Monday, June 29, 2009

Don't Quit Your Day Job


Creating and the Full Plate

For months I’ve been dreaming about summer vacation. Once my children are out of school, I have a lot more time to myself. I only have myself to wake up each morning. There are no drop-offs on the way into the office and it’s a straight drive home. No homework, no school volunteer hours, no meetings and game days. It’s like a solider on leave. I may not be basking on a sun-drenched beach, but for me, the next two and half months are paradise!Now being an aspiring writer, my paradise is more time to write. However, I’ve been faced with many challenges lately that have kept me from my summer writing goals. Some of these are out of my control. Personal issues have arisen that need to dealt with, but some are of my own choosing.

My promise was to write one hour before work each morning, yet I’ve enjoyed sleeping in instead of keeping to my commitment. It’s so easy to break the promises we make to ourselves. I would never dream of letting down my family or co-workers, (on the contrary, I brought home three hours of office work this weekend) or my friends. Why is it then, that we can be so flaky when it comes to ourselves?

The advice I always hear is to make an appointment with yourself and stick to it. This is great advice, but hard to execute. No one is looking over your shoulder and you’re not in trouble if you bail. I keeping trying this one, but more often than not, I fail to make that appointment and then I feel bad about myself.

This week I decided to “pretend” I’m a high energy person. I get wiped out fairly easily. I’m the type that goes gangbusters one day and then the next day, I’m lying around trying to recover. I always envy people that seem to always be doing something and they appear to accomplish so much. “Why can’t I be like that?” Yesterday, I tried to talk myself out of several tasks. I thought, “You’re a person who keeps going,” and although I still didn’t finish everything, I got a lot more done than usual.

I’ve been using this technique in social situations too. I’m not a shy person, but when I have to go to a class, meeting or gathering I tend to clam up when there’s a room full of strangers. Lately, I’ve told myself that I’m not nervous about talking to new people and when I do I have a good time. This has really helped me relax and network.

Hopefully, I’ll be able to trick myself into thinking I can reach all of my summer goals. I still didn’t make my one hour mark this morning but I got in a good 30 minutes. I’m getting there!
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Monday Morning Motivators to Slay Your Creative Dragons

By CJ Lyons and Margie Lawson

Double Negatives from CJ:


Ever have one of those days?

You know what I mean, the ones where the computer acts all fritzy, the light bulb in your favorite reading lamp dies and you don’t have one the right size, the cat barfs on your manuscript pages, your editor loses your cover copy and needs you to re-write, your best-friend (or worse, your mother!) calls to chat, because she knows you don’t have a “real” job and have plenty of time….and, to top everything off, you are totally out of chocolate!!!

Just like opportunity seems to come knocking, so does negativity. I’ve learned not to fight it. Instead, I embrace it–so what if everything goes wrong today? I’ll take today off, make a holiday of it. Instead of fretting about the time I spend on any of the above, I consider it all “free” time. An unscheduled vacation.

Funny thing is, once I readjust my attitude, I suddenly find myself enjoying my day again and becoming even more productive that evening or the next day when I get back to work.

Give it a try–just think of it as yoga for your mind, learning to become more flexible and stretch yourself!

Thanks for reading,
CJ

About CJ:
As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge suspense novels. Her debut, LIFELINES (Berkley, March 2008), became a National Bestseller and Publishers Weekly proclaimed it a "breathtakingly fast-paced medical thriller."

The second in the series, WARNING SIGNS, was released January, 2009 and the third, URGENT CARE, is due out October, 2009. Contact her at http://www.cjlyons.net



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Saturday, June 27, 2009


Sculpting a Life:
Susan Gallacher-Turner’s turn in the Pacific Northwest.

Sculpting a living in spite of fear.
(Concrete garden sculpture by Patrick Gracewood)

A few weeks ago, I wrote about fear and creating. I asked you to share your stories about how you deal with fear. I’m going to collect the comments and stories in another blog, so keep those comments coming. I know I learn so much by talking with other creative people out there.

This week, I’d like to share what I learned talking with Portland, Oregon sculptor, Patrick Gracewood for a podcast on Voices of Living Creatively. One thing I learned is that fear goes with the territory in a creative life and it doesn’t mean you stop or give up. “Art has saved my life many times; I give my life to art,” says Patrick. “It takes a big commitment.”

