The Creativity Workbook for Coaches and Creatives OUT NOW!

I recently contributed a chapter to this wonderful book full of inspiring exercises designed to strengthen and build your creative muscles. It’s currently available on Amazon HERE.

Intuition Process

This is the creative process for my 'Intuition' card. Firstly, I wanted to do something that depicted the way the brain fires in rapid patterns. I think this is how intuition works in a way. The brain fires so quickly, it seems like an idea or a solution to a problem comes from the big blue, but in actual fact, pieces of it have been floating around in your brain for a while. It's just a matter of making the connections.

This lead to the idea to use a crown of stars to show this process. Each star represents a thought node and the lines between are the pathways that form between thoughts.

My lovely colleague / friend, Reshma Gajjar offered to model. I went through her instagram feed and used a variety of photos and videos to familiarize myself with the contours of her face. Then I created the initial sketch.

After that, I painted the mid-tones and the shadows. I used diluted acrylic on water-color paper. For the creative deck, I often use cheaper, light weight paper that is very smooth, so the paint dries incredibly fast. A variety of techniques can be used to create a smoother finish, but in my opinion, I wasn't entirely successful here.

Next, I scanned in the original and added a background that I had painted previously. I also fixed a few mistakes, smoothed out some of the harsher lines and darkened the shadow along the jaw.

Finally, I added the brain/star map using an airbrush in  Mypaint.  I have a drawing monitor with a pressure sensitive pen that works well for this.

About Experimentation

Photo by Alice Achterhof on Unsplash

I've been busy working on a screenplay and a new painting. Both projects are essentially opportunities for experimentation.  As a writer, I have a tendency to fine edit as I go. As a result, the process can take a long time and I often end up carefully crafting sections that don't serve the over-all story and end up cut.  So, this time, I decided to write fast and dirty in order to get a quick 'vomit draft' complete. I'm hoping that this way, I'll keep my head in the story game and save my analytical fine point editing brain for later.

I'm also working on a new painting. This is a portrait where I've allowed myself to play around with unrealistic proportions. I'm continuing to experiment with Acrylic fine washes on water colour paper. By keeping the paint thin, I can build up depth through multiple layers. I'm still figuring this method out and I'm not sure the washes have been thin enough.  I've also become completely addicted to dry brush manipulation, where you put the paint on the paper and then use a dry brush to spread it around. I love the unpredictability of this technique and find it incredibly relaxing. I'll post the finished piece soon.

The main take away for me is the importance of experimentation. Once you become skilled at something, this can often be one of the first things to go. But for me, experimentation is essentially play. It is a chance to approach a medium with childlike joy.  This is one of the loveliest things about creating work for my own pleasure, rather than for commercial purposes or crafted to order.

Re-Writing Tips

Photo by Dustin Lee on Unsplash

I just completed another draft of a feature script. I really like doing multiple drafts with reading space in between, because each new version is usually an improvement on the last. I find the process similar to the way I paint (in multiple thin washes). It takes a while to build up the color and each wash builds depth. Similarly, I find each pass on a screenplay or piece of fiction also builds more depth. The theme emerges, the weak points become clearer, and the diamonds hidden amongst the pieces of coal finally shine.

I can't stress the importance of rewriting enough. Yet this is often the thing new writers fear the most. Fear, schmeer. Brave writers are happy to start over from scratch (page one rewrite). Don't worry, you'll remember the good stuff and often surprise yourself with new material. I find if there is a lot of work to do on a draft, rewriting from page one is easier then cutting and pasting and adding in new scenes. At the risk of metaphor overload, It's like knitting a sweater; if there is one small hole, go ahead and repair it. If there are many holes, you often end up with a big messy pile of yarn. In this case, go back to your pattern (beat sheet) and start again.

The Joy of Practice

Photo by Joy Real on Unsplash

I've been pretty 'creative' my whole life and have turned my hand to a variety of art forms. As a teenager, I was a competent musician, I have been dancing, drawing and painting since childhood, and I've enjoyed writing on and off since college. I've also been cavalier in my approach and tend to drop and pick up media depending on my mood. However, throughout my years of creative practice there have been two constants: I remain curious and I enjoy practice.

Practice is at the heart of everything I do, and it is, for me, the route to mastery.  Innate talent may be a necessary prerequisite for success in art and in life, but if you don't enjoy practicing a skill in order to learn, grow and improve, that talent will be wasted.  Most importantly, I don't think practice should feel like a chore. It should be an end in and of itself. If you genuinely enjoy the process of creation, the final result will not frame the whole of your experience. In a culture so enamored with product, it is easy to lose sight of this.

A wise man (Joe Maddon, the new manager of The Cubs Baseball team) said in a recent interview; 'don't ever let the pressure exceed the pleasure'.  Something about this comment really resonated with me.  I think it is easy to let this happen, especially when so much emphasis is placed on the quality of the product rather than the wonderful journey that lead to its creation.