Surprisingly, as a writer, I typically stay away from online lists such as these. I don't like being told what to do and, amazingly, neither does my muse. But if you are in the creative field as a passion, hobby or profession (or all three), then stick with me. Here are some habits that I have tried to foster when inspiration has fizzled out and all I'm left with is a deadline or a feeling of frustration.
1. Make a path of inspiration.
Making a path of inspiration is all about knowing where you want it to lead. I do this by having two running lists. One is the spike and the other is the slow-release. On my 'spike' list are the short pockets of things I love, like the songs that get me in the writing mood for different scenes or the quotes that I've collected to spark an article idea or the pictures I've saved on Pinterest to help me develop a character. The 'slow-release' list is where I go when I have a longer project to work on, or when my muse has been missing for a while. I keep spoken poetry that has touched me, Youtube videos from SoSonia, pages from books and blog articles for this one. Constantly adding things to these lists helps me stay inspired, but stay on task. Instead of mindlessly searching the Internet before working, I can take my already planned path down interwebz inspiration and then get to my art.
2. Get outside of yourself.
Artists, more than any other group of professionals, tend to be introspective. We are inclined to value and protect the viewpoint that we have towards the world (and why wouldn't we? The creative's voice is the unique gift around which we build our visions). Sometimes, though, artists will withdraw as a way to protect this voice, which can spiral into isolationism. We have to battle that natural feeling and make a concerted effort to connect with other people as a way to become more creative. Connecting with other people is important for every dimension of a human being, but creatively it allows us to get unstuck from our perspective and to be more in tune with what the emotional needs are around us, as well as making us more aware of the common thread of humanity that connects us all. Scribbled over my journal is a piece of literature about this that has stuck with me; "What happens when people open their hearts?"
"They get better"
- Haruki Murakami
3. Take a class or join a group.
Basically, get involved with something that has deadlines and accountability. As a creative writer, I battled with frustration because I could never find a good writing class or a group of writers to physically meet with each week. I've slowly learned that sometimes what we think will make us better artists is miles off from what will really make us more inspired. I've been surprised to find that my imagination has come alive with a literature class that I've taken in college, my dabbling in watercolors and my online group on embroidery. Having other people interacting with my projects and having a few deadlines looming over me has spurred me forward when I absolutely do not want to finish my project. Now, I have boxes and files full of finished projects with good feedback from each. This moves me forward and gives me a broad background to learn from.
4. Unclench your fists.
Fear and self-doubt creep into art like termites to wood, but it's often where we least expect. I was surprised to find that my biggest fear of failure came after my biggest project was done. Mothers shouldn't have favorites and neither should writers, but I had written a creative non-fiction piece that was the least self-censored pieces that I had written to date, and it resonated with people. It was an achievement in my career but anxiety about my future in writing began brewing. This caused a creative stagnation for my writing, and I had to slowly let the piece go and detach myself a little bit. Artists, writers, entrepreneurs and other creatives, we need to move forward and let our failures stay in the past, and the same goes for creative triumphs. So unclench your fists and believe you'll make other beautiful things. The tools for the next thing are still in your hand. They have nowhere else to go.
