I’ve been reminded by a few people lately I haven’t posted anything to The Creative Infopreneur for a while. And it’s true.

It’s not that I haven’t thought about it, it’s just that I allowed other things to get in the way. Maybe that’s good, maybe not. It’s what happened…

I’ve been very busy starting up a new business called Small Business Clarity where I help small business owners be true to themselves, in their business and their life. I do this through my coaching and consulting services.

There is so much to do when setting up a business like:

• what name to call the business
• what colours and logo to use
• how to market the business
• setting up a website
• putting together the copywriting for the website
• get networking
• figure out pricing structure
• finding the clients

Fortunately I’ve learnt with my other business, Simple Synergy the necessity and benefit of not going it alone.

Particularly with marketing. What you think might work, does not always translate into what does work. So this time round I searched for and found an excellent marketing consultant, Angela at Ideas into Action and asked her to help me.

I can’t tell you what a relief it was. It was like a huge load had been taken off my shoulders. I could have put my own marketing plans together, researched the market, found what kind of logo and colours would work, but it would have taken me ages. And to be honest I wouldn’t have done as good a job and it would have taken me significantly longer to get the business up and running.

I’m writing about this because as creative entrepreneurs, as people who create things whether it’s design, writing, problem solving, idea generation, we need to learn when to let go. If you’re anything like me you like to know how things work and you want to do it yourself. Delegation or outsourcing is not easy.

But you need to learn to let go. To trust that someone else can do a better job than yourself, especially if it’s not your core passion and business. Don’t let it drain you of your creativity, you are too precious for that.

Take the risk and let go. You’ll be amazed at how liberating it can be.

Photo credit: photo credit: divemasterking2000

photo credit: Jonathan Shield

When Olympic athletes go out onto the field, it’s the culmination of many years of hard work, endurance, dreaming, and working to build up the appropriate muscles to win at the chosen sport.

Those who want to succeed at creative writing will need the same dedication, persistence, and hard work. Athletes always stretch and warm up the physical muscles before attempting to win the race, throw the javelin, or complete the highest jump in the world.

You too, can stretch and warm up your brain in order to encourage the creative juices to start flowing.

There are many ways you can stretch your skills as a creative writer. You can practice your craft, accept new challenges, give yourself time to dream, put in the hard yards, persist even when it is difficult, create games that stretch your creativity, create unnecessary or ‘fun’ writing, and work to perfect your trade skills. All of these activities will encourage your creativity and will help you to stretch your creative habits to become a better writer.

Here are some of my favourite ways to stretch and warm up my mental muscles, before I sit down to write:

• Complete some physical exercise. This gets the body and mind energised because of the increased blood flow and circulation to the brain.

• Find a new word in the dictionary and practice using it in three different sentences. This helps to get my mind focused on the art of writing, and gives me a quick warm up activity that also increases my vocabulary.

• Read an interesting article in a newspaper or magazine and spend a few minutes thinking about I would have written a similar article.

• Play a word game that gets me thinking about how words go together.

• Write something just for fun. For example, a writer friend and I are currently writing a short story, one paragraph at a time. She writes a paragraph and sends it to me, and then I write one. Joining a writing group and doing similar activities can be a great way to flex and warm up your mental muscles. It also makes you remember that writing is meant to be a fun, creative activity.

Besides stretching to warm up before sitting down to write, I also like to stretch my creative habits in general by:

• Being willing to accept new challenges from clients, by writing on topics I either don’t know much about or may find difficult to write about.  Accepting challenges helps to develop writing skills in different ways and stretches your ability, so that next time it is not nearly so difficult. I love to work to improve as a writer.

• Work to develop my writing skills, by constant proofreading, checking, and editing. Finding a variety of synonyms to use, so that the same words are not used every paragraph can develop my writing skills. I challenge myself to make every piece of writing interesting for the intended audience.

• Spend time practicing the art of creative writing. Although you may not quite forget how to ride a bike, you find you are able to ride further, quicker, and enjoy it more when you ride regularly. The same thing happens with creative writers, the more you write, the better you get at perfecting your craft.

