creativity

Jun. 10, 2011

Think Quantity

Looking over the numbers of prolific artists and innovators reinforces the basic rule: Creativity is a function of the quantity of work produced.

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Jun. 6, 2011

The creative cycle in a nutshell

A PowerPoint-esque chart by designer/illustrator Christoph Niemann perfectly captures the writing process.

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Mar. 29, 2011

What Creativity Means

Creativity is not about making something out of nothing. It is about making something new out of old things. To create, you must remix.

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Mar. 21, 2011

The Five Commandments

A few rules for a novelist (or any artist, presumably) struggling to get a new project started.

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Jan. 23, 2011

Don’t Do It For Anyone Else

A letter from Keith Haring to an aspiring artist, circa 1987: *Whatever you do, the only secret is to believe in it and satisfy yourself. Don’t do it for anyone else.*

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Feb. 12, 2010

A Lesson from Dickens

In 1839, 27-year-old Charles Dickens was already a superstar. Then he did a strange thing: he applied to law school.

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Dec. 16, 2009

John Irving: “A need to be alone”

“I recognized at a pretty early age — certainly I was pre-teens — I noticed that the school day was enough of the day to spend with my friends. I seemed to have a need to … be alone.” I am sure this is a common characteristic of writers, even gregarious ones. Certainly I needed to [...]

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