with a good opening can win, because despite many stories being superb apart from the opening, there would always be superb stories with good openings.

Hence, poor opening - straight on the junk pile.

There’s a flip side to this - some rubbish stories with powerful openings got more of my attention than they perhaps deserved. Make of that what you will.

Are Art and Music Any Different?

Although I’ve made my point using short stories as an example, it’s the same whatever your creative medium. And if you still think that audiences really should pay more attention, ask yourself what you are like. What makes you listen or look for longer?

The key is (go on, guess) that something grabbed your attention. If by now you’re thinking that I’m bashing on about the blatantly obvious, you are correct. It’s just that although most of us know this, it actually doesn’t happen all that often.

I lost count years ago of the art videos that hold the attention of only the most dogged and determined of viewers. And if you’ve ever visited a university fine art degree show, it’s amazing how some of the stuff that gained a first has everyone but family and friends drifting past in a cloud of indifference. On the other hand, there are dozens of examples of successful but distinctly average songs that have brilliantly imaginative openings.

And don’t forget the shock tactics and plain old fashioned gimmickry that some artists have employed over the years.

Now I’m not suggesting that we should all adopt shock or gimmick (though I’m not saying you shouldn’t, if you want to). I’m also not suggesting you should focus on the attention grabber at the expense of overall quality. But do ask yourself what it is that will stop people from walking past, tuning out or moving on. It may be dramatic or it may be subtle shades, it may be minimalist or sumptuous - whatever - if you want people to take notice, give them something to take notice of - and don’t hang about doing it.

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