Changing Course

On Monday, I finished the first draft of Chasing Creativity, a book about the creative process and how to live a fulfilling creative life. It's the fourth book I've finished to this point, but the first non-fiction.

I was very planned and intentional when it came to this book. It's probably the most intentional project I've put together. The experience of writing a book about the creative process has left me analyzing my own process around my recent creations.

When I begin writing (or planning) a book, I go into it knowing it's a longer term project and not something I could sit down and finish in a single writing session. It's very different from how I approach composite pieces. And that's gotten me thinking about my conceptual work and how I've become a lazy artist.

Every few months or so, I do an art eval. I should write more about this process sometime and share it with you. I've struggled with boredom with myself and my work in the past. But, after finishing the eval, I felt so incredibly inspired to create again.

There were new insights into my work and my process, and a few glaring issues that I've let slip by in my work. One is that I create too quickly and don't take the time for things to come together as well as they could, and another is that I rely far too heavily on Photoshop and have drifted away from creating in camera⁠—a process I love, but haven't done as much over the past couple years. I'll be working on these areas as I move forward in my creative journey.

Also, there's the line between being a digital artist vs a photographer. I merge the two, and lately I've been leaning more in the direction of digital art. Creating in Photoshop is great, but it's too easy, and I want more organic elements in my art. More mixed media and painting on prints. More handmade props and wardrobes. More creative elements made with clay, and book pages, and string, and anything else that comes to mind. I want to try sewing on prints. And making button trees.

What I'm learning through these things is that it's important to take time to create. Not just in setting aside time for art, but in genuinely allowing each piece enough time to come together, allowing it to take up space, and putting forth the effort to truly bring concepts to life. This process requires more thought, more intentionality.

And I'm excited to see what new things I'll create and what avenues I've left unexplored.