There are so many ways to stretch and expand your writing abilities and your skill in tapping into the creative aspect of writing. See what ideas work best for you, and then work to stretch your creative habits. Enjoy your creative writing!

This is the last article in the CREATIVE HABITS series, as we have explored S=Stretch Yourself.  I hope you have enjoyed it and been able to use some of my tips in your infopreneurial and writing endeavours.

I’m not sure what I’ll be writing about next – I might just write randomly about my thoughts and experiences as I continue down the creativity path. A bit like a cork bobbing about in the water letting the currents take me on some exciting new adventure. Or maybe not. You’ll just have to stayed tuned….

photo credit: pfig

Creating anything is naturally a challenge, and writers face many challenges in forming writing that is enjoyable for the audience to read. Writers do not only face the technical challenge of choosing the right words to send the message, and making the writing readable, but also the challenges of persistently finding inspiration and using inventiveness. Innovative writers, who excel at the art, will continue to stretch the boundaries and to accept the challenges of creative writing.

Here are some of the ways I find I can stretch myself to accept new challenges as a creative writer:

1. Set Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs)

These are the dreams that keep you working at your writing, even when it is difficult. You may dream of writing the novel, publishing your work in a particular magazine, or writing an epic poem. Whatever your ultimate goal is, keep it in the back of your mind and let it out for an airing every so often, just to keep your focus on why you are doing this in the first place.

2. Practice Creativity Often

Within this series of Creative Habits, I’ve given heaps of suggestions, ideas, and tips on how you can practice your creativity.  Set aside about 20 minutes each working day to play one of the creative games, or to write creatively in a way that gets the creative juices flowing.  Practice the art of writing and combine it with the art of innovation to develop a unique style that is yours alone.

3. Set Daily or Mini Goals

BHAGs are all good, but sometimes to remain motivated you need to break up the BHAG into smaller, more manageable chunks. This is where the habit of setting daily or mini goals comes into play. Set a daily goal to write so many articles, and stretch yourself to meet your daily challenge.

4. Say “YES” to Ideas

Sometimes a client will suggest a writing assignment that literally has me squirming in my seat with fear that I won’t be able to achieve it. However, usually I find that I can achieve it, if I am willing to stretch to accept the challenge.  Being willing to say YES and give new ideas a try can certainly help you to stretch and develop your skills as a creative writer.

5. Keep an Open Mind

It is actually amazing how elastic your mind can be. Be open to accepting new ideas, new thoughts, and learning from other people. The more you can stretch your mind into accepting new ideas, the easier creative writing becomes. Be endlessly fascinated by the world and people around you to encourage an outpouring of inspired script as your mind stretches to accommodate the new information.

Accepting challenges is all about stretching the limits of my creative writing. Don’t put your abilities in a box and say “I only write in this way,” or “I’ll only write science fiction,” but give yourself the opportunity to expand your creative horizons. You may find that writing short stories is fun, but you can use the same creative genius to write articles for clients for websites.

In fact, the more dull or technical a topic is, the more fun I have in focusing on the art or the craft of writing to make it interesting.  On subjects I personally find dreary, I usually find that I am more likely to use a thesaurus to ensure the writing is not dull to my reader. I am willing to accept the challenges of writing, even on difficult, tedious, or technical subjects, just to practice my craft.

What do you do to stretch your boundaries?

Do you think stretching yourself creatively is necessary? If so, what is so necessary about stretching and if not, what other things do you do?

Quite a lot as it happens! Why? Because it’s a great way to slow down, relax and let your mind wander towards that magical ‘aha’ moment.

We are all so used to being busy. We generally live our lives at a hectic pace, moving from one project to another, one job to another, multi-tasking, rushing to get somewhere to do another task, that we rarely just stop and think.

If we do, we assume we are being lazy. Why do we think this?

The truth is that while our minds might be able to cope with doing several tasks at once, true creative thinking can’t happen while we are focusing on doing tasks.

Fishing, or at least sitting on a boat and dangling a line over the edge, is not actually a waste of time. It is simply slowing the hectic pace of everyday life enough to have time to think. You don’t even need the line!

photo credit: Paul L. Nettles

The idea is to find time to sit still, relax, and allow your mind to flow from thought to thought. People who practice creative habits know how important it is to put some time aside to just think.

