Not sure how to feel about my special interests

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Like most aspies, I have obsessive tendencies. They're blatantly obvious in my art and writing, which tend to share very similar subject matter and themes. The truth is that I'm not sure whether I should embrace or feel embarrassed by my special interests. Not only do I love them dearly, but they provide more inspiration for my creative productions than anything else. On the other hand, not only are my special interests extremely unorthodox (especially in combination), but people all over the Internet have either mocked me or shown irritation towards my obsessiveness. I wouldn't mind those people so much except that if I want to prosper in this world, I have no choice but to cater to everyone else. I don't want people to regard me as a one-trick pony or get tired of my work. At the same time, I don't want to surrender the passions that underlie everything I accomplish.

What should I do about my obsessions?

You don't have to share your interest with others. I often keep mine to myself. You can do yours alone without sharing it with others.

I had a look at your deviantArt page. I hope you don't mind, isnce the link is in your sig.

Anyway, I think that your art is awesome, so however you Special interest seems to be for you, it is still awesome art. It's your decision if you tell people about your special interest, but if I were you, and you love your interest and your art, then I wouldn't feel embarrassed about it.

I am familiar with your work and its subject matter, and I don't understand why anyone would mock you over it. I think that your interests and the artwork that they inspire you to make are pretty cool, in my opinion.

As for advice, well, I agree with League_Girl. If people are making fun of you for your interests/artwork and you want them to stop, then it'd probably be best to keep it to yourself. Or if you still want to share it, then keep it confined to WrongPlanet. Although I often post about my interests and sometimes my artwork here, I've never felt comfortable displaying my work on DeviantArt out of fear of being made fun of. WrongPlanet is a rarity on the Internet for being so tolerant and supportive of its members, which is why I have stayed here for so many years.

You know, this is what we get all wrong.

Our special interests are our gem. It's our power. It's what makes us amazing. You've got to understand that.

This is what I LOVE about having Asperger's.

Einstein's special interest was Physics. Tesla's was the power in nature. Mozart's was the pop music of his time. Wernher von Braun's special interest was rocketry into space.

I can go on with this for ages.

What we have to do is find a niche where we can use our special interest to make a living from it (ideally contributing to the world), and the world will see the value we hold.

People didn't see Einstein's value when he was a patent clerk, even though Physics was his special interest then, as it was his whole life. When Tesla was employed as a draftsman, he still had his childhood dream of harnessing the power of Niagra Falls. Mozart was recognized from the start, but Wernher von Braun wasn't recognized for his value when he was toying with fireworks as rockets when he was 13, or when he got his PHD in his special interest, which he had since he was a child, or even after WWII. It wasn't until the Space Race began when America's Rockets failed and his ones worked, that we were eventually able to go to the moon. His special interest did that.

Now, if it's particular nuanced, as many of ours are, you've got to just dig around the world and internet to find where it applies, or as man of us are years ahead of the curve, find a place that'll appreciate that and work with it.

Of course, you can just keep it to yourself, and since most of us have a number of them, we, by definition will - but it's really in our interest to make one of our "special interests" be our career.

Don't be ashamed. Be proud. I'm not meaning to pump you up, but this is what I thoroughly believe.

And, of course, most people won't get it. But, we're the ones that can change the world.

And, they'll get that.

It's hard not to question obsessions, but at their core they reveal what is truly meaningful to us. Hence the term "Special Interest"! These obsessions really are special, because as another on the forum noted earlier, they help to define us as special individuals. I'm an artist and writer and am currently teaching a studio art course at a private college. Many of the students have some degree of talent, but the ones who are the most amazing to watch are the ones who have very particular obsessions that they explore through their art. The depth of interest they invest in their work results in art that is deeply moving and inherently interesting. Look at the way the same themes are threaded through your art and writing—it gives the benefit of another perspective on your thoughts, an additional dimension.

Obsessions aren't always productive, but when they serve as the source of our inspiration they spur us to delve far more deeply into a subject than we otherwise might have, to explore elements of it we might never have considered if we had given the subject a mere passing fancy. If you are interested in knowing how to develop your obsessions in ways that allow you to gain creative confidence, you might read Eric and Ann Maisel's "Brainstorm: Harnessing the Power of Productive Obsessions." It was, and continues to be, useful to me when I question the value of my passionate interests.

Many artists throughout history have had similar consuming interests! Claude Monet relayed that "These landscapes of water and reflections have become an obsession" and Vincent Van Gogh wrote that "the cypresses are always occupying my thoughts." The art world would be lacking great masterpieces if Monet had not been transfixed by the surface of his pond, and Van Gogh not obsessed with the dynamism of the cypress tree!

Many, many creative people have talent but long for clear inspiration. Count yourself fortunate that, because you have a Special Interest, you have a continuous source of inspiration!

But, a word on sharing. I often have, and do, struggle to share my own work, and many of my students never want to share their work with the class. I also play violin, but I don't think I'll be performing onstage anytime soon! Playing helps me to clarify my thoughts; it is really a resource for me rather than a mode of communication. Sometimes my art is the same way—a means of giving form to my thoughts, so that I can better deal with them. It has taken me a great while to be able to accept this, because we are often told that we should never hesitate to share our talents. Congrats to you for taking the bold step of posting your work, but if you feel that you aren't always able to share, don't think less of yourself. Many, many artists and writers have unpublished / unseen works. But the wisest of them never consider those works to have been a waste of their time! Something personal is always accomplished, simply in creatively engaging with one's interests. Keep up the good work! You never know where it will lead you.

Nts are all over the places with their interest knowing nothing specific. Were too focused on one thing.

As templin grandin says, you need to span your interest into more things.

I had an interest in geography as a kid, and Ive managed to span this interest into engineering.