This dedication comes from a simple philosophy: if it’s sculpture, he’ll do it.

Patrick is living a creative life and making a living combining his own studio work with commercial sculpture work. His studio work ranges from large concrete garden sculptures to small, hand-carved wooden figures. The commercial sculpture work has included working for such diverse businesses as a mannequin company, a wax works, landscape and architectural design firms, and film companies. He’s worked on fountains, facades and column capitals for casinos, a portrait of guitarist, Jimmy Hendrix for a Seattle high school and an enormous dragon for Wynn Casino in China.

As with all kinds of freelance work, the jobs come and go. Patrick agrees that’s scary but he’s found a way to deal with the fear and keep creating. You can hear more by listening to the podcast at http://www.voicesoflivingcreatively.com/

Listen and let us all know how your art saves your life in spite of your fears. If you or anyone you know is living a creative life, let your voice be heard. Set up an interview and podcast for your website or blog by contacting me through the http://www.voicesoflivingcreatively.com/ website.

If you’re interested in seeing my sculpture work, visit my website at www.susangt.com
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Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Television Musings - Rants and Raves from a Romance Writer


BFF


By Kathy Carpenter



It’s so hard to be creative this days. Or I should say to find me time for creativity. Not so for Paris Hilton. Last year or awhile back anyway, Paris decided to create a Reality show where she chooses someone to be her new best friend. The Simple Life, and enjoyed those. Of course Nicole is no longer her friend thus the new show. Anyway I did not have the opportunity to catch the show.

To my surprise a few weeks ago I see the my BFF advertising again. Apparently things did not work out with the friend Paris chose. The person was just using Paris to on their way to fame and fortune. Which put Paris in the position of no BFF again. Thus another season of the show.

This time I’m watching. Paris is just a sweet talking girl and seems like any other girl her age. But this is a power trip and she puts the contestants through some weird stuff. But she has her reasons I guess.span>
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Saturday, June 20, 2009

Wild Woman of Queens: Notes on Urban Creativity from across the East River.

Charlie by Sandra Lee Schubert 2009



Charlie


My father was tall, slim, a red head with a gift for creating. I know that he smoked a pipe and used Old Spice. He liked to drink. My sister and I would spend warm summer afternoons in the neighborhood bar drinking soda and eating Slim Jims. I know he was a gifted artist. But, I have no record of his art work, except, for a copper printing plate for the Schubert oven. My patent check shows no such oven.

He would take us on adventures in the neighborhood. We would go down to the Sunnyside Yards and watch the freight trains coming in to deliver merchandise to the various factories in Long Island City. I have the faintest memory of going down to the dumps, which were islands of stuff, dumped on dirt, in the middle of the urban landscapes. Occasionally we would come back with things that my mother never seemed to like.

When he came home from work he would bring salty french fries in oily brown paper bags. My love for french fries has not been quenched by dire diet warnings. My mother worked at night, leaving us with my dad. He would give my sister and I tiny mugs of beer and then tuck us in. He would tell elaborate stories to lull us to sleep. I remember his story telling the most and sitting at the kitchen table drawing pictures for us at request.

He died when I was five years old.

My great sorrow is that I never got to have an adult conversation with him. We never shared stories together. I don't know what he thought about politics, love or life in general.

Even though I don't know these things about him I know his DNA runs through me. My father had a decidedly Asian look to him. I carry his cleft chin, high cheekbones, and a distinguished forehead. The red hair missed me but his poor eyesight, bad teeth and fair freckled skin is some thing we share.

Since my mother has been gone for 29 years I have to make my own decisions about what I inherited from my parents and what is uniquely my own. I don't drink, yet, still love the faint beer smell of a bar in the afternoon. My talent lies in storytelling, photography and spontaneous acts of creativity.

Today I honor my father. My memories of him are fleeting and too few. Yet what I have is sweet. I remember a man who had a strong physical presence, a sense of humor and a gift for creating. His legacy is in his daughters. Each day I hope I can express a bit more of the talent he gave me.


