A Year in Insta-Pics

'Tis the Season... to reflect on another trip around the sun.

Social Media is essentially just a microblog, and a great way to look back on what's happened throughout the year. 

My Twitter feed is endless, and Facebook much the same - aside from Facebook randomly flashing up 'memories' from years back - but Instagram, is a great way to look back on a chronological slideshow of snapshots.
 
Here I am...

Amy's Pretty Little Insta-Feed

(Follow me and I'll follow back..)
 
I'm going to go ahead and admit that I'm not a big fan of Instagram. 

As someone who uses a PC or Laptop as my primary device (I'm a writer, I need a keyboard), it irritates me that I'm forced to faff around with a stupid phone to share things; especially when the image was taken with a 'proper camera' (yes, some of us still use those). 

I end up copying images from my camera to Dropbox or emailing it to myself and saving it to the phone and then sharing it (pain in the backside!). 

I also find Instagram generally a bit clunky to use (although I do like the filters). As a consequence, I only post a picture every few days and it's often on impulse. It means my feed genuinely is a neat visual record of what was in my brain that day.

Here's some of my favourite pics from a rather lovely year...

A year filled with coffee, beer, cake, novelty stationery, books, writing, flowers, hats, art, beaches, cats and Bristolness!

What were your favourite moments (immortalised on Instagram or otherwise) from 2017?

Conquering Creative Constipation

There's always some sense of being repressed, deep in your forever-questioning brain when you are a creative.

I say 'a creative' like we're a species unto ourselves. 

I believe that all humans are naturally, innately creative - you just have to spend a couple of minutes watching small children play as they make sense of the world as proof of this.

I wrote a blog on this 'You're More Creative than You Think' last year and I also blogged on 20 Ways to Keep The Creative Juices Flowing.

When I say 'a creative' I mean people who identify themselves as creative and who perhaps make a living doing something conspicuously creative: visual arts, music, sculpture, design, photography, writing etc. These are the things people usually associate with 'creativity' and will say "I'm not creative" because these forms of self-expression don't resonate.

Perhaps your creativity is in the kitchen? Or in finding ways to entertain your children? Or building complex spreadsheets to solve a problem? Essentially, creativity is how 'problem solving' manifests itself. Any by-product or solution that you 'create' to overcome an obstacle is a form of creativity.

My creativity comes at me from many places. I go through peaks and troughs in the way I express myself. 

Having published The Sheridan and Blake books in such quick succession - 4 books in 3 years - I've struggled to get back to creative writing.

I've had the concept for my next novel - a new series of books - floating around in my head since I first met 'Katarina Orlov' defending Tom and Sasha from an assassin at a tube station when I wrote 'Gabriel's Game, Part 1: The White Queen'.

I knew then that the sassy, bi-sexual, multilingual, freelance finder and single mum with the black cat tattoo on her back - Kat - would be my next star!

I decided to designate August as my month to bash out the first draft of that book 'Finding The Scream' and blogged about it HERE.

Here's the blurb for the latest book (I managed to extract that from myself last week!):

Alas, my month of writing wasn't to be, when a flurry of bookings and jobs landed in my inbox and screeched from my voicemail. 

I couldn't even manage the two tips I offer to anyone facing a similar dilemma:

1) Build writing into your routine

2) Bum in chair, write!


I call this inability to conjure the muse 'Creative Constipation' - the discomfort and frustration of being blocked up!

Last week I had a breakthrough. I did two of the things on my list of 20  ways to get those creative juices flowing:

no. 14) Hang out with creative people

no. 18) Do something you've never done before


I went to a 'Boost Your Natural Confidence' event hosted by the lovely Hils Crisp and I went to a 'Creativity Circles' event hosted by the wonderful Mags MacKean as part of Bristol Festival of Literature.

Hils' event took us through some techniques to discover our confidence triggers. 

I was heartened by how open the other people in the group were, considering we were complete strangers, we all shared our confidence challenges openly and it was great to see that we all recongnised so many of them. I came away feeling invincible!

The next morning I took out my free writing notebook and let the ideas pour from me. 

Later in the day I went to Mags' event, already feeling rejuvenated, the creativity circle provoked a surprisingly emotional reaction.

Now, just to get one thing straight, I'm pretty cynical about anything that's too 'hippy-dippy' - the kind of mumbo-jumbo that makes my eyes roll because there is always a danger that if you are too open minded, your brain might just fall out! 

On the face of it, what I'm about to share may seem to contradict that. However, I've known Mags for many years, I like and respect her so, although I wasn't sure what to expect, I trust in Mags' approach. 

There was plenty of closed-eyes deep-breathing. There were stones to pass our doubts and fears into. Then we went looking for our tree - something solid, something we could imagine, something we could go back to, something that could embody our creativity.

I had a vivid image of my tree. It was enormous, broad, I could only just span my arms across it, heavy with fruit.

Without really realising what was happening, I shed tears of relief at finding and knowing the tree, a voice in the back of my brain whispering: "I see you!"

