The pursuit of the artist is the pursuit of what has never been done. When the artist decides that he is a master, his career is over. The continual evolution of doing things better is the fuel that drives a good artist.
Nothing comes from nowhere. Even what the artist thinks is a unique or creative idea is nothing more than an amalgamation of things he’s seen before. The good artists recognize this. We must be thieves and we must be crafty enough not to get caught.
Stop trying to be cute and unique. It’s killing your ability to work. Read this quote by C.S. Lewis:
“Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it.”