May 29, 2012

Time to stew

Back from three weeks in the US (New York and San Francisco), I’ve come home to a city I’m falling in love with all over again. I can’t believe it took me so long to try living in Melbourne. Since arriving home I’ve been immediately caught up in the exciting tide of creative events that seem to always be happening here.

I’m worried that if I don’t make the time to capture the light bulb moments I had on the trip soon, I’ll lose them.

Yet I don’t want to miss out on experiencing the exciting stuff that’s going on either (all the Emerging Writers’ Festival events, and seeing a live show by My Brightest Diamond and Seagull to name just a couple of things).

And I’m realising that it’s okay. Even though I’m caught up in a whirlwind of activity, it’s giving me longer for my thoughts to stew. To connect the dots.

These are some holiday pics while you’re waiting for the stew to be ready!

Do you take time to stew when you need to?

Filed under simple pleasures creativity

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May 4, 2012

Thirty!

Thirty! Last night, as I shovelled a generous forkful of food into my mouth, my husband said “how are you enjoying the last meal of your twenties?” I simultaneously choked/laughed/harumpfed. (There must be a word for that.)

Needless to say, today I’m thirty. Earlier in the year the date loomed ominously. For the first time I was dreading a birthday. Focusing too much on all the things I haven’t done yet. As if I’ve failed in some way by not getting them all done in my twenties. I don’t know why, but I always thought the exciting things in my life would end when I turned thirty. That I would have life figured out, or have my backup life plan sorted out and implemented, and it be a bit tedious and boring but comfortable.

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May 3, 2012

Everything is interesting, look closer

Melbourne is becoming grey, cold and wet. Winter is coming, I can feel it in my bones. But there is still some autumn left. I’ve been making more effort to feed my creativity by looking more closely at what’s around me.

In some streets, there are oceans of fallen autumn leaves. They murmur and rustle in the wind. I sit down in the leaves listening and trying to record their whispers.

I meet a friend in the park at dusk, so we can watch all the dogs having their walk and play time while we catch up. She scoffs down a handful of figs. I don’t particularly enjoy them, so I don’t pay much attention. Until I see the colour of the remaining flesh when she discards them in a pile on the table.

Going for a walk along a boring street, a flash of pink catches my eye. It’s fallen blossoms but they look like rich carpet.

I gloomily lope up to a tram stop to wait in the cold under a shelter. Look up and am astounded by the electric colour combination of a glorious red scooter parked in front of a bright blue wall. Something about it completely shifted my mood so I was immediately gleeful. “Zing!”

Are you looking closely? What interesting things are you noticing?

*The title of this post is taken from Keri Smith’s list of How to Be an Explorer of the World, which I featured in a previous post called “How to be creative”.

Filed under creativity inspiration

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April 27, 2012

Creativity and misery

The Perseverance Hotel, Melbourne

Blogging is easy when life’s easy. I see light and ideas everywhere. I want to capture and share them before they’re whisked away. When life isn’t easy, blogging is the last thing I want to do. It suddenly feels more risky.

I don’t want to be a recluse. But how much is too much when it comes to sharing information? Just like song-writing, blogging is a constant juggling act of sharing enough for things to make sense, but not so much that I regret it later. Once information is out there, you can’t take it back. I don’t want to find myself in Eden Riley’s position, where she had to buy a beanie to hide under just to walk around her home town.

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April 3, 2012

My computer hates me

Unfortunately “Watermelon” (my computer) is in a coma. I won’t be writing new blog posts until she’s better or I manage to buy a shiny new replacement. Hopefully this will just be a short break. As much as I’ve enjoyed the novelty of writing this on my mobile phone, I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t take too long for me to lose my mind trying to regularly write posts this way (my one finger is getting tired and I’m scared about what autocorrect might do if my concentration slips).

Looking forward to being back with you soon!

Have you ever written a blog post on your mobile phone?

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March 27, 2012

Top Tool Tuesday: Twitter - why bother?

A series of weekly posts where I share information about useful (and straightforward) tools for improving your web presence.

Top Tool Tuesday image The people I know who aren’t on Twitter don’t seem to understand the point. I didn’t understand either when I first joined. I joined because all the music marketing professionals, like Ariel Hyatt, seemed to be saying that I should be there. Over time I’ve grown to really appreciate it. These are some of the reasons why I still bother using Twitter.

Filed under Top Tool Tuesday marketing tips

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March 20, 2012

Top Tool Tuesday: Google Alerts

A series of weekly posts where I share information about useful (and straightforward) tools for improving your web presence.

If you’re trying to improve your web presence, one of the things you need to do is be aware of what other people are saying online about you or your work.

Why you should use Google Alerts

1. Keep track of reviews and criticism

It’s good practice to keep track of reviews and criticism (giving you the opportunity to respond - whether that be to thank people or to respond specifically to their feedback).

Filed under Top Tool Tuesday marketing tips

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March 18, 2012

Patterns

My head has been full of the language of flowers and the history of wallpapers. I’ve been reading The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh and Flock, by Lyn Hughes. I didn’t set out to read about those topics, but I’ve been really enjoying it.

When I first got home from the library I noticed that the patterns and covers on the books were complimentary to each other, and to my handbag, scarf and jacket.

I’ve been studying flowers more closely and seeing patterns everywhere — in my socks, the purple carrots I cut up for a frittata, and my little home-grown chillis.

I’ve even set up a pinboard on Pinterest dedicated to patterns. Most of them are wallpapers! You can see it here.

Have you found yourself noticing different things in your life after reading a novel about a particular subject?

Filed under simple pleasures patterns and motifs

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March 13, 2012

Top Tool Tuesday: using social media to create goodwill and paid work opportunities

A series of weekly posts where I share information about useful (and straightforward) tools for improving your web presence.

Top Tool Tuesday image

This week I’ve got a special guest post for you from Tanya Edlington. She calls herself a “conversation specialist” and works as a freelance facilitator, mediator, corporate roleplayer, negotiator, writer, actress and voice artist. She also writes a great blog called divacultura.

We met up this week and got talking about the importance of reciprocity in social media. If you understand this and do it well, it can bring many golden opportunities for paid work (vital to any freelancer). She’s written a great post about it on her blog and has kindly agreed to let me share part of it with you here.

Filed under Top Tool Tuesday marketing tips

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March 11, 2012

Brontosaurus wall-hanging

I had a lot of fun recently making this Brontosaurus wall-hanging for one of my brothers for his birthday. Brontosaurus is my favourite dinosaur.

All I used was:

scrap paper for sketching out dinosaur shapes
colourful felt for making the dinosaurs
fabric scraps for stuffing them
embroidery thread for stitching them closed (I taught myself mattress stitch)
a long stick, and
some jewellery wire for attaching the dinosaurs to the stick.

What’s your favourite dinosaur?

Filed under simple pleasures craft tips