Day 323: Once in a lifetime...

Yesterday I spent six hours in the car traveling from Devon to Essex. I don't usually travel by car and although it was a long and pretty boring journey, I saw loads of amazing things, creative and inspiring in their own way. But, like an idiot, I didn't take any pictures.

It got me thinking about all the things I do, which I'll only do once. I mean, I will do that journey again, but it won't be the same. There will be different cars filled with different people, doing different things at a different time. The weather won't be the same. The people I travel with won't be the same. The traffic will stop and start and different places. I'll see different birds, different houses, different pedestrians.

It's like when you go to  gig. That collection of people will never be in the same place sharing the same experience ever again.

Most things we do, we will never do it again. If you think about it, everything is once in a lifetime. So, how do you capture them? How do you capture the creativity, the inspiration that you get...?

Something to think about...

Day 315: Break Dancing Mickey

First off, I'd like to ask, who is NOT inspired by Mickey Mouse? I mean, come on, a giant mouse, who can talk and has single handedly (with the help of Walt) revolutionised animation!

But how is he on the dance floor? Look no further, people. Mickey's got the moves here!

Could you beat Mickey in a dance-off? I don't think I'd dare challenge him! Pretty inspiring stuff though, right? It's made me look at Mickey Mouse in an entirely different (creative) light.

Day 300: Bath

Shocking, shocking! I can't believe I've successfully managed to reach the 300th day of my blog challenge. Yay for me!

Anyway, every so often I like to treat myself to watching a Charlie McDonald video on YouTube. He amuses me and his videos are the perfect amount of time to enjoy a (cooled down) mug of tea. Today is one of those days (if you can't treat yourself on your 300th entry day, when can you, eh?) and it turns out Charlie is from Bath.

As I now live in Bath I really enjoyed it, perhaps more so than usual and as it's creative I thought I'd share Bath with more people by putting it on my blog too:



Really I should make my own video of Bath and be proper creative instead of just directing you to another person's creativity. Does it help if I say I'm going to do some knitting now?

Day 295: The art of looking

Check out this photo which I stole (with permission) from a friend on facebook.

I think it's brilliant. What can you see? What do you think it is? What does it remind you of? How do the colours make you feel?

I know it might seem like I'm just practising my counselling skills on you, but I'm trying to prompting you to look, observe, watch. I always find looking an inspiring experience. Not in a hippy way, but in a creative way.

Try thinking about this image in terms of your own creative work. Can you make any connection? Why? Why not? Does it spark any ideas?

If it's still not really doing anything for you, try making a list of all the things it reminds you of.

Here's a few to start you off:
Steam rising from a cow's back in the morning sunlight.
New York Night Traffic
Fireflies buzzing

So, how ever you choose to do it, spend some time looking today and see where it takes your creative thoughts...

Day 294: Have Great Expectations!

So, here is a list of things that popped into my head this morning. Chose one to inspire your creativity today...

Honeycomb candles dyed pink, orange or purple.
Fairy cakes, shaped like black bats.
Umbrellas dripping with rhythmic raindrops.
Salt collected on your skin after swimming in the sea.
Fresh Coconuts filled with sour juice.
The crinkle of new wrapping paper.
Balloons.
Coffee in the mornings.
Talcum powder.
Church bells from the Abbey tower.
The ache of your jaw when you taste lemons.
Somewhere over the rainbow.
Counter clockwise.
After tomorrow we'll be finished.
Laughing until your tummy hurts.
Counting ancient steps weathered by walkers.

Why not make your own list and see where it takes you? Give your imagination a workout!

Day 289: Design the World...

Today, I decided to walk back to my house the long way round, through the park to make the most of the sunshine. You never know when you'll next see it, so it's best to catch it while you can.

Everyone obviously had the same idea as me. There were people everywhere; walking, sun bathing, playing football. The kid's park was rammed!

