I am at an important stage in my development as a writer. I am committed to arts journalism at the moment, but I am also exploring what the concept means. Is arts journalism just a collection of facts on arts subjects? Or is it something more?
I don’t have the answer to these questions; however, I am open to finding a response.
I recently discovered something powerful stated by music producer Quincy Jones. When he was the music director on the film version of The Wiz, Michael Jackson asked him to produce his first record. Quincy’s response was that Michael didn’t have a song in the picture yet. I was really struck by this because Michael had an endless list of hits with the Jackson 5 and even had some solo records. Quincy was not disillusioned by this. He understood that you are only as good as your last hit record.
I feel the same way about writing. I can publish a million articles but I need to create pieces with more meaning. If I’m not learning anything throughout the creative process, then something needs to be added.