So What?
Why should a literary movement matter? Why does any art matter? We must remember the power of our imagination to create the world in which we long to live.
I’ve been grappling with the “so what” factor.
In recent weeks a feeling of self-doubt has loomed large. The world is so full of the words and ideas of others that my small and quiet voice may never be heard. I need a reason, a foundation upon which to build this work. Imagining the alternative — walking away from this project — made me feel as though I’d be failing my muse.
Yes, I’ve identified a literary movement. I’ve even named it (whether ‘New Naturalism’ catches on beyond this website is left to time and chance.) But why should it matter, beyond the world of literary theory?
And then, as if the universe knew I was looking for an answer, a virtual stranger on a Mighty Networks group that I rarely visit posted a link from a Substack I’d never read, and it all landed in my inbox.
Eleanor Robins’ How to Go Home feels like a gift, prodding me onward in my journey to unearth the meaning and significance of my project within and beyond the literary arts.
She reminded me: reality isn’t static. We have a hand in creating what is and what can be.
” … whenever a society’s metaphysics change, its art is already changing too. Humans are already finding new ways to paint and story and sculpt their emerging understanding of reality. And then a funny thing happens: Those paintings and stories and sculptures become the architecture of the new world. … Art doesn’t reflect our changing beliefs about the world and our place in it. It creates the world we live into. It draws the world forth.” [bold emphasis is mine]
~ From “A primer for making art in the cosmological vibe shift. Part one: Why.” Apr 14, 2026
Art and reality co-evolve. While the materialist, post-enlightenment inclination may be to distinguish art from the reality of our day-to-day world, it’s a false polarity. Through our imaginings, we create and birth reality with our art.
That being the case, it’s more imperative than ever that all of us own our creative power. We can either wallow in feelings of hopelessness in the face of what we perceive as a societal collapse, or we can see the changes taking place around us as an opportunity to create a new reality.
There’s my “so what,” my greater purpose: to contribute to that new reality, one that’s inspired by stories that revitalize our interconnection with the natural world — with All That Is.
Call it magic or synchronicity or whatever you’d like, but back in April Eleanor Robins answered my “so what” with her “why,” and over a month later a stranger sent me a well-timed link.
We never know when our words will make a difference.
