Am I, or Am I Not, a Creative Being?

I've never considered myself a creative being, quite the opposite in fact. I can't draw to save my life. Not even a decent stick person. I can't sing. I can't paint. I can't decorate or choose furnishings very well. But, I do love to write. Writing is my main creative outlet; however, even in that, I never felt particularly creative. I hear lines in my head and love the language, but I often struggle to build a story around the line/lines I hear and craft. Snippets of lines and starts of stories clutter my folders and desk until such time as something starts to stick and builds into a full and complete story.

I long ago gave up analyzing how creative, or not creative, I am and just work to do my best work each day. Yesterday, I picked up BIG MAGIC by Elizabeth Gilbert and reviewed areas I had highlighted in times past. One such area that really hit home was as follows:

"A creative life is an amplified life. It's a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Living in this manner--continually and stubbornly bringing forth the jewels that are hidden within you--is a fine art, in and of itself...Because creative living is where Big Magic will always abide."

Wow! I love the idea of living an amplified life, a happy life. And an interesting life. Who doesn't? I had just never considered how "creativity" factored into this life of mine. I do know that writing brings me much happiness and certainly broadens my horizons and, therefore, expands my life. So, in essence, then, I am living a creative life even if I'm not the most creative person, so to speak. I will keep working and trying to create good stories and striving to not let fear dictate my thoughts or prevent my progress. 

For, in Gilbert's words, "when courage dies, creativity dies with it."

Let's keep creating, shall we?

Words

Continuing on with the idea of words and the importance they can carry in this world, I read a chapter today and the words were profound. 

I loved Elizabeth Gilbert's EAT, PRAY, LOVE and purchased BIG MAGIC based on all the positive comments I read about it, particularly from a writer perspective. It has been some time since I started it, and I haven't gotten very far. I picked it up today to read a bit as I seem to be struggling on the creativity front as of late. 

 

I am participating in Tara Lazar's StoryStorm this January (30 ideas in 30 days) and have been rock solid at coming up with daily ideas and/or titles but have struggled to really put pen to paper and create anything that would constitute a new rough, even shiXXy, draft. So, in my effort to incite some level of creativity and something new to think and write about, I picked up a few different books to read a some chapters. One in BIG MAGIC spoke to me.

The section was titled Creative Living, Defined. The title alone drew me as, clearly, I am in need of some creative living. It discussed having the "courage to bring forth the treasures that are hidden within you," (hmmm...that is HARD. How does one REALLY get courageous enough to do so?). I am working on it, but it is often easier to stay the course on the safe path and not really push myself for more.

Gilbert says, "The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them. The hunt to uncover those jewels--that's creative living." Gilbert also suggests, "The often surprising results of that hunt--that's what I call Big Magic." 

Wow!! I am now even more excited to read this book and see what treasures it brings. I am also newly focused on digging deep and exploring the treasures within to see where they lead.

I would love to hear how you uncover your special jewels and translate them into your writing should you be willing to share.

Step By Step

While traveling for vacation, I finally had some time to start reading SIMPLE ACTS OF MOVING FORWARD by Vinita Hampton Wright which I've posted about previously. The premise of this book is all about taking steps in the right direction. As Wright says, "One simple act is a step in the right direction."

I know for myself I often get overwhelmed with the totality of all and, therefore, lose sight of the single, small steps I could take in the right direction. Once overwhelmed, it is easy to let it build until such time as it becomes more tolerable to do the distasteful--clean a toilet, pull weeds, etc.--than starting to dig out of the rut. And here enters the "stuck" mind which impacts the creative process as a whole. BIG PROBLEM!

Per Madeleine L'Engle, "Creativity opens us to revelation, and when our high creativity is lowered...so is our capacity to see angels, to walk on water, to talk to unicorns." And, as we all know, this is a must as writers when creating worlds where readers can and want to live.

In the intro of her book, Wright says, "The only way to get unstuck is to take a step. It can be a big or little step, and you usually have a choice of directions. But it's an action with purpose behind it, and no one else can do it for you."

So, step by step, one step at a time, I will work on this mission to unstick myself--my mind--and re-claim my creativity. When I stumble and backtrack, I will press on rather than letting my stumble become a fall. More to come...

If you have words of wisdom on the most productive steps that work for you, please do feel free to share!