Tuesday, January 03, 2012

Inspiration? Try the shower

The Guardian has a fantastic spread at the moment in which some leading creative artists - writers, artists, musicians, choreographers, etc - talk about how and where they find the inspiration that drives them. I particularly like the very concise concluding section by Wayne McGregor. Read the whole thing here.

A couple of late additions from JDCMB:

* Hot water. I get my best ideas in the shower. No explanation.

* Read lots of history and biography. The past is full of stories so outlandish that you couldn't make them up. So is the present, of course...

Any more tips, anyone?
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1 comment:

Nathan said...

Very interesting topic. A few people mentioned dreams as inspiration, but I'm surprised sleep wasn't brought up more.

For me, inspiration can come from just about anything- literature, visual art, music, fear, nature, pain, technology, disgust, etc, etc. But often times the source of inspiration lies dormant in the mind. The question of how to awaken this potential for inspiration is most interesting to me.

The closer you are to sleep the more flexible your mind is, more open to creativity and thus inspiration. So when you first wake, even if you feel physically tired, you are close to your subconscious mind. As the day progresses your mind "hardens" and the walls to inspiration go up. But as night falls you draw closer to your subconscious, your mind becomes flexible once again.

Tapping directly into the subconscious mind is key to letting inspiration and creativity flow. The best way to do this is to work first thing in the morning for at least several hours. Then take a brief nap in the early afternoon, and again work after you wake. Then at least a few hours before bed is again a great time to work.

It is hard at first, one must get used to this schedule by doing it daily for at least 3 weeks. Then the benefits should really be seen.

9:07 pm

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