Sandra's e-course leads people to be their creative best through telling their stories and talking to interesting people on her online radio show-
Wild Woman Network: Radio for Creative Vagabonds, Thinkers and Innovators..


She is a creative vagabond, a poet, and a writer who co-facilitates the Wild Angels Poets and Writers Group at the historic Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine.Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own. Visit her blog: Email her sandraleeschubert(at)gmail.com or @writing4life via twitter. Read more!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Wild Woman of Queens: Notes on Urban Creativity from across the East River.

book promotion- BEA style Sandra Lee Schubert 2009


New Possibilities


Yesterday I watched a Les Brown talk on Youtube. Les Brown is a motivational speaker who came from hard times to become a success. He reminded me again of taking chances, going for it in a big way.

Hungry. Be hungry. When you are hungry you find a way to get food. I hear this again and again from successful people. Find yourself a damn big goal and go for it. Do you want to be the next JK Rowlings? Better start writing. Win an Oscar? Take classes.

The Book America Expo reminded me of that too. There were lots of hungry people there. You could see it in their eyes. They scanned the expo for the next opportunity. No grass was growing under their feet.

I know times are tough. Believe me I am in the muck and mire of toughness. I bob and weave. I fall into despair and I rise back up. This is the ebb and flow of life. Sometimes living just plain sucks and other times it is great big ball of fun.

Feed your hunger with good stuff and leave the junk alone. Take a chance. Then take another. Have fun. Remember you have more control then you think.


Sandra's e-course leads people to be their creative best through telling their stories and talking to interesting people on her online radio show-
Wild Woman Network: Radio for Creative Vagabonds, Thinkers and Innovators.


She is a creative vagabond, a poet, and a writer who co-facilitates the Wild Angels Poets and Writers Group at the historic Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine.Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own. Visit her blog: Email her sandraleeschubert(at)gmail.com or @writing4life via twitter.

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Saturday, June 13, 2009




Sculpting a Life:
Susan Gallacher-Turner’s turn in the Pacific Northwest.


Fear and Art: How to be fearful and creative.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes, fear swoops into my mind, my studio, my life and knocks me off my feet. I don’t like it. Not one bit.

What do I do? I get out my boxing gloves and try to beat it into submission. The only problem with that is, I wind up beating myself up and I’m tired of the bruises. Or I run, as fast as I can, trying to get away. I get busy, busy, busy with email, chores around the house, running errands. The problem with that is, the fear follows me anyway.



What I’ve come to find out is that fear and creativity seem to go hand in hand. I’m not the only one who feels the terror of the creative life and what’s even weirder is that it doesn’t seem to matter if you’ve just had a success or a failure with your art. The fear is there anyway. Add this ridiculous economic roller coaster ride we’ve all been on lately and no wonder many of us feel the need to put our heads between our knees.

Ok, so what can I do about it? I know I don’t want to feel this way anymore…maybe I can’t eliminate fear entirely, but surely, there’s a better way. So I went in search of answers although there are many out there, I wanted to ask the people in the trenches, artists and writers how they deal with the fear. This is what I found out.

My friend, Patrick, says when the terror gets him, he goes out into his garden and sits for a while. When his heart rate slows down, he goes back into the studio and works. My writer friend, Susan, uses acceptance to pull her through the fear and back onto the page. Laurel takes a walk in the park. Janice goes out and works in her garden. Michael feels the fear and moves on.

I moved on, too. This week, when my life felt like a ride on Space Mountain, I went into the studio anyway. I got out the clay and pushed it around for awhile. Then I cut out a piece of screening and pushed it around, too. I layered yellow, ochre, white and black on my owl and lion masks. Today, I cut and rolled aluminum into lilies and leaves. Even though there was music playing, it was quiet and peaceful in my mind. The ‘fear’ roller coaster stopped. Finally.

I didn’t have to fight or flee. I just had to show up, get out my clay, metal and paint. How simple is that? The way out of my fear is to create.

How do you deal with your fear? Leave a comment, so we can all help each other.

