You are doing what most genii do; obsess with some field of knowledge, until they (you) know (includes having read) everything that everyone else has read and published on that topic. You KNOW everything the experts know (except the years of mentoring and experience), so you can fearlessly come up with your own, new ideas based on that foundation.

At least, that was one definition of "Masters Degree" I heard bandied about while working on a research degree in musicology; you literally make yourself a "master" in that narrow area, and this gives you confidence that you know what you are talking about.