The 'Perfect' Formula

In T. S. Eliot's Tradition and  the Individual Talent, Eliot specifically discusses the power of the artist's creativity being a catalyst to other instances of inspiration like a chemical formula to create literature. I was particularly fond of this idea as I believe that creativity is spontaneous but does work similarly to the "chemical" formula that Eliot described. In example Shirley Jackson wrote We have Always Lived in the Castle in response to the alienation she felt in her community as a Jewish woman in her community. Jackson's psychological stability was fleeting, but this was supposedly the best time for her stories like "The Lottery" and The Haunting of Hill House. Though I believe that Eliot’s formula is agreeable, the ‘catalyst’ is much harder to pinpoint on in a writer’s success. The ‘tradition’ that Eliot describes along with a talent for perfected writing are the foundations for this formula, but the ‘Chemical X’ could be anything from a writer’s experience, a historical event, or politics of the time of publishing. These ‘catalysts’, along with the foundations of the formula are clearly important; but it’s discovering what the perfect catalyst is that makes a piece of literature timeless.

Source: (https://www.buzzfeed.com/lorynbrantz/submit-a-photo-and-well-illustrate-you-as-a-powerpuff-girl?utm_term=.jhqe00OrQ#.usAEVVY36)