I saw this on TED talks. Author, Elizabeth Gilbert, talks about anxiety and “A different way to think about creative genius.” It helped me. Give it a listen and let me know if it helps you. http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

To see more of my art visit my website at http://www.susangt.com/ or my other blog, Susan’s Art & Words at http://sculpturepdx.blogspot.com/ and my new Voices of Living Creatively at http://www.voicesoflivingcreatively.com/
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Monday, June 08, 2009

Television Musings- Rants and Raves of a Romance Writer


By Kathy Carpenter

New Shows

My life has been so out of control lately. Busy in so many ways with little time for creativity or thinking for that matter. It feels so good just to be able to sit here and write a blog. Creative enough it the aspect I need to come up with something to write.

A lot of shows just ended their seasons. Especially a lot of reality shows, Some with endings you wanted, like JT winning Survivor, a man who deserved to win. And dome with bad endings like Prison Break, which ended with our favorite hero dead. I thought this was the final end to Prison Break but was shocked if that was the final episode and if not it still sucked.Along with old shows ending of course we have many new shows starting. One new show I enjoyed was Surviving Suburbia., a new situation comedy. Very funny. I love situation comedies. If they strike you as funny, they cause you to laugh out loud and just plain enjoy yourself. However in t his day and age of so many reality shows and everything else it’s rare I sit and enjoy them. I should make time to watch them more. Everyone needs more laughter in their day especially now.

Also new we have So you think you can Dance our summer dance show. Fashion Show a take off on Project Runway. Harper’s Island kind of a Ten little Indians story I’m a Celebrity Get me out of here, a reality show on four nights a week ( a little much), The New Newlywed Game, The Bachelorette with Jillian, one of the Bachelor Jason’s rejects. Food Network Star, and Top Chef Masters, both cooking competitions starting this week. The Royal Pains, a new usa show. Burn Notice, The Closer, and Raising the Bar with new seasons. Enough to chew on for awhile but I’m sure new stuff will be starting next week.

Happy watching,
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Saturday, June 06, 2009

Don't Quit Your Day Job



Creating and Blogging Away

I’m on vacation right now. Maybe I shouldn’t be writing or blogging. Should I take a break from everything? It was so difficult to get to the end of the school year; I almost feel I should spend the week doing as little as possible.

There’s another side that’s gnawing at my brain though. If I write while I’m on vacation, and even more, if I find a coffee shop with Wi-Fi access so I can post my blog entries…well then I’m a real writer! It’s not like I’m cooped up in a dinky motel room somewhere. On the contrary, I’m in a house in Carmel, California that’s bigger than my main residence. This house, the best perk of my otherwise mundane office job, has been an oasis for my family and I for over ten years now.

This beautiful house, purchased by the company I work for, is shared by all the employees. We all get to take turns staying here and since my family is always on a budget, it’s allowed us a vacation where there otherwise have been none.

Since we are in a house, we do have a lot of downtime here. Not being crammed into a tiny motel room means that we’re never rushing out the door. We make breakfast, everyone leisurely showers, I have about three giant mugs of coffee and I usually read for a bit.

This morning I find myself finishing the last sip of my third cup of joe, already reading a couple chapters of my book and already showered and ready to go. Why not get some writing done too?

I mentioned late last year, my guilt in purchasing this mini laptop that I’m writing this post on. What better way to legitimize my purchase then to bring it on vacation! In all honesty, I usually do write when I’m on vacation, however, it usually consists of scribbling nonsense in a random notebook and it gets quickly discarded upon our return home.

This time I want to feel I’m producing. Technology allows us to never be far from connecting to others, and that’s good and bad. Sometimes, I think it’s important to disconnect completely. It’s not healthy to always be checking e-mail keeping track of this and that. Now that it’s easier for us to work away from home we tend to forget to stop working.

So I’m looking only to create. I don’t want to pay bills online, check my bank account, e-mail the office or anything that will stress me out. Balance is important. I definitely need this vacation and I want to come back refreshed and ready to tackle the second part of 2009.

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Wild Woman of Queens: Notes on Urban Creativity from across the East River.

Author, Gary Vaynerchuk BEA 09 by Sandra Lee Schubert 2009



Book Expo America '09


My first excursion to BEA was exhausting, exciting and enlightening. If you love books, and I do, then being in a space with thousands of books, publishers, authors is having a serious case of sugar overload.

