How to Break Through a Creative Funk*

I have been in a creative funk lately. My fingers want to be writing and painting, but 'inspiration' seems to have run dry - whatever that actually means. Even my eye for silly Instagram snaps seems to have taken leave and left me with a slightly bland view of the world. Rather than just continuing in my misery, I thought that perhaps the best way I could overcome the funkiness is to name it for what it is (a creative block, a bad week, soul-weariness, the mid-August Funk) and come up with a few ideas for how to beat the blues. Below is my not-so-tried-and-true list of Creative Funkbusters*.

*It has not yet been determined if these ideas actually work. But if they do, I get 90% of the royalties.

1. Clean Your Room - Yes, really. I did a major clean this week. I may not have written much in the meantime, but my desk is ready for me when I finally sit down to do so.

2. Go to the Art Store - Well, this only works if you have funds to splurge a little. Often, I am content with a new ink pen or tube of paint. But given that I start back to school in a few weeks, I have been trying to spend sparingly so that I can pay my part of the tuition. So no temptation for me this week, but this usually helps me find something to be excited about and gets me thinking about how to create.

3. Re-Read Stephen King's On Writing - This is the only book I have read in King's vast catalog. But this is a book I would recommend to writer who wants to take their craft seriously. I'm underlining everything this time. "Your job isn't to find these ideas but to recognize them when they show up." (King, p. 37)

4. Make an Artistic Mess - Excuse the photo below, I use my bed as a creative space a lot of the time. Bad for sleep patterns, but it is the biggest flat surface I can command at any given time. Besides the floor, and let's be honest: I'm too old for all that up and down. Either way, sometimes the best thing to do is just make a mess, experiment with mediums and try to make something out of what you have. So tonight I got out my Jane Davenport collage papers and the jar of ephemera that I keep on my shelf, and just tried something. It's not the greatest... but also, not the worst thing I have ever created. I think...

5. Sleep In - I'm not actually sure this helps. In fact, this has been a key indicator of a creative funk. But it's what I've been doing, so I am including it on the list. Seriously, I know sleep is vital to a good creative burst. I recently bought a weighted blanket and I love it. The last several nights have been some of the best sleep I have had in a long while!

6. Go to the Bookstore and Buy Magazines - Despite what I said in Step #2, this use of funds was approved by my internal banker (who truly is terrible at her job) when I saw the new issues of Flow (a magazine for paper lovers). Sorry bank account. But I don't even know how to explain my love of paper... I have a set of C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia that I just pull out so that I can smell the paper. 

7. Play with Washi Tape - because.

8. Drink Coffee - Again, I don't really know if this really helps. But coffee is probably the most consistent part of my routine... so why quit now?

Happy Creating!