Your Creative Intentions: The Monday Post ~ March 11, 2013
If you aren’t doing your creative work as often as you’d like, recommit to a regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if possible — is one of the best ways to stay in touch with how you make meaning. Can a regular creative practice be part of your intentions for 2013?
What are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic intention or practice plan — and ink that time in your calendar. The scheduling part is important, because as you know, if you try to “fit it in” around the edges, it generally won’t happen. An intention as simple as “I will write for 20 minutes every morning after breakfast” or “I will sketch a new still life on Wednesday evening” is what it’s all about.
Share your intentions or goals as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post. We use a broad brush in defining creativity, so don’t be shy. We also often include well-being practices that support creativity, such as exercise and journaling.
Putting your intentions on “paper” helps you get clear on what you want to do — and sharing those intentions with this community leverages the motivation of an accountability group. Join us!
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Studio Mothers: Life & Art 
just last week, i wrote on a post it all my intentions of why i create. I post it on my work area wall so i could always be reminded of why i illustrate and write.Thus it creates a motivation for me to draw, and write on my blog. I didn’t put any rules, i read i one of a blog that if we start using rules, we stop using our instinct and i believe that to create something we have to undeniably follow our instinct for style, colors and perspective for beauty. I put 1 rule exemption though, “never Seek affirmation and Validation online.” :))
lol 😉
Well I’ve finished needle felting my tree, but haven’t waxed any of my pots. I feel in a weird way that my ceramics are blocking me somehow. I have a huge stack of items which just need to be finished off and then I can pack them all off to be fired… So:
1) Bring in all my ceramics gear from the garage
2) Finish all glazing details
3) Wax the bottoms
4) Clear glaze
5) Take to Jacksons Head Office to be fired
6) Go to Jackson’s store and buy acid free tissue, gesso and binder medium to finish my “Safe Harbour” painting
7) Experiment with making chalk paint
I’ll do this slowly over the next week. I’m finding this Monday check-in EXTREMELY useful. I also usually take the time just to read over a bit of the e-book while I’m at it…..
This sounds awesome! I wish I was into ceramics. One day when we have a garage!
Terrific list, Molly! Any thoughts on your resistance around the ceramics? It does sound like there aren’t many steps left, and you have a clear sense of what they are and what the finish line is — so we can probably cross off those common barriers. Would love to know what you think might be going on.
Its a two pronged thing. The first one is that I am a skimmer, not a diver, so I’ve trailed the “Never finishes things” tag around with me for far too long. As a result I’ve held on when I really should let go, far more often than I haven’t finished things 🙂
Consequently I’m tangled about it, but it IS good for me to finish my creative projects, otherwise they a) take up space and b) Make me sad (Like the Simpsons episode where Homer pulls a half finished robot out of the garage and it says “Father, why won’t you give me legs ?”)
The second prong is that I am trying to consciously honor my creative process, which is a tenuous thing. I call it “Following the Windsong of the Universe” (Leonie Dawson calls it “Riding the Wild Donkey” LOL ! http://leoniedawson.com/the-wild-donkey-secret-to-getting-stuff-done)
I feel as though I am standing on a beach, listening for a tiny thread of music on the wind. I turn this way and that, take a few steps, trying to see where the music is loudest. If I try to force it, or do something “because I should” or “to make money from it” rather than because it draws me, that tiny sound dries up and I have to start again, listening to the wind, seeing what draws me.
Some people are born with a marching band;in fact I suspect MOST people are born with a marching band, but it gets shouted down by the voices of society.
That Rumi quote haunts me – “Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray.”
I am at a point in my life where I don’t actually *know* what I love, because I have spent so much time doing what I “should” or “what I’m good at” or “What will pay the rent”. Which is ridiculous.
So I pay a lot of attention to what tugs at me, what I really enjoy. When I find something, I ride that wild donkey until it stops. Nothing so far has grabbed me by the gut and said “Hallelujah !!! THIS IS IT. YOU HAVE FOUND YOUR LIFE PURPOSE !!” but I *have* found a lot of places of flow….
I have decided to behave as though I was spending 2 years at Art School, except I get to choose the Curriculum. I’ll do what draws me – a workshop here, an online course there… and try as many different media as I can.
But the problem with this approach is finishing things before the donkey stops 🙂 Moving on before I’ve finished what I’ve started. Finishing things does lead to that sense of completion, and frees up space, but I need to listen carefully to what draws me onwards, at the same time.
What I’ve learnt from ceramics is that I’m not interested in throwing pots, but I am interested in surface decoration; so the fact that I can’t q-u-i-t-e finish the surface decoration is ironic 🙂
Such terrific insight, Molly! Would you be interested in turning these thoughts into a guest blog post for Studio Mothers?
Would love to work up a post for you 🙂 Could you ping me on my email address and let me know how many words you’re looking for /style / format /due date 🙂 ?
Thanks, Molly! I just e-mailed you the info. Looking forward to your post!
Tonight: work on a submission due later in the month. Tuesday evening: my weekly blog post. Thursday morning: take a little time to wander through my favorite galleries at the art museum, journal in hand. Each night before bed: read at least a few pages of the lovely poetry collection I’m savoring my way through.
