You don’t have to know everything to make something

Taking on an artistic project alone can feel overwhelming before you’ve even started.

You have an idea you care about. Then you begin to see everything it will require. If you’re making a record, writing the songs is only part of it. There is recording, production, mixing, mastering, artwork and eventually figuring out how to release it.

It is a lot for one person to carry.

While making Lulu Cinnamon, I sometimes felt the distance between what I wanted to create and what I knew how to do. I was responsible for bringing the project together, including the parts I had very little confidence in.

When you work on your own, there isn’t always someone who can tell you what comes next. You have to decide where to put your time, what needs attention and when to move forward. Alongside the creative work, you become the person keeping the project going.

That responsibility can make you feel as though you should be capable of everything already.

You don’t have to be.

You can take a project seriously while still having things to learn. You can care deeply about the result without demanding perfection from yourself every day. Your ability will develop as the work progresses.

I think that is something worth seeing more often: how a person actually gets through a project with the knowledge, resources and energy they have. There are ordinary days of trying to move one part forward. Sometimes that is enough.

Working independently also means deciding where you need support. You can ask questions, invite a contribution or trust someone with part of the work. The project can remain yours while making room for help.

Finishing an album has made me want to share more of that experience. I’ll probably make videos through TASTIMU on YouTube about recording, production, mixing and mastering. I’d like to explain things I’ve learned while showing the practical reality of doing this yourself.

I hope they can be instructive and encouraging. Someone watching might have a project they keep postponing because they feel unprepared. I would like them to see a way to begin.

Making Lulu Cinnamon has given me confidence that comes from having carried something through. I still have plenty to learn, and I can take that with me into the next project.

If you feel called to make something, give yourself room to grow into the person who can finish it. You can begin before you know how to do every part.