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Posts tagged ‘creativity’

Sep 20

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Three ways to feed your muse: writing away procrastination, Part 3

Throughout history, artists have called their sources of inspiration many things: ego, God, muse, daemon, genius, angel, their higher-self, or as Edwin Land, American scientist and inventor once said, creativity is simply, “a brief cessation in stupidity.”

Most days I feel about as creative as a slug on a morphine drip.

I have to fight for my creativity. I have to force myself to stay in my chair and to stay writing. Some writers call it “bum glue”—writing something without getting up twenty times to stare longingly at the chocolate pudding inside the fridge.

Why is it so hard to stay focused? Usually there’s a reason.

Yes, I run my own business and I have a zillion busy things to do each day. And, trust me, I’ve used that excuse a zillion and a half times to avoid my writing. But why do I find so many excuses to avoid what I love to do most in the world? Mostly, I think, it comes down to fear.

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Aug 19

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Nap your way to health & creativity

Let’s face it, we are insanely busy these days. It seems as if the more technology we have to make our lives easier, the less time we actually have for rest and relaxation or even vacations. (And when we do go on vacation, we often take our work with us).

We live in a culture where the myth of a superman and a superwoman is perpetuated daily and we begin to believe we can and should become these super beings.

I know. I’ve been there and still am to some extent. And I’ve paid for it with my health, my happiness, and my quality of life. It’s called burnout. And the really insane part is I’ve done it more than once. Think I’d learn, right? Read more

Jun 17

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Lost in the jungle? Five steps to move your story forward

Ever feel like your mind is a jungle and your manuscript is a reflection of all those tangled vines and spongy mosses? Ever feel stuck in a bog of your own making? In her book, On Writer’s Block, Victoria Nelson says that one of the biggest reasons writers get blocked is because at some subconscious level they know that something isn’t quite right with an aspect of their writing—whether it’s a character, subplot, theme, or even the original story idea.

Before I read Nelson’s book, I spent far too much time lost in my own overgrown and disorderly jungle, paralyzed by fear. Now when I recognize the block is happening—for me it’s when I feel like I need to do anything else but write (clean out the fridge, make another “to do” list, scoop the litter box)—I stop and ask myself a few questions.

The 5-step process below gets me back on track and allows my creative energy to spark and flow again. You can adopt this process or use these steps as a springboard to make the unconscious conscious: Read more

Jun 14

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Four ways to stimulate creativity & cure the writing blahs, part 4 of 4

Sometimes, I just don’t feel like writing.  Even after I read a poem, try to write a poem, or finish a timed write—sometimes, the words still don’t come.  What then?  It depends.  A nap might be in order, or maybe a walk. But often, participating in another type of creative activity is what will cure me.

Play the guitar or create a vision board.  One of my favorite ways to strum the strings of my unconscious is to do something creative that’s not related to writing—like learning to play the guitar.  (Emphasis on the word learning, here).  But it doesn’t have to be guitar or even music—pick anything, except writing, that moves your spirit and allows you to be creative:  painting, cooking, gardening, dancing, even cutting pictures from magazines to create a collage or vision board. Read more

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