Beware Your Desires: On the Starlit Power of Wanting to Want

I have spent the last several years on a self-guided study of desire, a deep dive into the art and science of wanting, the ache of it, yes, but also the heat of it, and perhaps most especially the stigma around desire in our culture, especially for women. I am most urgently interested in the role desire plays in our creative lives. Ultimately, I’ve become convinced that desire does—and must—drive our creative pursuits. Desire is both fuel and engine for art.

At its core, desire is a state of wanting and wanting is inherently vulnerable. Vulnerability, in turn, is essential for creativity, because creativity by its very nature implies risk and pain. Why? Because creativity can and often does lead to failure of all kinds. Failure of our art to live up to our vision. Failure to make our art in the first place. Failure of the art to please anyone or garner any attention. Failure to try again after failing. If we’re sincere, which to my mind means we’re doing it right, our art can (and some…