Great! Nice to have you back, K.
I don’t have kids yet by I have been feeling the need for a creative outlet in my life lately. I started my blog in February with the goal of writing one post per day for (at least) a year. I also have been planning out a special project nearly every weekend. This ranges from sewing, crocheting, baking/cooking, or creating some sort of artwork. I definitely agree with you, setting aside time for it is key. And making sure that I have time to complete this stuff is making me feel more balanced.
Wonderful, thighsonfire! (That’s a heck of a handle, btw! 😉 )
So great that your staking out a clear creative practice — if and when you do have kids, you’ll be so glad to have that foundation.
My husband goes back to work on Wednesday after 3.5 months of unemployment. While it will be — uhm — NICE to have his income again, not to mention having health insurance, I’m not looking forward to it. He’s been doing all of the preschool driving (which eats up about 9 hours a week), lots of grocery shopping, cooking, and general domestic support. I’ve gotten used to hanging out with him while I’m working, and being able to chat with him whenever. Perhaps more significantly, since his mother has moved in with us, he’ll no longer be the primary source of her day-to-day care (medicine reminders, meals, getting her to medical appointments or arranging for her transportation, being around in case she has a problem). That will now be me. In other words, the shit is going to hit the fan on Wednesday, and I’m not ready!
Last week was partly eaten by birthday party preparations for my now-8-year-old, and tomorrow is my husband’s birthday — but with those events moving into the rearview mirror and the significant re-jigging on deck due to paragraph #1 above, I have a lot of sorting out to do this week. With my husband around, I’ve been letting my work days run well past the time that my kids get home from school. I need to stop doing that. Goal for W/Th/Fri this week: institute a hard-stop for work time at 3:00 (which is when I have to leave for preschool pickup). That’s it. No laptop time after that, unless I’m printing photos for Project Life or doing a project with the kids that requires online access. This is my goal. With the added driving and domestic tasks on TOP of a shortened work day, I’m going to have to call on whatever superpowers I can scrounge. (If you have any to spare, send them over. Please.)
Daily writing practice streak: 89 days in a row of logging a minimum of 500 words daily in my WIP. Last week I was much better about doing my words earlier in the day (but that said, have not yet done today’s words). Also needs to happen in the mornings given new schedule.
Last week’s creative/well-being intentions:
* Daily morning centering practice w/Morning Pages and intention journaling [yes]
* Daily writing practice [yes]
* Complete installment of short story for “5PM Friday” weekly accountability group [[yes]]
* Write blog post [no]
* Start working on newsletter [no]
* Yoga/walk x3 [yes]
* Daily reading [yes]
* Project Life [no]
This week’s creative/well-being intentions:
* Daily morning centering practice w/Morning Pages and intention journaling
* Daily writing practice
* Complete installment of short story for “5PM Friday” weekly accountability group [daily]
* Read peer pieces in preparation for Wednesday writers’ group
* Write blog post [T/W]
* Start working on newsletter [W/Th]
* Yoga/walk x3 [M/W/Th]
* Daily reading
* Project Life [afternoons w/kids]
Monday, March 11, 2013
1. Monday- printmaking class with Pam Lawson
2. Morning writing: daily
3. Daily yoga practice
4. Tax preparation done and mailed
5. Begin painting the kitchen and downstairs hall
6. Daily drawing, even a 5 minute sketch.
7. Wednesday writing group meets this week, not sure I can make it yet given everything else I have to do but I’m going to try.
8. Gallery: begin writing about Tarbell, finish the summer portrait prospectus, email director re budget
Quite honestly, this is more than I can do in one week. I’m going to have to prune the tree so to speak. This is hardest of all for me! But at least I’m fully recovered from the flu and the elementary musical is over. And since I’m writing this Monday afternoon, I’ve already been to printmaking and made 2 monotypes today. Yay!
This week: cut myself a little slack and realize that you can’t always force the creativity to come (even if you try really, really hard). I think I need to read and relax and maybe go for a walk or two before I can be drunk on writing again.
Kindness and walking are good! And sometimes when you don’t “feel” creative but you show up and do the work anyway, wonderful things happen — even when the muse seems to be on vacation 😉
Today I popped over here because I was sure there was something I missed. I see my Writing Drunk blog post fits perfectly with the Ray Bradbury quote – SYNCHRONICITY! My Creative Intentions for this week are to continue to move forward with my two mixed media works (and enjoy the heck out of the creative process), to play with the new art I am trying. (I seem to be at an impasse, I think due to fear…) and then to write write write. I seem to be coming back into myself. Must be Spring and rebirth and all that… I just feel so alive! And the final Creative Intention is to stay awake enough to hear what my muses are calling me to birth. Last night’s trip -totally spontaneous – to the almond orchard – was spectacular. I am intending for MORE of that!!
Adding “let the intentions tap me on the shoulder on Sunday, so I can begin to prepare in a timely manner… ” *giggles*
Thank you, Miranda!
Wonderful, Julie! Would love to see your Writing Drunk blog post, too — will you share a link? xo