Contemplation takes time and often it is in these sessions of apparently doing nothing that the mind is free to mull over half formed thoughts of the past. Often you will find that having had some time to ponder and put your thoughts together will mean that when you do sit down to write, it all just flows.

You will find that time spent thinking helps your creative writing, because it gives you the opportunity to see things from new perspectives.

This is one of the main reasons many people feel a creative job is out of their reach: they don’t actually give themselves the time to actively create by doing nothing but thinking.

All great artists know the value of creative thinking time – consider Auguste Rodin, who created a statue dedicated to beauty of thinking – The Thinker. If you want to be creative in your life and in your writing, give yourself some empty time each day just to think.

Social studies have proven that those who take time to contemplate each day are more creative, more at peace, and have a greater capacity for experiencing joy in their lives.

Sitting and dreaming, watching a fire can be quite a good substitute in winter for the fishing. Give yourself some ‘fire gazing’ time, even if you don’t have a fire. It helps you to sort out your thoughts and to relax enough to tap into your creative side.

Obviously, you may not have time to go fishing every day, but giving yourself a spare half hour a day in which you allow creative thinking to just happen, without distractions, and without feeling guilty about doing ‘nothing’, will work wonders for your creative writing.

It’s important to get over the mindset that just because you are not doing anything physical, you are not working. Take some time out to think creatively and you will find the writing is more productive when you do write.

Try some of these quick exercises to encourage delving into contemplation and thinking creatively quicker:

• Brainstorm ideas for writing about by making a list of as many titles you can think of in five minutes.

• Free writing – where you give yourself five minutes to just write (handwrite) anything that comes to mind. The pen must be moving on the paper for the full five minutes, and you don’t try to correct your writing or write perfectly. It is about idea generation and allowing your mind to connect ideas, rather than a writing exercise.

• Write a poem, a short story, a letter, or a diary entry. Create something for yourself, instead of for a particular audience. Write for the sheer enjoyment and freedom that comes with being a writer, rather than writing to only make money.

• Put together some pictures cut out from magazines and give yourself time to ponder the ideas that come from looking at these pictures, or a series of pictures that tells a story.

Try to set aside half an hour each day for thinking. In that time, turn off the phone, and don’t allow distractions.

Give yourself the joy of being able to mull over any issues without any dramas.

Give yourself the gift of contemplating time and take pleasure in your creative side.

Go on, give it a try and let me know how it works out.

T=Time. Allow yourself time to think

photo credit: cmaccubbin

We all spend so much time running around, getting things done, moving from one task to another, one writing deadline to the next, and often do not take the time to stop, relax, recharge and rethink.

Unfortunately, our minds actually need time to process ideas, and this happens best when we take time out.  If you want your creative juices to start flowing, take some time out to relax.

Have you ever had a problem troubling your mind, preventing you sleeping?

Your mind just seems to go around in circles, and no answer comes to mind. You can toss and turn all night but nothing changes and your mind just keeps churning with the same fragments of thoughts. If you finally drop off to sleep, you are more likely to come up with the answer when you wake up then you are trying to resolve the problem before you go to sleep.

Your mind actually works when you sleep, hence dreams, and often you find the answers when the conscious mind relaxes, allowing you to see the answer that was there all along.

The same thing happens when you want to write creatively.  Work can be hard sometimes, especially when you have many deadlines to meet. However, rushing from one project to another will not help your writing to be clear, creative, or appealing.

You actually need some time out to process your thoughts and allow your mind to become creative again in between major writing projects.

When you take some time out and relax, your mind has a chance to recover from the rushing and has the opportunity to process new ideas that lead to creativity.

Often writers will find that when they return to the writing after a break, the words flow quicker and it is easier to write. That is because even when we relax, our minds don’t stop working. We use the relaxation phase to ponder the deep questions and tap into the creative side of our brains. Giving yourself some time out will help your writing.

It is also important to allow some time for the thoughts and ideas to develop.