Saturday, I was better rested, and prepared. I ate a big breakfast, brought my own cheaper lunch and kept my breath mints handy. My goal was to pick up books, engage some publishers, and meet some authors I would like to interview.

Most people have heard of elevator pitches The idea is you have to tell somebody, who you are, what you do, and why they would be interested in you or your product as you ride in the elevator with them. You have anywhere from 15 seconds to a minute (at most) to engage the person. The fun thing at the BEA expo was to create my pitch on the go. I modified it as I visited the hundreds of exhibits. By the end of the day I saw someone I wanted to meet and I was able to go right up to them and in 10 seconds they had my business card and a handshake agreement to be a guest on my show.

I met Kim Dushinski on Saturday when she signed her book, The Mobile Marketing Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Dynamic Mobile Marketing Campaigns. My learn list included mobile marketing. The book fell into my hands like a gift from above. OK, I was happy. I picked up a dozen different types of books.

The thing about expo’s or conventions is that nothing you want to see next is on the same floor. Kim’s book signing was in the back and lower level and I had to meet someone upstairs on the other end of the Javits Center. I think I made my 10,000 steps that day. I had ten minutes with my friend then one minute to take a photo with David Mathison of Be The Media (a must read for artists and writers) and then I had to run all the way to the opposite side of the convention center on the lower level to hear another lecture.

I heard from the Frankfurt Book Expo people that China was entering into the book publishing field in a big way. The Asian market is a untapped one. I saw lots of self-publishing options and many electronic readers.

There are clear benefits for the upcoming author at the Book Expo. First, you can seen the up and coming trends for publishing. Are dogs out and farmers in? As a non-fiction writer you have more opportunity to spot these trends and layout your book plans. As a author you can have your own exhibit and promote your book and related products. You can meet many people in a short amount of time. You meet publishers first hand. It is an exhausting weekend but well worth the time and effort.


Sandra's e-course leads people to be their creative best through telling their stories and talking to interesting people on her online radio show-
Wild Woman Network: Radio for Creative Vagabonds, Thinkers and Innovators.


She is a creative vagabond, a poet, and a writer who co-facilitates the Wild Angels Poets and Writers Group at the historic Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine.Writing for Life: Creating a Story of Your Own. Visit her blog: Email her sandraleeschubert(at)gmail.com or @writing4life via twitter.

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Monday, June 01, 2009

Monday Morning Motivators to Slay Your Creative Dragons

By CJ Lyons and Margie Lawson

Cleaning Housefrom CJ


I’m writing this from a new computer…..and in the middle of transferring all the stuff I need from my old one.

Do I really need those articles on Civil War physician Mary Sharrat (the first woman Army physician)??? I don’t write historicals, so why did I keep those? Hmm, there must have been a reason, so guess they should stay….




Yikes! Ever notice how sometimes we get into a scarcity mentality? We live in fear that if we ever do need something in the future, it won’t be there for us. But lets face it, what are the odds that I will ever need information on Mary Sharrat and if I do, that I won’t be able to find it online faster than I could find it in the labyrinth of my files???

Why do we live with all this clutter just because we’re afraid of what-if’s? Take control of our life. Purge your workspace, including your computer, and enjoy–no relish!–the freedom!

I guarantee, there’s plenty of information out there–no need to live in fear any longer!

Thanks for reading!
CJ

As a pediatric ER doctor, CJ Lyons has lived the life she writes about in her cutting edge suspense novels. Her debut, LIFELINES (Berkley, March 2008), became a national bestseller and Publishers Weekly proclaimed it a "breathtakingly fast-paced medical thriller." The second in the series, WARNING SIGNS, is due out January, 2009. Contact her at http://www.cjlyons.net

Margie Lawson -- presenter, psychotherapist, writer -- lives at the top of a Colorado mountain west of Denver. Margie merged her two worlds, psychology and writing, to develop psychologically anchored editing systems and techniques that teach writers how to write page turners. A former college professor, Margie works as a psychotherapist, writes fiction and nonfiction, and presents full day master classes for writers internationally. Go to http://www.margielawson.com for more information.


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