Naturally, on my stole, my thoughts wondered all over the place and I got to noticing all the things I could see. It started off with a lamp post. It was one of those ones which looks really old fashioned, like it should have a real flame in it at night, but you know it's really a fake, 'in keeping with the surroundings.' You know the ones. Someone designed that deliberately to have in that exact place, next to Bath's Royal Crescent.

In fact, everything I could see was designed by someone; the clothes people were wearing, the cars parked up, the posters on show, the bandstand, the dog leads, the playground equipment, even the way the flowers were arranged. Everything. It's all designed by someone and then redesigned by someone else.

Look around you now, wherever you are. I bet most things you can see were designed to be a certain way. Even the devise you're reading this on.

I don't know about you, but that blows my mind! We don't even think about it, but actually everything has a designer....

I wonder what they're like. Where do they live? Do they like their job? How did they get into it?

In fact even the objects themselves have a story. Where were they made? Who by? Where were they sold?How did they get here now...?

If everything is designed everything has a designer. Everything has a story.

Just a thought...

Day 286: Bob Marley's sweet sunshine

The last two days have been filled with sunshine and I just love it! I dragged a chair out into my little sun-trap garden and ate my lunch watching the little birds that are nesting in our bush swoop down and eat the grains from the ground. They've fallen out of the bird feeder, which hangs on our rarely used washing line.

Whilst catching the sun rays, rare as gold dust in Bath, I was trying to think of something inspiring to share with you all on this Sunday afternoon, but all I wanted to write about was the sunshine.

My little garden is generally quiet, but as I sat there I could hear the odd lawn mower going, the shouts of kids playing in their gardens and people tooing and frowing from the park down the road. Everyone loves a bit of sunshine, especially in the UK. Generally, us Brits love complaining about the rain we get, but if you think about it, rain's actually amazing. Not only does it give us such a vibrant countryside, (and a flowing water cycle, of course) it also makes us appreciate the odd days of warm sunshine.

I feel like sunshine actually inspires a lot of creativity because it make people (in the UK, anyway) really happy. I mean, Bob Marley for one is clearly a fan. There's even a Mister Men book named after sunshine, followed by a film by the same name, but not really the same story! (Check out Day 264 for more of that one.) It's inspired me to write this entry anyway.

How does the sun inspire you to be creative? Have a think about it...in the sun...

Day 279: Fanatical about films?

I have spent most of the day sitting behind Box Office at work looking through the Odeon Magazine. Some of the films coming out soon I quite fancy like, The Adjustment Bureau and The Lincoln Lawyer. They look interesting: What could be in their future that would cause them to become wanted in their present? Why would a man run a law firm from his car?

But some of the films like, Battle: Los Angeles and Unknown really didn't interest me. Why is that? Why do some of us want to see those films and some of us don't? What is it about them that makes us fancy them (or not)?

Is it their stories? Their actors or directors? Is it their marketing?

Odeon claims to be fanatical about films, but are they really? I mean, can any one person be fanatical about all films? I don't think so...

Just one of the thoughts that filled my head as I waited for the next film lover to buy a ticket from me today...

Day 270: Who will write the next all-time Classic?

Over the past few days, I've been to a few more Bath Literature Festival events and have seen quite a few authors speaking about their work, about writing process and about books in general.

One interesting question that came up in the The Classics talk on Wednesday was who writers write for. Books like Rebecca by Daphne De Maurier and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy  have been entertaining readers for decades, but did their authors imagine that their stories would still be enjoyed in the 21st Century? Were they writing for us or were they writing for their own generation?

I think this idea is really interesting. When I write my stories or even my blog entries, I am writing for you, right now, for the youth of this generation, not those who are going to live in 50 years time, but maybe other people do write with future generations in mind, trying to make it timeless. I wonder if they have a reader in mind as they sit there, plotting and creating characters. Perhaps these things just happen. To plan to be a international best seller decade after decade is probably not the best way to write, but what do I know?

