It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day madhouse rush to get to work, do the job, pay the bills, take care of the kids and to at least attempt to accomplish the myriad things on the eternal to-do list we all have. For creatives, this daily merry-go-round of responsibility tends to set creativity as a priority close to, or at, to the bottom of the list. That’s not a good thing, as Martha might agree, so here are five tips to keep the gift of creativity alive.
Keep A Idea Book
Any creative work starts with the germ of an idea. There’s an anecdote about Ernest Hemingway in which he was talking with a bunch of fellow writers at the Algonquin Hotel and was challenged to write a complete story in only six words. Here’s what it’s said he came up with:
“For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.”
Now, the veracity of the story may be wobbly, but the point is that a simple idea, once recorded, can set the creative mind in many directions.
Spend two bucks and buy a palm-sized notebook, pen or pencil, tether it all together and keep the book with you at all times. Regardless of the convenience and ubiquity of cell phones and tablets, it’s much, much easier to scribble or sketch in a tiny notebook at the moment the idea hits. There’s no app-launching or potential for other time-wasting events, like total data loss when that machine sails into the toilet, like half of all cell phones in the UK. After all, the idea is to record the idea, not play with a techno-toy.
This idea book can hold all of those random creative concepts that pop up through the work day or when it’s time to let the day go. No, you won’t remember it in the morning – scribble it now! Later, this collection of randomness can be a treasure trove of inspiration effective against the scourge of blank-page-itis.
Do One Minor Creative Thing Each Day
Doctors say we should exercise five times a week, a half-hour a day. That means setting aside a little bit of time each day dedicated to a discipline that science tells us will keep our bodies healthier, which is certainly a worthwhile goal. Similarly, flexing the muscles of creativity with regularity, that flow is maintained, so by doing anything each day, one begins to carve a rhythm of discipline that invites more creativity. And, it doesn’t matter what the output is, as long as it’s being done. Even conceptual artists have to write things down. But it doesn’t need to be a major production.
Write a haiku. It’s easy: three lines, five, seven and five syllables, respectively. Here’s one:
The rain in Spain falls
Mainly in the dry, red plain
Like reluctant tears
Okay, that’s bad poetry, but by writing one of these every day, or one of something, at the end of the year there will be a 1 in 365 chance that there’s something actually “good” in the pile whereas if nothing is produced, there’s no chance at all.
Sketch. Sketch the cat. Sketch that tile. No, not that one, the other one. Yes, that’s right, that one. Drink your coffee, but rather than chewing on a bagel, break out the coloured pencils and do a quick colour field. Let it flow. Draw a pattern, sketch some type. Take a picture of something that doesn’t involve duck faces or soccer. Find a pattern in the negative space created by the morning light. Write some dialogue. Bake some cookies. Do, do, do one thing a day. It does not matter what that thing is, but the act of creation does.
Being creative takes practice and practice makes perfect, so putting one’s mind to any creative function, once each day, begins a discipline that’s self-regenerating, where the innate creativity that’s trapped inside will bubble to the surface.
Start and Finish One Major Creative Thing A Month
Drawing on your idea book or starting from an independent concept, plan and execute one “major” finished piece of work each month that’s not an outgrowth of your daily exercises. This means creating something that is finished, and you will know when it’s finished. It doesn’t mean it’s necessarily ready for publishing or gallery submission – that’s not the goal – but you should feel that it, whatever “it” is, represents your style, your sense of your art and is something you would show to someone else.
So, if you’re on about writing the Great American (or Canadian or Latvian) Novel, and knowing that it’s not likely that you can write a novel in the span of a month’s time, write an essay, short story, poem, a piece of reportage a one-act play – as long as it’s complete. If you’re a photographer, choose a theme and shoot on that theme in series form. The subject need not inform that theme. Instead, think in terms of light, pattern and composition and work on variations in that theme. For painters, go beyond subject and composition and vary the media.
The point is that the completed project will be a) complete, b) represent your singular vision and c) be the culmination of an idea that’s planned and executed within a fixed period of time. Best of all, there are twelve months in the year and that means twelve new things that can potentially represent your portfolio of work.
Immerse In The Product Of Others Once A Month
The internet is a wonderland of art and information. The entire collection of the Louvre is accessible online. Resources for writers are endless, even with Google Street View so that it’s possible to describe a walk through downtown Moscow, Russia or Idaho, in exacting detail without having to travel. But it’s just not the same as experiencing a work of art in person.
Plan a monthly trip to see art in person. It doesn’t need to be your area of personal creative ability: in fact, changing up the input can round out your view. Looking at a painting on the internet is nice, but being able to see the physical object, to connect to the artist’s thought process by looking at the brush strokes, to experience both the reflective and transmissive values of the colours in use and to see a work from various viewing perspectives can be revelatory. Hearing live music adds a dimension of physicality that’s impossible to duplicate in listening to recorded sound alone. Hearing a written work read aloud, prose or poetry, especially if by the author, can expand the sense of understanding beyond what it recorded on the black-and-white of the page. Also, taking the time is see or hear art in person is a great way to keep significant others entertained while feeding your need for creative input.
Share Your Output
Unless you’re in art school right now, you’ll want to seek out how others view your work. It’s natural and useful, like cooking a meal: you’ll taste it and think it’s great, but will your dinner guests be able to choke it down? Family and friends will not give you honest feedback because their first priority is to keep being your family and friends. Instead, find other outlets for honest input on your output.
Blogging your work gives the illusion that someone is actually looking at what you’re producing, but with millions of virtually-unread blogs clogging the internet, the likelihood that useful information about what you’re doing will come back to you is just about nil. Instead, look for an online community to share your work. There’s deviantART.com, which is likely the largest repository of independently-produced art on the web where members are also submitting art for critique. Photo.net and 1x.com are great for photographers, but be prepared to meet very high standards, which you should be doing anyway. For writers, there’s figment.com and scribophile.com, where your writing can be critiqued, which will not only help technically, but can be useful to help shape your voice.
Of course, it’s not necessary to rely on the internet to have work looked at by liked-minded creatives. There are tons of clubs, likely local to you, that sponsor workshops, readings and exhibitions. Meetup.com is an excellent site to search local groups.
While it may seem a little intimidating to “put yourself out there,” understand that the second half of the intent to create a work is to know whether it’s on some kind of track that makes sense to others. Calling “bogus” on the opinions of others is fine, but it’s impossible to say that those opinions mean nothing. Without doubt, you’ll learn something that can influence your art.
So, don’t waste that (insert-favourite-deity-name-here)-given talent by allowing it to atrophy. Give your creative side a regular workout, improve your self-esteem by asserting your identity through your unique vision and your mental health by unblocking those clogged synapses. You’ll be glad you did!
