Take Five...

And just like that... I'm done with my book. Finished, finessed, corrected... and delivered. I had to pull an all-nighter to bring it in on deadline. Started at 5:30AM yesterday, and finished at 10:45 this morning. But, like everything else in life, this too gets better with age. I don't know why, but working through the night was not that difficult. I hope this doesn't become a trend. But now that I've delivered my book to my publisher, I'm left with an odd feeling. Is this what mountain climbers feel like when they finally reach the summit? "Well then... that was nice, let's go get a pizza?" It brings to mind one of my favorite quotes: "It's the road, not the inn." 

Paint from the heart...

I had "The Pixar Story" on in my studio a couple days ago while I worked. Movies help me stay put in the studio on the days that I find it hard to stay put in the studio. I'm pretty sure all creative people involved in creative endeavors wrestle with this sort of thing from time to time... Even Rembrandt, I dare say. The difference is, Rembrandt didn't have access to Netflix... and I do. Anyway, The Pixar Story turned out to be just what the doctor ordered. I found it very inspiring, and felt particularly vindicated when John Lasseter credits Pixar's movie success to the fact that Pixar makes the kind of movies that they, (the directors and animators), themselves would want to see. Or, to apply it to my own work, paint the kind of pictures I would want to see. The moral of the story? Be yourself, and work from the heart.