Creative Discovering Warm Up

Often in Creative Discovering Workshops participants will sit and just look at a blank sheet of white paper. When asked, they will say something like, "I don't know where to start," or "I don't know what to do." Usually what helps is to do a little warm up.

Just like in sports or playing a musical instrument, a warm up can help to get you started. You can warm up in whatever way works for you. What I suggest is that you take a blank piece of paper, and just start covering the page with color, shapes, whatever. Don't think of this as something that needs to look any certain way, just a way to get the page covered with something.

Over and over I see this work for people. In fact, I might suggest you warm up every time you sit down to do creative journalling. There is something about it that sets the tone and helps you to loosen up and express!

Abstract or Realistic

Sometimes when you work in your creative journal you might want to use realistic, recognizable images. Other times you may wish to use totally abstract ideas. In some of my Creative Discovering workshops I will suggest specifically one or the other to aid in uncovering a block, or change the experience a little.

As you work on your own I encourage you to do both. Try both on the same prompt and see what comes out for you. Ask yourself not only questions like, "Which one do I like better," but also, "What do I get from one that is different than the other?"

Journal prompt:

What is your greatest strength and weakness?

This prompt can be tricky for people. If you find it challenging, or you just want to try another approach, you might try stream of consciousness writing for 5 or 10 minutes. Set a time and commit to writing until the full time has lapsed. Then pick up your creative journal and start creating images. Don't think too much, just draw!

Creative Discovering Beginnings

I developed an interest in creative journalling in the early 1990's. The images I have shared here were some of the first entries into my journal. They were drawn at a time that was filled with joy and love, and also haunted with sadness, pain and anger. I drew the two entries on the same day, illustrating the roller coaster of emotions that seemed to plague my life.

The awareness that followed deepened my interest in creative journalling, and sparked my inspiration to create Creative Discovering workshops. Still, twenty years later I look at these images that are really quite simple and were drawn in a matter of minutes, and become captivated by the depth of my experience and the accuracy of expression that had escaped words for me at the time.

Today's Journal/Creative Journal prompt:

Over the next few days or weeks if you find yourself experiencing an intense emotion, comfortable or uncomfortable, grab your journal and express........

Introduction to Creative Discovering

If you enjoy traditional journalling or would like to re-ignite the natural creativity you had as a child, you might like to try what I call Creative Discovering. A great way to get started is creative journalling which is a technique in which you journal as you normally would except instead of writing you draw and use images. Even in this most basic form of Creative Discovering you will find it has a slightly different flavor than regular journalling, and as a result you are likely to have a different experience.

I have included two images from past Creative Discovering workshops to illustrate that there are as many ways to use creative journalling as there are people who do it. In one on the left, the assignment was to create an image which represents how you are feeling right now. Crayola and white paper were used in this exercise. In the other, the participant has used collage to do a self portrait.

Any medium works for creative journalling. I suggest you start with something simple like crayons or crayola markers. These are inexpensive and tend to be less daunting for some people. Remember the idea is to just start drawing. Let go of judging yourself or limiting beliefs such as "I can't draw." This is not a contest.

To get the ball rolling you could trying scrolling down through any of the journalling prompts in this blog, or simply go with what feels fun.

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