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Updated July 24, 2024Youโre reading an excerpt of Creative Doing, by Herbert Lui. 75 practical techniques to unlock creative potential in your work, hobby, or next career. Purchase now for instant, lifetime access to the book.
โIf you have writerโs block, youโre not reading enough,โ says poet Nikki Giovanni to author Mason Currey. In order to improve your output, you first need to improve your input. Experiencing other peopleโs work is the best first step to understanding what quality might even mean in your field. Everyone who is making something, right now, has been inspired by someone else.
Iโm personally not a huge fan of lists. But, if you donโt have any references or places in mind, start with the greatest-of-all-time lists for your field. For example, if youโre making music, you could look at Mojoโs Top 100 albums of all time, or perhaps just of the last decade. If you have no idea where to start, look for your favorites in the list, or start at the top and work your way down.
Pay attention to what you notice. Dacoury Natche first notices the beat on a song, not the lyrics. Michael Saviello steps right up to the painting and starts looking at it. Donโt worry too much about what to do. Just try, and youโll know.
Besides making time to experience art, look into the lives of artists. Dive into their creative processes and their perspectives on their craft. Read their biographies. Study their heroes, too. Know the bar that your heroes set for themselves, and set your own in that direction as well.
Eventually, itโs also important for you to experience work outside of your field. For example, a person who writes can find inspiration in a song, or a coder might be inspired by a design. But this prompt suggests first understanding what excellence means and feels like in your field.
Select a piece of work you love or that is revered in your field. Study it. Answer this question: โWhat makes it great?โ
Write down the first thing that stands out to you about the piece of work. Then, write down the second thing. And the third thing, and so on, until you donโt notice any more unique things. Then, read someone elseโs commentary on the workโor if none exists, just call a friend and ask them what they notice about the piece. What do they experience that you didnโt? What interests them? Whatโs the difference between what you noticed and what they noticed?
For example, if youโre a writer studying an article you really like, write down the first 20 lines that interest you, and compare them with the first 20 lines of the piece. Or compare your 20 lines with 20 lines that another writer identifies, or perhaps 20 lines that an editor identifies.