This is why many writers will have a folder for undeveloped ideas. When you come back to an idea that has been in the back of your mind for several months, you will often feel inspired and be able to write about it straight away. This is because your unconscious mind has had time to take out the idea, ponder it, and shelve it again a few times.

This is why it is a good idea to have a couple of days between first reading the client’s request and sitting down and writing for it. Your mind will actually cogitate on the request before you write and your writing will be clearer, and faster because of the time you have given to thinking about it first.

If you are struggling for inspiration, and deadlines allow, shelve the writing project for a little while. If you can spend some time relaxing, or allowing your creativity to start flowing by doing something fun like free writing, your writing will be better for it.

Going for a walk can be great for creative writing, as it gives your mind time to ponder the project and start forming the words before you put pen to paper (or in these technological days – hand to keyboard!).

Creative writing takes time. Allow yourself time to be able to write creatively and your writing will be much better.

Continuing on with the CREATIVE HABITS – E=Environment

Did you know color can affect your mood and how creative you are feeling? The psychology of color has been studied by experts for several years and now you can learn which colors are most likely to create an environment where writing or other creative tasks will happen.

If you don’t want repaint the room you write in, you may like to consider purchasing a colorful rug, new curtains or even small pieces of fabric in the color you need to drape within eyesight of your computer to lift your creative mood.

Here’s a brief summary of six different colors and how each they can affect our moods.

GREEN

Green is the color of nature and is the most tranquil of colors. It reduces stress and encourages balance. Wear it to inspire unity and motivation. Green is both restful and can restore energy, so it’s a good color for a room where you are writing.

Some researchers have discovered that laying a transparent sheet of green plastic over reading material increases reading speed and comprehension.  Green is considered to be the color of concentration and intellect. As a color that often represents fertility, green can fertilize your imagination.

BLACK

Of course, some people argue that black is not a color, but is rather the absence of color. However, while black is best used in small amounts, rather than as a feature, it is an important color to use. It’s popular as a symbol of menace or evil (and is balanced by white, which is seen as purity and goodness).

Although western cultures see black as a color of death and mourning, Ancient Egyptians believed black represented life and rebirth. A small amount of black can give your writing rebirth, and is really helpful in your peripheral vision, especially when you are editing work. Black is also associated with sophistication, depth and style and could bring these elements to your writing.

RED

Red is a very stimulating color. It provides energy, enhances self-assurance and produces an illusion of fantasy. People who wear red will receive attention and feel powerful. It also symbolizes love and, because it is a hot and passionate color, can help you to be passionate about your writing, when used judicially in room you write in.

In Feng Shui red means luck. A room or feature wall painted red will tend to invigorate and motivate action. If you find yourself in need of stimulation to write, especially on a grey, miserable day, try wearing a red top or scarf around your neck. It could energize you to write more creatively.  However, avoid the red when you are feeling tense, as it will tend to fatigue you.

PURPLE

Purple and indigo are consoling, restful and spiritual colours. Mauve and lighter violets can create a very therapeutic and soothing atmosphere. One of the best reasons to use purple in your writing environment is that it combats fear and provides balance for the mind.

Purple stands for royalty, mystery, wisdom and enlightenment and can therefore be an extremely useful color in patches for writers who need these qualities in their writing.

BLUE

Blue is the color of peace and tranquillity and has been found to lower blood pressure. I find it especially useful to wear a light blue shirt on a deadline day, as I find I tend to be less stressed. Some color psychologists believe that blue can increase wisdom energy, which can be extremely useful in writing.

Blue exudes confidence, order, stability, harmony and truth; all of which are extremely important to writers. Scientists have proven that people are more productive in a blue room and it is therefore a good color to have in your writing environment. However, mix blue with another color too, as blue can lead to depression in some people. Lighter blues are calming, while dark blues can evoke sadness and should be avoided.

YELLOW

Yellow communicates happiness and represents sunshine. Even on a dull, grey day outside, yellow in your writing environment can provide you with a lift that is energizing.  Yellow stimulates the nerves and is also the most fatiguing colour on your eyes.