As the tears settled in the hollow of my throat, I imagined them seeping into the pounded earth and nourishing the roots of the tree. My tree. Laden with fruits of soft, juicy peach and crisp, zingy apples. I bite down on the resistant globe of an apple and feel the satisfaction of that crunch between my teeth. My apple, from my magic 'Papple tree'.Well, I guess there's no doubt in my mind now how powerful our imaginations can be!





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Stretch your creative legs...

Tom Cat's Mewsings

I first started my Idea'ism blog as a way to share and explore ideas.

I wrote a feature for Prowess Women in Business on the concept of idea'ism - the syndrome of having too many ideas:

https://www.prowess.org.uk/living-with-too-many-ideas

 

My exploration into the world of blogging has evolved since my early days. 

Here's the first blog I ever posted: The Idea Bot

Things have changed since then.

It become the place to share my Operation Author 365 Actions to Succeed as an Author then 365 Adventures in Writing and Entrepreneurship.

Since I started my business, Amy Morse, Authorpreneur this summer my adventures in writing and entrepreneurship relocated to my website.

Blogging for me has grown up and got serious. I even run workshops now on Blogging for Business.

Now I have a serious business blog on my website, I don't want to turn my back on Idea'ism.

Idea'ism is my space for ideas, exploring, trying things out and sharing my musings. 

As my first venture into business was 'Tom Cat Designs' and the Twitter handle @TomCatDesigns has stuck it really should be 'Mewsings'

So welcome - to the mewsings of the Tom Cat. 

Time to stretch my creative legs...

20 Ways to Keep the Creative Juices Flowing

 2015 is Authorpreneur Almanac year. 

Join me in my 365 Adventures in Writing and Entrepreneurship...

Creativity can be a fickle friend. It often comes and goes in waves, but you can take steps to channel the flow and exercise those creative muscles.


   Here are my 20 ways to get creative

1)      Keep lists

I have a mini notebook that I use purely for lists. I write lists in multiple colours to break it up and keep it lively

 
  
2)   Walk in nature
Step away from the hustle and bustle of your life for a while and take a walk somewhere, you don’t have to go far, just a walk in the park, taking the time to appreciate the greenery can be enough

3)      Ask for feedback

If we keep our ideas in our own bubbles all they do is bounce around in our head losing energy. Share them, ask for feedback and get other people's opinions

4)      Mindmap

Get a big piece of paper and some chunky coloured pens and spread your ideas out in front of you. Once things are written down, it's easier to see how they connect and make space in your head for the next ideas

5)      Free Write

Write every day. Even if you are not working on something, free writing is a great way to clear your head, and you never know, what you write may turn out to be useful one day. Find a quiet space, give yourself some time and just write whatever is in your head. Even if it's nonsense.

6)      Doodle

Allow your pen to swirl around on the page where it likes. Doodling, creating random patterns etc clears you head, it gives your hands something to do while your head processes things.

7)      Experiment

Use whatever craft supplies you can get hold of, card stock, fabric, coloured tapes, ribbons, paints, paper, button, sequins etc and just play. Don't constrain yourself with a plan, just put things together and see what happens

8)      Sketch

Take a sketchbook and pencils with you and just sketch what you see; people, buildings, plants etc. It doesn't matter if you're no good at drawing, it's more about being observant and noticing small details. Forming a habit of noticing details can enhance your writing and give you a fresh perspective on things

9)      5 Best Things from the day

At the end of your day, think about the 5 best things that day. The challenge is to come up with small or different pleasing moments. 
Tip: You could keep them in a journal

10)  Do something that cheers you up

What always makes you laugh?  I've never been able to whistle and whenever I try I always end up falling into fits of giggles. Also, cat videos always make me smile

11)  Reorganise your workspace

Sorting out your desk, work area, wardrobe, kitchen etc.  Reorganising and having a spring clean can be a cleansing experience.

12)  Sort through ephemera and create art

As a performer of random acts of creativity, I collect lots of ephemera. Sort through it and have a go at creating some collages. It's an interesting experience in looking at things a bit differently.

13)  Set some fun goals

When you set goals to move forward, they don't always have to be about work and achieving success. Set some goals to do things from your bucket list. Plan to do small fun things that you'd like to try.

14)  Hang out with creative people

Hanging out with other creatives and talking about creative things can be great for drawing out and forming ideas. Often some wine helps too (not to excess)

15)  Look at inspiring images

Whether it's flicking through National Geographic or pinning lovely things on Pinterest, seeing inspiring images often leads to ideas.

16)  Read Inspiring Quotes

Words can conjure up powerful images or involve strong emotions, reading inspiring quotes is a useful way to increase your vocabulary or express yourself better in writing.

I published a blog on this last week

17)  Talk it out

Sometimes, just chatting it through and having a willing participant while you babble through a stream of consciousness can help clarify things.

18)  Do something you've never done before

Have a go at something new, whether its a physical or mental exercise, stretch your comfort zone and learn new skills

19)  Visit a place you've never been before

A change of scenery can give you a new perspective and fresh ideas

20)  Reuse/Recycle/Repurpose something

Whether it's an old piece of furniture or finding a new use for something old, experiment 



How do you keep the creativity flowing?