Friday, February 18, 2011

Dear Devotee: How to unleash your creativity and begin your creative journey


Dearest Devotees,

I got an email from one of you wonderful people who take out time from your busy schedules to read this blog of mine asking me how to unleash their creative mind. She wanted to know how you begin to explore your inklings and how to find your home art form and was wondering if I could give her a list of references and things to explore and aid her in her journey. First of all, to that lovely devotee, I'm really flattered that you thought to ask me about this. I think it's great that you are making this effort and seeking help in it as well. Secondly, I thought it would be a great idea to write a post on my list of references since I know that a lot of you are here because you have beautifully artistic and creative spirits as well and may like knowing of some references to strengthen your creative side.

  • Join online/offline community projects like ScriptFrenzy, NaNoWriMo, Art Everyday Month, 365 day challenge, etc. These are great ways to get involved in the ever growing online creative community as well as a wonderful way to kick yourself out of a rut and to create with abandon for a while.
  • Have a Creative Genius Day/Night: This is a wonderful idea I got from Jenny's post on her blog Life After College. It involves setting out blocking out some specific time in your schedule to create a day or night just devoted to creating and engaging your imagination. Think of it as a really mini artistic retreat.
  • Get out and try random stuff. There are so many different forms of art out there, so many different experiences just waiting to happen. Just get up and try stuff until you find something that you find interesting. Who knows, you may be pleasantly surprised at what you may find.
  • Engage in Artist Dates or an Artistic Retreat: Engage your creativity by feeding the desire to have new experiences inside you. If you don't have much take some time to see that new movie you've been dying to see, or if you happen to have a free week coming up (spring break anyone) why not commit yourself to exploring different inspiration sources through an artistic retreat.
  • Read and work through books like The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron and Art and Soul by Pam Grout. They are wonderful for overcoming the initial feelings of apprehension.
  • Creating a regular time to create and partake in artistic exercises weekly , if not daily: Make your artistic pursuits an official part of your day by giving them a specific time slot in your day. I know it may sound obvious but you would be surprised at how much of a difference it will make to your level of artistic output just by giving them an actual time slot instead of waiting until you are free and feeling inspired.
These were just a few of the suggestions I would give to any friend seeking to begin their walk down the more unconventional path to the discovery of your inner artist. Whether you are new to the concept of artistic self exploration or whether this is a path you've been treading for quite a while now, I would suggest looking into the suggestions above to help you take the next step in your journey.


Love you all and Stay inspired,



P.S. So let me know what you think. What would you recommend to those seeking to unleash their creativity? What advice would you give to them? Feel free to let me know in the comments below.

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