If you wrote/are writing a book, who would/are you writing for? Do you have someone in mind? Do you write for yourself? Something to think about... 

Day 253: Black Swan and The King's Speech

On Sunday night I went to see Black Swan and to be perfectly honest, I hated it. It freaked me out and I could not get to sleep for thinking about it.

Maybe it's just me, but I find, as a visually fueled person, images stay with me for a long time. I have also been told I have an over active brain, aka, I think too much, so watching to a film like that and then going to bed just reeks chaos in my mind!

About an hour after I'd settled down into bed, a picture from my wall fell down and scared the hell out of me! Seriously, I thought my heart was going to explode.

I'm just not very good at scary stuff, okay!

Anyway, mixed in with these fears was this thought; cinema (and films) have the power to affect us in incredible ways. In the past people have written about cinema audiences as passive. In other words, we just watch the screen with no interaction with what we see. But that is so NOT true. If that were the case, I would not be up for hours, fearing what might come up from under my bed. I wouldn't laugh at The King's Speech when King George VI is swearing at the top of his lungs. I wouldn't cry when he finally gives his first war time speech.

The cinema is a powerful creative creature. Don't under estimate it's affect on it's audience and don't go straight to bed after you've seen Black Swan!

Day 251: Thoughts from an Odeon worker...

As many of you know, I work part time at the Odeon. Pocket money whilst at Uni, I guess. Yesterday, I spent 10 and a half hours telling people they'll be upstairs in screen 8 and to enjoy their film.

The thing I've noticed, as a creative thinker, is that people believe they're being funny and original when actually, they all respond with the same 'jokes'. When I ask someone where they want to sit ('cause the Odeon has allocated seating) they say, 'In a seat,' nudging their friends, like they're the first person who ever thought that one up.

At the moment, we have to try and make people buy an Odeon Premier Card (which actually is a good deal) but as soon as you say it, they cut you off with a firm, 'NO'. That's when I tend to give up. I've started calling it a loyalty card, in the hope that it'll sound more appealing, but then you get the wise cracks that say, 'No thanks, I'm not loyal.' One day I'll respond with, 'Well done, mate. You've taken the word I just said and turned it around. Rocket science, that one!'

Yesterday, however, someone did stand out. When I asked them if they would be interested in one of out loyalty cards, they looked me straight in the eye and said, 'No, I'm extremely fickle.'

What a thing to say! Was he joking? Who knows, but it really did brighten up my day in a weird way because he was different and it gave me hope. People are the same, but there's always those few who don't conform to the norm. They are the people who stand out and they are usually creative thinkers.

Creativity is always the envy of others. People wanna know how you can do that or maybe why we do it, but it's what makes you you! So, keep up the good work, folks. You never know whose day you'll make better.

Be that different voice, be creative and be proud of it!

Day 249: When stories come alive...

Yesterday I spent a good few hours actually writing (not blog writing, but 'proper' story writing.) Usually when I sit down to write, I know what events are going to happen and yesterday's session was no different. I knew that Holly (my main character) was going to go up town and get a charger for her stolen laptop (!), but on the way things happened that I didn't plan. She ends up seeing a job advert in the shop window. No big deal, right? Well, it fed an idea for later on in the story where her brother, Tom, gets a job there and nearly reveals Holly's secret...And she bumps into some 'bullys' from school which sets that up for later too.

Sometimes it freaks me out when this happens, like the story is creating itself. I didn't plan for any of that to happen, but it did. The world of my story invented it!

You probably think I'm going a bit crazy now. Surely those ideas came from me and I guess they did, but it's almost like the story is alive in its own right or something!

Freaky...

Try it yourself. Make up a character, give a bit of back story and then take them on a walk (on the page I mean, not literally.) You'll be surprised where they take you...

Day 239: Terrific Illusion, eh?

