To add to Marie's point, I maintain that some of our strongest work has come from trying to make coherent stories out of things I considered to be bad decision-making. In forcing us to think outside the box, the Hosts have at time inadvertently pushed us into thinking through our stories more deeply, which results in better material than when what we think is natural just spills out.
However, as Marie says, this may be a personality issue. In addition to being a story-teller, I tend to also be a problem-solver. Despite what many believe, TV and film are more of a craft than an art. More like baking than cake-decorating, if you follow. There are ingredients that must work together in the right proportions to get the desired textures and flavors.
That can feel constricting to some, but to others, it is a challenge. When something upsets the delicate balance of my batter, what do I need to do to regain the equilibrium?
I suppose another part of this is that I don't take ownership or responsibility for the entire output of the project, but only my small part in it and that over which I have control. I don't consider the entire project a failure because my own vision was not fulfilled. It may, on occasion, be worse than it would have been had I full creative control, and many cases it might be better.
I have needed to accept that this show will not always be what I consider optimal. Sometimes there will be episodes, plot elements, or whole seasons I think will fall flat. I can even point to some examples if I were so inclined. That doesn't mean it is ruined entirely, or even that those items are ruined.
This project holds two main points of value to me. One is that I get to interact with and think through the source material in a way that I otherwise would not. The amount I have learned through this project has been enormous. And not only about the source material. Plot structure, dramatic timing, filmmaking, history, meteorology, geology, engineering, broadcasting, recording, editing, all are subjects I have had to learn about through my participation in this endeavor.
The second point of value comes in proving that this could be done. More than that, that this show would be marketable to a general audience. Sometimes, there are things which I don't think will work. My first task is to find a way to put a square peg into a round hole, so to speak. To figure out a compelling way to tell the story of Féanor's exile without showing what the Valar are doing behind the scenes, to give one example.
Sometimes, this effort fails, and the resulting work is less than satisfying. We still have 20+ seasons to get through. There is a good chance that my daughter will be a married adult by the time this project ends. We can learn from our mistakes and apply those lessons to future seasons.
The question is: is this something you want to do for the next 20 years?