Warren Wilson alumna Dinah Berland insists that no matter when the muse calls, you owe it to yourself to listen.

“What I learned from my research was not only that maturity’s insight can both enrich and deepen the making of art, but also that even old age and infirmity can’t stop it. For painters, poets, or writers of any age, art doesn’t come from the body; it comes from imagination and desire. And one of the most important aspects of creativity is the willingness to play — which, paradoxically, artists who live the longest tend to know most about.”

Dinah is the author of Hours of Devotion: Fanny Neuda’s Book of Prayers for Jewish Women