This past weekend, I actually spent a day and a half away from Second Life.
(pause)
Now that some of you have actually scraped your jaws off the floor...
I was creating a fan video to post on YouTube. I got my picutres all laid out, I got the music, I worked. I was so happy to be doing something boldly original, telling the story I wanted to tell, and of course nobody had thought of using this music for this subject before. I got it togther and I posted it. Only to realize after my puny little attempt was made that there were several videos of this particular subject, and using this particular piece of music. Use a piece of music by Corelli in your video you might be thought of as slightly original. Coldplay? No.
Object Lesson: Just when you think you're being creative and original, remember someone else has probably created the same thing. And they may have done it better.
Creators in Second Life have the same problem, and remember, your existence Inworld--your interactions, your fashion, your living space, etc.--are all an act of continuous creation. Our lives within the Grid bend and shape everything that exists within it. But...someone else has worn the same clothes as you, someone has thought of that texture for a skirt, someone has designed your couch the same way, someone has placed that mountain in the exact same spot you have, and put the palm tree and the Tiki hut in the exact same spot. And yes, they've probably even had Godzilla come out of the ocean and stomp that Tiki hut and the palm tree to pieces just like you. Everything's been done.
But does that mean you shouldn't do it? No. You are being creative and original for you. You wear the clothes you wear--either in RL or SL--becuase they reflect who you are or who you want to be. It's the same thing if someone paints a picture or writes a song or puts a Tiki hut and a palm tree next to a mountain and then has Godzilla go Medieval on it. Before you put the hut and the palm tree next to each other at the foot of the mountain, you had only envisioned it. Or you put it together at random and liked it. But until the moment you either saw it or did it, you probably cannot remember seeing it before. And Godzilla is simply a grace note in your grand design. It might also be an indicator you may need to see someone regarding your anger issues, but I digress. And who am I to judge? You're being creative and original for you. So don't worry if someone sees you doing something in SL and says 'oh, I've seen that before, how unoriginal'. Go ahead and do it.
And if you somehow manage to come up with something that really is creative and original, and you make a load of money from it, I'd like a cut for encouraging you.
