had nothing to offer compared to my colleagues. No matter how much I searched for a self, my works were always deemed too reminiscent of already existing pieces. As a fringe kid, I was unavoidably ignorant of so many artists and pieces, and that ignorance was now on full display. It’d almost be preferable to plagiarize rather than unknowingly replicate a familiar idea, with less skill. Even when I did manage to make something somewhat original, it wasn’t interesting.
