When I’m working my way through a period of writer’s block sometimes, I become disillusioned with creativity. Have we reached the peak of it? Is there any such thing as a new idea? Is there anything new I have to say that hasn’t been said a million times before?

It probably doesn’t help when I listen to new music and start to feel that all songs sound the same. Just sampling and remixing old songs to a new funky beat. You hear the beginning and think ‘oh, it’s that song‘ and then it’s not, it’s in fact a different song completely. Sure, it does create something new but to some extent, it feels like its originality is tainted in a way. Some do say, when it comes to music there’s only so many chords so it’s inevitable things will start to sound the same over time.

Similarly, the overuse of cliches in TV and film does make me wonder if the era of original characters and plot lines has disappeared. Are we forever going to have romcoms that recycle the same ‘enemies to lovers’ plot line? Or the plot line where they pretend to be a couple and end up eventually falling in love? How much of the same recycled ideas can we keep consuming without fatigue?

Anyway, it doesn’t look completely hopeless and every time I consume something new and original that I like, I have hope. Whether, that’s a new song, book, film or show. My current watch on Netflix, They Cloned Tyrone – is a very wacky, sci-fi watch that is unlike anything I’ve seen before and such originality has proven refreshing if anything.

What I’ve realised is that not every story has been told, and life, in all its richness, provides us with a wealth of ideas to spin into creative, artistic gold. In particular, there are so many stories from marginalised communities and overshadowed periods of history that have not yet gotten the exposure they deserve. We’re only just starting to see these stories and art receive the limelight they deserve, so despite my doom-and-gloom rant at the start, it is indeed also an exciting time to be consuming art.

On a related note, there are so many independent artists out there with talent and unique ideas that aren’t getting the shine they deserve. It’s unfortunately creativity in the mainstream that tends to recycle old ideas and be formulaic. The main reason for that? Money. I recall reading a tweet where someone said even though cliches are bad, we keep using them because they work. They still garner interest and generate money for Hollywood, production companies, etc. It’s why it’s important for us to support independent talent and content – whether it’s short films or web series you find on YouTube or artists you find on Instagram.

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