I believe that we in the middle of a great flowering of creativity. We are surrounded by creative pursuits. It’s everywhere. Maybe it’s because I’m writing a novel that I’ve started to notice it. When my wife was pregnant, I was suddenly surrounded by pregnant women, but the regional rate of prenancy was the same as it ever was. For sure, there is some of that going on – but it’s not the full story. I think there’s more creativity now than ever. Here’s why.
Quiet Creation
I work in a small tech department, writing software for independent pharmacies. It’s not the most creative business domain in the world, and yet I’m surround by creative people. Just in my small team there is
- A semi-professional photographer who has started oil painting
- A talented visual artist
- A filmmaker and screen writer
- A stand up comedian
- An amateur novelist (that is me!)
And that is only counting traditional creative pursuits. There are also gardeners, bread makers and brewers in the same team. In my wider circle of friends, there are three poets, a few musicians and my hairdresser’s friend has just finished a novel about a time-travelling forensic scientist. There are a lot of people in my small corner of the world who are quietly creating.
Let A Thousand Flowers Bloom
When I finish Softening, I could publish it. Simple as that. I don’t need anyone’s permission. I don’t need to convince any gatekeepers to let me in. I don’t need to be super lucky or super rich. I could compile it down tomorrow and get it out there.
It’s the same for my artist friends. Their output can be published and pushed out just as easily. The stand up comedian is slightly different, but even then there are a lot of open mike nights where he lives. It’s not that difficult.
The downside is that there is more competition and alternatives to your stuff than before. There are less people making a living but more people making something. I’m comfortable with that. Let a thousand flowers bloom, even if the individual plants don’t get paid a whole lot for their efforts. Anyway, I’m convinced Charles Dickens thought there was too much competition as well. The guys painting caves after the woolly mammoth hunt probably felt the same. It’s a universal feeling.
Your Tribe
Creativity loves company, and it’s never been easier to find your creative tribe. I live in a big city, but it’s not the centre of the cultural universe. Even so, I’ve been amazed how much support and encouragement there is for writers. Just off the top of my head there is
- An arts organisation dedicated to writing
- In person courses
- Multiple writers groups
- Several annual writers festivals
- Opportunities for mentorship
And that is before I have to go online, or even out of state. I’m not the best at networking, but even the unsure and awkward can find their tribe. There are plenty of people around to sympathise and work with.
Chocolate Hob Nobs
Not everyone is the same. The number of perspectives on offer has multiplied and continues to do so. One voice, becomes many, becomes a wealth of creation. I won’t guess at the views of various minorities and marginalised communities – that never goes well. I’ll just briefly note my own. Two years ago I was the least diverse of all the voices – white, male, heterosexual, and reasonably affluent. Yawnsville – we’ve heard it all before.
Now I’m neurodiverse. I do have a particular perspective on things after all, and it feels that I have something to say about it. I’m not a standard digestive biscuit. I’m a fig roll, and on my better days I might be a chocolate hob nob, and I want to write about it. I’m compelled to get it out there.
As a side note, I also think there are more people diagnosed with ADHD now – it’s better recognised. You don’t have to be a horrendously behaved seven year old boy to get the meds anymore. The diagnosed can go from being paralysed stress jellies, to idea factories in overdrive. It’s what happened to me. It’s another drop in the ocean of creativity.
AI Overlords
We are all busier than ever, and yet a lot of us have a bit more time to do what we want. Creativity breeds in between things. A bit of space in a busy life and suddenly we are dreaming up ideas for an online dog rental service, or we’ve stencilled a mural in the hallway.
And things will only get better. The day will come when AI rules the world and I’m looking forward to it. We’ll have even more time for creative pursuits. When we are pets to a super computer, we’ll have nothing better to do than write a ten part epic romantasy series. Our AI overlords will love it. They’ll find our human creative efforts endearing. They’ll encourage our work and feed us lots of doggy treats to keep us inspired. We’ll charm their silicon chip socks off.
No-one Is Looking
It’s my favourite mantra – no one is looking so do what you want. There are so many options out there. Doubt tends to cloud the writerly mind, but pushing another creative endeavour out into the public domain is really low stakes. Chances are that no-one will notice. Publish a blog post, write a poem, create some fan fiction, distribute your short stories. Why not? No-one is judging. No-one is waiting for you to trip up. No-one is bothered really. Everyone else is too busy with their own stuff.
So just do it. And if someone does notice – well that’s what we all secretly want anyway, isn’t it.
Photo by Karen Uppal on Unsplash