I got this sent to me today and I have to say, it's pretty impressive. Take a look:



I love illusions, don't you? There's loads of this kind of stuff around at the moment, what with Derren Brown and films like The Illusionist and The Prestigue. But is there much creativity involved?

What do these kind of things make you think about? I find myself really concentrating, looking for anything that could give it away. And, I HATE it when I can't work it out!

People must come up with these gags, design them, test them out. You need the right atmosphere, music, lighting...So yeah, I recon there is an element of creativity involved, hence the blog entry. You need to be a creative thinker to come up with illusions...

How do you recon it's done then?? Wanna know my theory? I don't think it's a real person myself. Watch it again, before he gets chopped in half. It's a machine, I recon!

Day 238: Daniel Pennac

As I mentioned yesterday, I've just finished reading a great book called The Rights of the Reader by Daniel Pennac. He's an author and a teacher and it's certainly evident from his book that he has a lot of opinions about how we get taught to read.

In one chapter he talks about reading and how we find time for it. Do we find time for it? Well, it depends if it's important to us. Daniel Pennac says it beautifully, 'time to read is always time stolen.'

Isn't that true of all things we love? I know I should definitely read more, but I'd much rather spend that stolen time doing some knitting!

What do you spend stolen time on? Most people spend it doing the things they love and I guess for many of us, it involved creativity, am I right?

I think creativity begins to take over our time in some ways, not just the stolen bits. Should it take over? Pennac quotes Legend of the Fall by Jim Harrison, whose character, Burlington says, "Yes, when you buy a jacket, it's important the pockets are big enough for a paperback!"

The things we love spending time on do affect other areas of our lives. I've heard drummers say they bought that car 'cause its boot's big enough for the whole drum kit. Or student artist demanding the biggest room in their shared house so they have space to paint.

So what about you? Do you steal time for your creations? Do you customize your life for your 'art'? Should you?

Something to think about...

Day 235: Tangled

Yep, it's that wonderful time of year again! Disney are bringing out another film for us to enjoy.

As I've said before, I have been a lifelong fan of Disney. They filled my childhood with many good memories. I find it weird when I meet someone who hasn't seen ALL the Disney Classics. I mean, what did you do when they were young??

I remember the first time I realised Robin Hood wasn't actually a fox and Ariel didn't actually marry the prince and live happily ever after. The moment I realised Disney just steal stories from other people and wrap them up in cotton wool was a sad day.

Their latest addition, Tangled is no exception. It's quite clearly a 'new take' on Rapunzel (the one with long hair that lives in a tower.)

Don't get me wrong people, I'm going to see it and I have no doubt that I will thoroughly enjoy it. Going to see Disney is like walking down memory lane, remembering all the times me and my sisters shared Disney. I love it, I love it, I love it!

So without further a do, here's a sneak peek at the newbie. Enjoy!

Day 234: Creativity and the bean stork

Are there some things that are more important to you than others? Do you think some lessons at school/college are more worth while?

I find that it doesn't matter how much work I've done for Uni each day, if I haven't written anything for my novel, I don't feel like I've achieved anything. I could have done loads of reading, planned for my competition project, sent a million emails...if I haven't done any creative writing then, in my head, I've done nothing.

Do you ever get like that?

Sometimes, I'll get to the end of the day feeling a bit rubbish about my 'achievements', then I'll do half an hour of knitting (or something else creative that I love) and everything's fine again.

What does this say about my priorities? What does it say about what matters to me? What does it say about my creativity?

It's weird isn't it? Do non-creative people get this? Please don't tell me I'm the only one!

After a bit of thinking, I've come to the decision that creative things I do, like knitting and writing, grow. I can see the change I've made. There are more words in that story, the characters are more developed...the dinosaur I'm knitting  has a longer neck (yep, I'm doing it...see Day 213).

So yeah, it's in the word...to be creative is to create. Why wouldn't you love it?

Day 229: Do you believe in your own creativity?

