I’m not a great one for self-help advice from strangers. Especially the kind that involves systems or steps devised by someone whose only creative output amounts to some ads deposited on my social media timelines with all the tact of a smug cat dropping a lightly chewed bird at my feet, then climbing into the litter tray while awkwardly maintaining eye contact.
But - also like that same cat a moment or two later - once in a while it does feel important to check your own… um… output before approving it as ready for humans to deal with. You make a thing, but sometimes the process of making it can be fraught, joyless or even downright harmful to the creator.
Cat toilet metaphors aside, I came up with twenty questions designed to make me stand back a bit and look at how my creativity might be shaping me as I employ it. We talk all the time about how we shape our creativity, but it’s easy to forget that along with all the positive effects, neural pathways, muscles, hell - bones, even - can be weakened, mutated into terrifying new shapes or sometimes just plain dissolved in the act of making something.
I wanted to at least explore this before turning into something from an Aphex Twin video, so I came up with the questions that you see below. Some of them are designed to remind me specifically of a negative tendency that I - personally - need to be aware of (the last one especially), but I’d encourage you to approach each question without prejudice. They’re by no means exhaustive, but they help me clarify my motivations; establish some boundaries; identify - then embrace, tolerate or reject - certain tendencies, both established and nascent; and sometimes they just help me laugh at myself: a vital and often underrated tool in the creative toolkit.
(aside: I can hear my bandmate Jana mumbling, “You’re a vital and often underrated tool…” under her breath)
For clarity: none of these (except number 20, as previously stated) are weighted with any kind of expectation. There are no right or wrong answers, and no one will ever hear your responses anyway, but some of them might provide a helpful context for what’s behind the work, and maybe even for the work itself. Equally, you might hear all of them in the voice of Alan Partridge.
But in the end, I'm just a cat, standing in front of a human, asking it to accept this gift of a dead bird, before I pad off to my litter tray for a good crap.
If someone with the gift of clairvoyance told you that you’d never make a living from your creative endeavours, would you still participate in them ?
Do you feel special ?
When do you feel most motivated and energised by your creativity ? Why is this ?
When do you find it hardest to connect with your creativity ? Why is this ?
Do you regard your creativity as a gift, or as the result of learning and hard work ?
Do you believe in inspiration ? If so, what do you do when it's not there ? If not, where does the work come from ?
Are you superstitious ? Do you have creative rituals or routines ? If so, what are they for ? What happens if you do not adhere to them ?
What is failure, to you, creatively ?
Do you know when you've done something good ? If so, how ?
Do you believe other creatives when they tell you you've done something good, or that you've progressed ? If you do, how much weight does their opinion carry ? Would it mean as much if they were a lay-person ? If not, why not ?
Do you trust your creative instincts ?
Are you a curious person ?
Are you always genuinely pleased when people you know in the same creative field find success ?
Are you intimidated by other creative people ? Does this affect your motivation ?
Do you feel any responsibility to your (real or potential) audience ? If so, how does that affect your craft ?
Do your influences feel useful or stifling ? Do you think you'll ever leave them behind ? Do you want to ? Should you want to ?
Where do you see your creative life in 5 years ?
Where do you see your creative life in 10 years ?
What are you prepared to sacrifice for your creativity ?
Do you ever take a beat to recognise and celebrate the moments of joy in creating, or are you too busy moving on to the next thing on the list ?
That last one is especially meaningful to me. What’s the point of all of this if we don’t take the time now and then to identify and acknowledge the joy we find in the process of creating something ? It might just involve smiling to yourself as an idea starts to come together, or perhaps something more ritualised, like James Caan’s cigarette when he finishes writing his book in Misery. It’s probably not going to end up in a street parade and a fireworks display, but it’s important nonetheless.
Do feel free to react to any of the above in the comments. I’ll leave them open to all.
Imposter syndrome, anybody?
My question is why do you want/need to apply logic to creativity? Or am I missing your point?