Yellow can promote feelings of warmth and joy, however some studies have shown that babies will cry more in a yellow room. You should use this color with care, and more as an accent to another color, rather than paint the whole room yellow. It may be intellectually stimulating, but does not provide a restful respite. A lemon yellow, with light blue accents can be a very good combination for a writing environment, as the yellow gives a lift on dark days and the blue promotes productivity and provides the rest needed.

If you can have some fabric in the different colors, you can stimulate your senses when you need to. Otherwise, consider repainting or decorating your writing environment to match the mood you most need to stimulate when you are writing.

What’s your favorite color? Are there colors that you surround yourself with when you’re writing? Share your thoughts with us!

E=Environment

This is the second ‘E’ in CREATIVE HABITS and one I think that tends to get overlooked. Yet the environment around us has a real affect on ourselves and our creativity as a writer and infopreneur.

The environment where you write must be conducive to allowing your mind to be creative, as well as dedicated and tenacious. Many of us need an atmosphere that allows isolation to become creative rather than boring and dull. After all we will spend a lot of time in their writing environment, and it should have an ambience conducive to quality writing. What does this mean?

• The majority of writers use either a laptop or desktop computer and obviously need a good space to set up the computer. A comfortable chair with a cushioned back is a must, as we often spend a long time each day sitting in front of the computer.

• Besides designing the work area for ergonomic comfort, writers can ensure that their creative side is catered for. Clutter around the computer area is not going to promote a clear mind that allows ideas to be generated easily. The environment should ward against any sorts of distractions, such as clutter, noise and bad light.

• This means as writers, we should be organized, and have a clear space to work in. If you are using books for research, have them nearby, but limit the amount of items within your immediate ‘eye space’ near the computer. Keep your files neat and up to date to avoid excess disorder.

• Ensure the lighting, both natural from outside with windows and electric lights, is adequate to prevent your eyes from getting sore. On dull or grey days, you will need additional light within the room. Add a lamp near your desk area that you can turn on when natural light is not bright enough. Working in a darkly lit room is not only bad for your eyesight, but can be depressing, which is certainly not an emotion that is advantageous to writing.

• To promote creativity, some writers like to burn scented candles or have a small oil burner near the desk. I like a Jasmine scent on days when I seem to jump from task to task, as Jasmine helps concentration. Amber is great when I need a boost of creative genius, so I tend to use this when planning the structure of articles or when brainstorming ideas. Gardenia gives me an instant lift of cheer and is brilliant on the grey days. Find the fragrances that work for you to add impact to your writing surroundings.

• If noise is a problem, you may like to add to your creative atmosphere with soft background music. This helps to block out other, more distracting noises, such as traffic going past.  Music is also relaxing and soothing and aids concentration for some people. Avoid songs that you love to sing along with as this means your mind is focusing on the song and not your writing. Classical music works well as background music.

A writer’s environment should also allow for creativity, even away from the computer.

One of my favorite tools in my office area is a large whiteboard.  I use different colored marker pens to draw and write on the board, for many different reasons.

• Sometimes, I use the board to brainstorm the ideas surrounding the topic I am writing on. Sometimes, I simply create an outline of the article I am writing, to add structure to my work and make the writing easier for the audience to read.

• Sometimes my whiteboard holds a to do list, with the most urgent or deadline items in red, as this keeps me motivated to cross off or rub out my list. This is more common on days when I just do not feel like writing and need to meet deadlines. I give myself a couple of small tasks and rejoice as the to do list gets smaller on the whiteboard.  The different color marker pens add color to the room where I write in too.

Creating a good environment to write in I believe is essential for successful writers. Find what motivates you to write and ensure it is included within your surroundings. Make your writing space uniquely yours, well lit, clear and free of clutter.

How do you have your writing area set up? What tips do you have to help make where you work more conducive to be inspired to write?

Welcome back! I had a great break and I hope you did too. I feel very refreshed and raring to go. I’m still getting used to writing 2009 though!

So where were we? Oh yeah, we were talking about how keep the CREATIVE HABIT through Variety. Have you found it helpful? I hope so.

