style guide
Let me reframe it for you.
“Guides to paint proper art” = “this is the art I like and feel drawn to”
“Tips on how to write better” = “this writing clears my arbitrary bar”
“Required reading to write criticism well” = “I only like criticism in this particular style”
“Important music theory” = “this meets my personal standards”
If you looked down on earth from the moon, would you accept the standards of one person as the ultimate truth? Would you think their opinion on your creation matters when you just watched someone die?
Inside, you know what matters. If you seek out inspiration or want to become different (“better”) in a certain way, you will seek it out on your own and gravitate towards what you need. But don’t let it be forced on you. Don’t let it warp your unique view and voice. Imagine if the artist of your choice (music, paper, writing) was squashed and forced to only learn and practice a different style that was in at the time or that their teachers preferred. Imagine if that happened to people who started new designs eras and genres. Imagine if we would flatten everyone into the same box.
Standards and tastes around everything change every other decade, and microtrends even more often. You might not be wrong, just in the wrong crowd, or the wrong time.