Too busy dodging tornadoes to follow the links on creativity and writing I shared on Twitter and Facebook this week? Here are seven of the best below.
CREATIVITY
- “Developing Your Creative Practice: Tips from Brian Eno,” Scott McDowell, 99%: The importance of knowing your craft and allowing the inspiration to find you in that quiet moment. Craft, the U2 producer says, “enables you to be successful when you’re not inspired.” (Related: 5 Steps to Subconscious-Driven Creativity)
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The Christmas Crab wishes you a very merry... summer? (see unrelated link below) “Shelley Carson on Brain Sets and Creativity,” Douglas Eby, Psych Central: The creativity researcher is on a mission to help us train ourselves to be more creative. (Related: The Zen of Teaching Creativity)
- “Creating the work you dreamed of,” Tanner Christensen, Creative Something: A touching personal post about the challenges of living a creative life when reality intrudes. (Related: Making Your Passion a Profession)
- “Build Your Creative Dream in 5 Minutes a Day,” Melanie Sklarz, Dose of Creativity: Melanie builds on Tanner’s post (above) and shares her own fears of creative ruts and makes a vow to do something about it. (Related: Allowing Time for Creativity)
WRITING
- “We’re Always Learning,” Carolyn Arnold, A Writer’s Journey: How do you cope outside your comfort zone? How does your character? (Related: Are You Original?)
- “Book Proposals for Nonfiction,” Lynn Price, Behler Blog: This publishing house editorial director lays out tips for pitching your nonfiction book, and reveals at the end that she won’t blog for a week because she has to have hip-replacement surgery. If she’s really back in a week, that’s dedication. (Related: Literary Agent = Book Contract?)
- “Physical Clichés,” Mary Kole, KidLit.com: This literary agent moves us past the show-don’t-tell meme to highlight bad telling and good telling. (Completely UNRELATED: Our Annual Crustacean Christmas)
For those planning to enjoy a little beach or pool time this summer (apologies to my readers down under entering winter), remember to wear sunscreen, so you don’t end up looking like the Christmas Crab.
The Artist's Road 
Great links as always. McDowell is right. The best ideas come to me while driving, doing the dishes, gardening. Christensen’s post is right on. I’ve been reading Julia Cameron’s The Artist Way which mirrors a lot of what he has said. Baby steps, small steps everyday to feed the artistic child inside you. Great book.
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Kudos for reading The Artist’s Way. That was a very influential book for me, in fact this blog’s name is a derivation of the book. I don’t journal daily, and I’m not good about keeping artist dates, but I feel I got a lot from that book that I still use to this day.
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I love the Christmas Crab! He could cheer anybody up!
I’m off to read some Melanie Sklarz and “Making Your Passion a Profession.”
Thanks for the links. 🙂
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Say hi to Melanie for me! 🙂
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I let her know that my friend Patrick sent me. 🙂
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I went straight for “Physical clichés” and found much to ponder there. While Mary Kole is discussing YA literature, the problems she focus on (i.e., bad telling vs. good telling) manifest in any genre. I believe that she is a teeny bit precious at times; still, I have much to ponder now.
The article on Brian Eno is eminently quotable. “The reason to keep working is almost to build a certain mental tone” is something that resonates with me. You have to achieve a certain state, what people are now calling “flow.”
Strategy #3, deliberate limitations, leads to mental gymnastics (for want of a better phrase) and also great results. Limitations help you with structure.
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I’ve been a fan of Brian Eno for quite awhile now, and not just because U2 was a big part of my adolescence. He really is a unique voice.
Glad you found value in this week’s links!
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