Anyone who you'd be reading has engendered their own ideas. Of course all great minds are inspired by other great minds, but this kind of inspiration is not rea

Anyone who you'd be reading has engendered their own ideas. Of course all great minds are inspired by other great minds, but this kind of inspiration is not really what you said to begin with. There is a stark difference between creating an idea indirectly inspired by great works, and just wanting to read someone's idea. Aristotle was inspired by Plato, but he did not defer thought to him, or wait to write Metaphysics until he had read someone "smarter" write about it.