The May/June 2008 issue of Simple Scrapbooks magazine has an article by Elizabeth Dillow on the Cycles of Creativity. The article represented a real turning point for me creatively. I was going through a major slump at the time and was starved for inspiration. I was searching for creative blogs constantly and visiting the local Barnes and Noble daily in the hopes of the release of a new magazine. I was having the kind of creative low that I wasn't sure I would come out of. Enter Elizabeth Dillow's article. The article goes through the cycles of creativity. There are five cycles: Collection; Inspiration; Organization; Burned Out/Too Busy; Pursuit of Other Ventures. At the time I was in the Collection phase desperately trying to restart my dwindling mojo. I was busy reading books, looking through magazine archives, and reading blogs. This article made such an impact on me. I finally understood that creativity didn't mean producing items daily or even weekly - there were phases that I would go through. It helped me be a little more forgiving of myself. I began to remember Ali's credo - It's ok. I've decided to keep a picture of my creative phase on the blog's sidebar. Right now I am in the inspiration phase which means I'm churning out pages and trying new things. Love this phase so much. If you are interested in learning more, I highly recommend reading Elizabeth's article. It definitely gave me some insight into my creative brain. I hope it helps you too. Happy Crafting!
BTW: This hasn't made the frustration of the burn out phase any better. I just constantly remind myself there is more creativity to come - it's just another phase.
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