I wanted to write this page as I have been asked over the last 15 or so years about how I chose the name. If you are an autodidactic person you may have looked up the word for a better understanding. I did back in 2021 when I was re-launching my blog and after several years away.
I was a bit saddened by what I read as many of the results that came up from my little search implied that calling someone a “dilettante,” namely a creative person, was a bit of an insult implying they aren’t skilled or serious about their work.
That’s not what a dilettante means to me. The short answer is I prefer the Merriam-Webster definition that says, “an admirer or lover of the arts,” as I am indeed an admirer and lover of all things creative. I believe anything can be creative-paying bills can be creative (and perhaps, sometimes a bit necessary 😉 and every person creates in their own way. So for me the dilettante is someone who loves to be creative and doesn’t limit their creative expression to a particular medium.
The longer answer is that years ago I was working with a friend on archetypes. It was a wonderful class based on the work of Caroline Myss’ model and we were identifying my particular archetypes. It was a really fun process of self-discovery and I enjoyed it a great deal. At one time I was trying to decide between The Writer and The Dilettante. I have thought of myself as a writer since I was 8 years-old and co-wrote my first poem. Still, I felt more like a dilettante since I just love the act of being creative. This choice really resonated with me and it was long after that the name “The Dreaming Dilettante” came to me and just like before I knew it was a name for me.