I love this new notebook I got from Two Hands Paperie. I chose the dot grid paper for the interior. I think I will use this for my daily writing in October. Who wants to write with me daily? Join The Devoted Writer here.
What’s your creative focus for autumn?
It’s that back-to-school feeling where I get the urge to settle in with books and notebooks and plans. The lifelong learner in me loves to engage with a project or course of study.
What are you studying? What is your creative focus for autumn?
Say you are starting back at school now, and you want to end the year feeling like a creative champ. What would you focus on for the final quarter of the year? Choose one or two projects that are important to you.
I am focusing on the next draft of my book, The Busy Woman’s Guide to Writing a World-Changing Book. My secondary focus is developing programs to celebrate my 20-year anniversary next year. I can’t wait!
Steve and I are going to upstate New York for Christmas. It’s always been my dream to be on a tropical island, far away from Christmas. I’ll take this! My plan is to have the book completely done and to the designers.
I know it’s early to be thinking about Christmas. (Crikey!) But I am still in long-term planning mode. I have a full and exciting fall planned, so Christmas dreams are my carrot.
For me, it feels good to have this kind of focus. Just two major projects alongside The Devoted Writer and my coaching work. That seems doable. There are other projects begging for my attention, but I am able to keep them at bay when I know what I want to feel most satisfied about when I get on the plane on December 26th.
Make your own creative focus for the fall, keeping it to two major projects at most. See how it feels to enjoy this focus!
Write your heart out with us!
If writing is part of your fall focus, consider joining me and other writers in The Devoted Writer. This class helps you set up a writing practice that makes your heart sing. Join us in October to write your heart out. Get your spot now and start warming up your writing fingers!
Summer watercolor class starts soon
Want to play with watercolor this summer? I’m part of 21 Secrets Just Add Water online watercolor class. It begins July 9th and lasts 10 short, beautiful summer days. Each day hosts a different teacher, so you’ll get a variety of processes and perspectives to help you enjoy creative play this summer.
My class is called Garden of Values, and it brings together my coaching and art. I love helping my clients identify their values, and in this class I bring the process alive in full color.
Join us here for a fun, easy approach to watercolor play!
Ten ways chilling feeds our creativity
What does it mean to chill? To step out of the fray, the urgent drive of efficiency and doing. To relax, to play, to respond to your own inner rhythms instead of the demands of the world.
Chilling is vital to our creativity. I’ve seen this with myself and my clients. We like getting things done, but without relaxing time, our victories are hollow.
Here are ten ways I see chilling as vital to creativity.
1 Our health drives everything! Nothing is made on an empty tank. Chilling helps us stay healthy.
2 Some of the best art is made from ‘happy accidents’. (Champagne!) When we chill, we open the door for surprises that can inform our art.
3 Space breeds originality. Filling ourselves constantly with others’ work supplants our original impulse.
4 Laughter and joy lighten us up. Returning to play and innocence refreshes our spirit in difficult times.
5 Insights have a landing pad when we’re open and ready. Valuable new perspectives can alight on the open fields of space in our days. Receptivity is vital to our creativity.
6 When we chill, we connect with the world around us. It’s vital for our work to be attuned to our senses.
7 Our imagination is our superpower. Daydreaming, visioning, and imagining only happen when we have space to chill.
8 Chilling feels good and nourishes our nervous systems. We need that in these stressful times.
9 Chilling often connects us with others. We almost always get new insights for our work, or at least a desire to get back to it after being with others.
10 How have you seen chilling as vital to your creative process? Share in a comment below.
Join the Original Impulse Summer Chillenge! It’s free and fun and will exuberate your summer!
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