Perseverance
Paul Johnson's new book Creators is an anthology of sorts of Johnson's esteemed artists - writers, painters, poets, musicians.
Without going into the mysterious talent of the creative genius, what Johnson tells us is that much of the lives of these people (Bach, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Turner) involved the daily grind of work.
Perseverance.
It seems they never let a day pass without working on their craft. But, another interesting insight is that they never worked in isolation. At some point in their work, they consider the outside world, the public, as part of their creation.
I don't think this was a purely commercial strategy, but a realization that someone has to appreciate the work. And also the pure satisfaction that it is appreciated by as many as possible.
But, again, they never dragged it down to it lowest common denominator, and instead insisted that people aspire to the higher level at which they deem their work to reside.
This is a more casual and relaxed book than other fact-filled and intriguing chefs-d'oeuvre from Johnson - The History of Christians, and Elizabeth I: a Study in Power and Intellect.