Sometimes I look at the world and think, how am I ever going to get anywhere with my creative skills? Does the world really need them? Do it even want them?

Even my some of my teacher tell me, 'it's so hard to break the industry. Most of you won't ever make it...'

Encouraging stuff, huh?

Well, this is the decision I've come to this morning because of an amazing teacher called Janine. In my lesson yesterday (and in many of lessons actually) she claimed our writing was better than an author that just one a prize for their book. She always says things like, 'when you get published' or 'when you send yours off to publishers.' She believes in us and the more you're told you can do it, the more you believe it. It gives you the motivation to carry on and believe that what you've got can make a difference.

So, what are you doing? If you believe in yourself and your creative abilities, you can do it! I'm here to say that creativity is important. It doesn't matter what the government says. It doesn't matter what our maths teacher says. Creativity is part of everyone and we got given an extra dose, so share it!

I wouldn't be writing this blog everyday if I didn't believe in creativity. So get out there and show the world what you got. If you think it's important, then it is! No one can do creativity like you can. You are unique and the world needs you.

Are you with me?

Day 227: Black Swan

This Friday sees the release of the highly anticipated Black Swan staring Natalie Portman. It's a psychological thriller about ballet and the conflicts between its perception of elegance and the realities behind the curtain.

The thing that stuck me about this film is how it has been born from creativity itself. This poster is the first one I ever saw for this film back in November last year. I was captured by how different it was from all the other film poster I see. No photographs, no fuss over star actors, just visuals. It's colours are minimal and full of impact.

The film is about ballet, which is creative, right? It's a film about the arts. Without the ballet, Swan Lake, this film couldn't exist and without Black Swan, the beautiful posters that advertise it couldn't exist. In fact, without swans, could any of it exist? (a topic for another day I think!)

Creativity, it seems, breeds creativity.

Just think about the things that you love creatively. Someone created that because they were inspired by something creative before that. Who knows, perhaps one day we will be the ones doing the inspiring. Our creative work will be part of the chain too...

What new creation would you like to inspire?

Day 225: Should you put kisses in text?

So, I know this isn't directly related, but bare with me...

Me and my housemates were just having a chat about whether you should send 'x's (kisses) in texts. One of them said, 'well, if I text a boy I don't send kisses.' But I totally do. Am I giving them the wrong impression...?

For me it's kind of a signing off. I don't want to waste characters on writing, 'love/from Emma.' That's 8 characters, when I can just use one, 'x'. Everyone gets one kiss from my boyfriend to a work colleague.

The other day I had a convo with my sister who said, 'I only send you one kiss 'cause you only send me one. I send Grania (her best friend) three.' Cheek! Does that mean she 'loves' Grania more than me...?

I'm pretty sure this kind of confusion about texting politics is not new to you either. Don't you think it'd be better if everyone did the same thing? What we need is a code.

So, this is my creative proposal for today. I need someone to write a book about 'text eticate' and publish it everywhere. Only then will we find rest with this heated topic!

Whose with me? Whose up for the challenge? The world needs your creative input...

Day 215: How do we improve out creativity?

I have spent the morning reading through a story written by a friend of mine. Unfortunately, I can't tell you anything about this story 'cause it's not mine to tell. So, why mention it?

As I was reading through, I kept thinking about all the writing I should be doing, rather than reading someone else's. It's not going to get me anywhere helping them out, so why am I spending all this time doing it...?

Well, the truth is, none of that is true. Reading other people's work really does help me. If I can see how they can improve their work, I am also learning to improve my own. Take dialogue, for example. Does the old man's dialogue sound like an old man? Does the old man sound different to the little girl? If they don't then, it's not convincing dialogue...

...Now, when I right my dialogue, it'll be better. If you're a writer, reading and editing is learning.

What is your creative thing you do? How do you learn about it? How do you get better? Could helping others along, help yourself along too?

Something to think about...