Story Material

Artistic Frustration

Artists are truly a different breed

Especially in this particular universe. Artists, athletes, all across the creative board have different makeups, different biologies.

They all look the same, but inwardly, creating is what fuels a person. It gives them a purpose in life. Their role is to create. If they aren't creators, they have no drive in life.

Every season or so, each artist or athlete undergoes a creative rut, a period of artistic frustration where one singular thing is on their mind: creation. They're driven by and incredible urge to work in their craft, and produce masterpieces.

A rut lasts approximately one week, give or take a day or two. During this time, it is advised that they be monitored by a friend or family member to ensure no drastic actions are taken in the creative process. During the rut, very little, if any, sexual intercourse occurs, as the artist or athlete is preoccupied with their endeavors, regardless of any relationships they may have.

A painter can be found in a studio for the entire duration of the rut, surrounded by drying canvases, paint smears on their sleeves and faces, and a crazed fire in their eyes. Empty mugs of tea or coffee are strewn about, brushes crusted over with paints, and the studio door is locked. A painter in rut prefers silence and solitude. However, they sometimes ask for friends or loved ones to model for them, if the need arises, and wear headphones or earbuds if music helps their creative process. A painter is often drawn to the consumption of caffeine, and is afraid to sleep should they miss a bout of inspiration, so they spend many nights awake and painting.

Traditional musicians usually busk, taking their instrument with them on street corners and playing themselves to sleep there on the sidewalk or retreating back to their own territory to rest. They usually sleep soundly through the night, and use their earnings from the day previous to buy breakfast and start again. The traditional musician in rut often prefers company of another musician in the same condition with which to collaborate. Musicians who spend rut together rarely, if ever, engage in sexual activity (musical pursuits are the easy priority), but usually become inseparable friends as a result of the chemical bonding undergone during the rut.

Electronic musicians are nomadic, taking their laptops and controllers with them wherever they go, and can be seen with headphones on, in the subway, in a restaurant, tapping on their computer or turning knobs on a portable synthesizer, engrossed hopelessly in music production. Approach with caution; electronic musicians are usually easily startled when in their rut. They appreciate frequent changes in scenery, seldom spending more than three hours in one place. An hour or two on a park bench, another hour sitting in a subway, perhaps another hour in a hotel lobby. Electronic musicians usually have irregular sleep patterns, not sleeping for more than one to three hours at a time, never twice in the same place. Some producers find themselves in similar company, and collaborate and bond over the time they spend making music together the same way traditional musicians do.

Athletes will stick to a strict schedule. An early morning, a large breakfast, and training. Athletic training will take up the majority of their day, during which time the athlete is desperate to establish new personal records. Long-distance runners spend most of their time alone, pushing their bodies to the limit on several mile-long courses. Contact sport athletes spend their training in company, competing furiously with their fellow athletes, fighting for both dominance and a sense of self worth in knowing they can hold their own and even win in competition.

Martial artists usually spend their time alone in meditation or training according to the religious or other guidelines set by their practice. They will seclude themselves in nature, surrounding themselves with vegetation and wilderness, bringing little with them in an effort to shut out the rest of the world. They will spend their days attempting to master difficult, advanced techniques, and also have strict schedules, in which they are certain to get adequate sleep.

Chefs and cooks are in a potentially dangerous spot, as they will compulsively buy ingredients from marketplaces and stores for use in a recipe. They will attempt difficult recipes, or write their own during the time, often preferring to use ingredients they aren't familiar with to move themselves out of their comfort zones. Often, they prefer using exotic ingredients. They ardently oppose company of other chefs during their rut, but are very partial to background music. For this reason, some chefs spend their ruts in the company of musicians, as the music provided during this time helps the chef stay relatively calm and collected during his creative frustration.

Medication can be taken to suppress a rut, but it will make the artist or athlete irritable, drowsy and often induce headaches. Rut-suppressors aren't popular.

Each individual's rut cycle occurs at regular intervals, but is not affected by any others' rut cycle. At the end of a rut, the artist or athlete slowly becomes more fatigued and sluggish, slowly lapsing out of their rut, culminating in a long period of sleep, lasting usually from 12 to 18 hours, after which they are able to resume their previous lifestyle.