Creativity doesn’t come naturally. You have to cultivate it. And you have to be creative with your cultivating.
My typical well for ideas is books. But that’s limited in a sense because it only challenges the part of my brain that deals with language.
Sometimes to get that killer idea you need to finger other parts of your intellectual organ. Here are three ways I do that.
This iPhone app allows you to take a photo, scale it and apply one of fifteen treatments to the photo. Then you share it with your Instagram stream. [Plus options to post across your other social circles, like Facebook or Twitter].
I’m not a photographer, so my first few photos were awful. As are a good portion of the other photos on Instagram. But there are some definite top-notch photographers.
It’s these guys and gals you need to watch.
Over time of watching what was popular [bodies covered in tattoos, girls with big eyes, majestic landscapes] I learned a few tricks about taking photos. And got some things right–like the photo above.
Here’s the thing: I experimented a lot. I took WAY more photos than I posted on Instagram. That’s the thing about creativity [and becoming a great writer]: you have to constantly experiment.
And once you churn out some really sweet photos, Blurb lets you make a book out of them.
Spotify
If you like music, then Spotify is for you.
How will it prime your creativity pump? It’s when you build a playlist around an idea, thought or theme. And then try to write a story behind that playlist.
It may not be the greatest story, but the activity itself will pay dividends when it comes to thinking up fresh ideas.
Besides, if you’re like me, the mere exposure to music [mediocre or majestic] gets my head to percolate a new idea or two.
Give it a shot.
TED Talks
Holy smokes. You want a brisk but confidently-thorough lecture on just about any topic in the world? From inorganic matter coming alive to the mechanics of pop television, TED Talks will deliver.
I’m a huge fan of reading wide and long. That is, reading topics on every subject and reading a lot.
TED Talks has taken this idea and applied it to video. They serve up a new video a day. And they have over 900 talks available for free.
Go ahead. Search for a subject. Any subject. I dare you.
Enjoy.
Your Turn
What bizarre activities outside of writing and books do you engage to stimulate ideas? Share. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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That picture is stunning. Thanks for this post Demian
Thank you for the kind words! I’m glad you like.
LOVE this post!! Excellent pic too, btw!
As an Android girl, I am horrifically jealous of your Instagram and Blurb. However, I pacificy myself by trolling through deviantart.com a couple times a week and following photogs like Trey Ratcliff and Thomas Hawk on G+ when I need artistic inspiration. I am beginning to use my own photos on my blog but am still angsty about it (imagine that!). I sometimes challenge myself to pick a picture off the front page of deviantart and write a story about it – but most often, I have a story in mind and the right picture comes across the page and shazam (!) I have the perfect visual point of reference for a character or setting.
I am absolutely addicted to Spotify. I’ve never thought about creating a playlist and then writing a story but I’d like to try that. I do it the other way around – build a soundtrack for a novel – generally I chose a song that captures the essence of each main character, songs that anchor the sentiment or tension of key scenes and then songs that evoke the overall tone of the novel.
Couple of other ways I spark my Creative Psyche is to leave my stereo off during my morning commute because the quiet stirs my creativity and pretty soon ideas are flying. Also, every morning, before I get out of bed, I quickly analyze any dreams for fiction potential.
Probably the oddest thing, though, is to FORBID myself to create, write or read for a specified period of time – never longer than an hour – and before the timer goes off, I have a half dozen ideas screaming to be spilled onto paper!
Superb methods, Ruth! You know, I’m with you on the quiet time. I used to run all the time with my ear buds on, but then about four months ago I stopped and absolutely love it.
Regarding forbidding yourself to write, I actually wrote a post about that: A Slightly-Irreverent Guide to Writing Less. You probably saw it, no?
And deviantart rocks. Used to troll through there years ago. Great ideas and kudos for you for writing!
Yes indeed. Always good to be priming the pump of creativity. And reaching outside of the now way too proverbial comfort zone can be an eye-opening adventure.
For example, if your thing is photography, read a book (“Half Moon Street” by Paul Theroux, let’s say), if you are a sculptor, go to an art gallery that is currently showing paintings. Work it.
Good to be here. Thanks, Demian!
Great advice, Peter. And well said, too. =) Thanks for stopping!