I had learned so much about the world that I had decided to withdraw from it.
That's how the madness of the world tries to colonize you: from the outside in, forcing you to live in its reality.
You could know the what of something forever and never discover the why.
I have always tended toward a lush prose style, but I take care to modulate it from story to story and to strip it down entirely when necessary.
Trust your imagination. Don't be afraid to fail. Write. Revise. Revise. Revise.
An inordinate love of ritual can be harmful to the soul, unless, of course, in times of great crisis, when ritual can protect the soul from fracture.