Aversion Therapy
You might have noticed that I've been writing a bit more often the last week. Granted, they haven't been the highest quality entries, but there is a purpose behind them. While I've been trying to determine the cause of my creative doldrums, the simple fact is that I'm not writing, drawing, or coding things I enjoy. The obvious solution then, is to write, draw, and code more.
It's hard not for me to reread that line and think, It' can't be that simple. Surely, I need to determine the cause and effect a solution before I can approximate such a result! That indeed might be the case if I were working on an engineering project or rearchitecting an IT infrastructure. This isn't about science, and this isn't about logic. This is about creativity. And like anyone with a creative drive, I've hit a rough patch.
Unfortunately, it's been easier for me as of late to stand still in that patch.Often I'd return to my apartment (or hotel room) at the end of a work day and busy myself with Google Reader and StumbleUpon. This may go on for up to three hours until it's time for my workout. An hour and a half later, it's about time for bed. If only one of those three wasted hours could be reclaimed...
Outside of writing software, I'm not terribly well disciplined in using my time for writing or drawing. I've often waited until a particular sentence, phrase, or mental image struck me before moving to action. Only then would I set my fingers to the keyboard, or my stylus to my graphics tablet. Working in this fashion, you end up creating a mythical figure, your muse. Your belief in your muse also endows her with the conviction only she can provide the best inspiration and the best ideas. Anything done without her say-so would be a flat and sterile abortion of wasted effort.
The thing is, the muse is entirely in your head. In the end, you're still putting fingers to the keyboard and the stylus to the tablet. All else is ceremony.
As a result, I've decided to try something different. Starting with this entry, I am going to dedicate one hour each day to doing something of a creative nature. There are no projects to complete or great works to attempt. It would be a hour, each day, I'd write or draw something.
