Wellsbaum.blog

Writing about life and arts

creativity

  • The student never graduates

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    2 min read

    Learning stops in adulthood because people think all they’ll be doing the rest of their lives is working. But the cubicle, formerly called the ‘action of office,’ is where ideas and learning go to die. You can put your head down and work for the same company for 20 years if you want. You’ll gain…

  • Finding aim through purpose

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    1 min read

    Some people need that motivational voltage to get them going. So they collect positive quotes on Pinterest, post inspirational tidbits on Facebook, and believe — albeit mistakenly — that the law of attraction will get them on the cover of Forbes. The barest encouragement, even if forcibly imagined, provokes enough optimism to keep the wannabe…

  • Work x “Work”

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    1 min read

    There are two types of work: Work that you do for fun Work that pays the bills The first is sexy and fuels your creativity. These are typically side projects that you wish would one day turn into a long-term job that pays the bills. The second type of work is the one you do…

  • Making meaning removes meaning

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    1 min read

    Making meaning removes meaning. What we make is what we want to make. The only supervisor is ourselves. But we do need signals — something that tells us that we’re moving in the right direction. “The muse has to know where to find you.” Billy Wilder Accept professions but don’t become them Tied up in…

  • Unoriginal and creative

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    1 min read

    We build careers off of clever hybrids, sampling the treasure trove of the Internet’s archival content to remix and recast as our own. With a quick copy-paste, anyone with the tools can replicate a beautiful photo, record a song, or publish a book on Amazon. Originality is dead. But that’s not to say it ever…

  • Imagination is a mental scratch pad

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    1 min read

    Imagination is a mental scratch pad, a place to delve into the urges of the non-existent. It is only there can we see what’s more captivating than reality’s everydayness. Imagination not only protects us from boredom, it also protects us from ourselves. It acts as a neuroprotective stimulus for brain expansion — we are only…

  • Building a prototype

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    1 min read

    Amorphous. Elastic. A concept within a concept. You can wait until you get your hands on a 3D printer to build out an idea, or you can create one now with silly putty, legos, or pen and paper. The tools are tools, and our minds fabricate the rest. Stick figures may not produce reality, but…

  • All writing is in the edit

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    3 min read

    This post may contain affiliate links. Please see the disclosure for more info. Like photography, all writing is in the edit. When you fall into writer’s block — a myth, by the way — you should move freely between devices, formats, and even different places in order to shake out of it. Here’s one recommended writing approach I…

  • Keep them guessing

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    1 min read

    They say write to be understood. But what’s the point in spelling it all out? Said author William Faulkner in an interview with the Paris Review: INTERVIEWER Some people say they can’t understand your writing, even after they read it two or three times. What approach would you suggest for them? FAULKNER Read it four…

  • Art constitutes thought’s core

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    1 min read

    We don’t make art because we need to. We do it because we have to. It’s not just an addiction; it is therapy. Without our work or side projects, we are an empty shell. Each project gives us meaning. “Art is a line around your thoughts.” Gustav Klimt, Austrian painter Yet, the tendency to overthink…

  • Writing helps you seek clarity

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    2 min read

    Change the font Write freehand or on a different device Use prompts to help you get started Sit and think about what you want to say. No computer. No pen and paper. Because writing requires daily practice, doing it can get boring and predictable. It helps to have a system of hacks to drive the…

  • Take what you’ve done and throw it away

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    1 min read

    If you want to live your life in a creative way, as an artist, you have to not look back too much. You have to be willing to take whatever you’ve done and whoever you were and throw them away. The more the outside world tries to reinforce an image of you, the harder it…