Let me ask, are you sick of writing the same way, in the same style and even the same sort of stories, over and over?

Writers who excel at their trade will know that variety is the spice of life and it is difference rather than similarity that engages a readers’ interest in the topic.

But how do writers get the variety?

First, write about different topics

You may have been told write what you know, because this makes the writing sound realistic to the reader. This is true, in one sense, but writers can’t know everything first hand. Research is the key to learning. Writers with an endless curiosity will be a success. If you don’t know about a topic, do some research. Find someone who does know and talk to them about it. Then, you will be able to write about a greater diversity of topics.

Challenge yourself to broaden your horizons and get to know more about many different things. Even if you are not using it today in your writing, you may find you use that titbit of trivial information in another piece of writing.

Secondly, be curious

Talk to the old woman sitting at the bus stop, the young boy on the train and the mother pushing the pram in the supermarket. Strike up conversations with strangers and you will be surprised at what you will learn that can later be used in your writing.

If you don’t feel comfortable with talking to strangers, people-watching is a great pastime. Sit in the window of a café and watch the variety of people walking by. Consider what they are wearing, how they look, what they could be thinking about and what sort of family life you think they might have.

Thirdly, read everything

Sticking to one style or even your favourite authors when you read for pleasure will not necessarily help your writing style to improve. Reading an eclectic collection of magazines, newspapers and books helps you to pick up different techniques from a range of authors. You will be able to write on different topics and in a variety of techniques better if you read diversely yourself.

You will also increase your vocabulary with every book you read. Using synonyms in your writing boosts your reader’s interest.

Fourthly, make an eclectic collection of friends

Most people limit their friendships to those within their families and those within their own age and peer groups. This is because it is easy to relate to people you have something in common with. However, building relationships with a wide variety of people will give any writer greater understanding of human nature. You may learn what is it is like to be an 80 year old widow, and be able to empathise with the frustrations of a five year old child.

These relationships open up new worlds of possibilities in your writing. If you are writing fiction, characters will develop from the people you know, even just a little. Even if you are writing non-fiction, the broader your community net of relationships, the more you are likely to be able to write for the broader audience.

Many people go through life with blinkers on, just like a racehorse. They only see the narrow sphere of society in which they grew up. If they grew up in a middle class family, they are likely to marry and build relationships with other middle class people.

Challenge yourself to meet and talk with people from many different backgrounds. Be curious about the people you meet and broaden your life experiences by learning new cultures, views and belief systems of other people.

Finally, have diverse interests

Exceptional writers will have diverse interests and experience as many different things as possible.  Step out of your comfort zone to experience adventures in life that will enhance your writing.

Get out there and challenge yourself to write in different styles, about dissimilar topics and with a greater variety of characters and techniques. Live life to the full, build plenty of relationships and an eclectic network in your community and see the difference it can make to your writing experience.

That’s it for V=Variety in the CREATIVE HABIT series. Next time I’ll be discussing E=Environment, the last letter in CREATIVE. Until next time!

If you’ve  ever attended a lecture or speech where the speaker has droned on in a monotone, you’ll know how boring it can be.

Good writing uses a variety of techniques and styles that continually work to engage the reader’s interest. No-one wants to write in a way that puts their audience to sleep, because it is boring.

When you are writing, you don’t have the option of modifying the tone of voice, as you do when you are speaking. This is why writers should use variety in the way they write, ensuring the reader’s interest is maintained.

Writers should use a variety of different styles to express their ideas.

• One technique is to ensure you use paragraphs and sentences of varying lengths throughout the piece of writing. Some sentences should be quite short. This can add impact.

One of the most dramatic verses in the bible, for example, is one of the shortest. At the grave of his friend Lazarus, with all the disciples and a large crowd gathered around to see what Jesus would do, we are simply told two words: “Jesus wept.”

Using short sentences to break up long pieces of text adds interest and impact to the writing. However, if every single sentence is short, you end up feeling like you are reading a child’s story. “The cat sat on the mat. See Dick run. See Jane run.” BORING! Obviously, good writers will use variety in the length of sentences.

• Diversity in the words used can also add interest and stop the reader falling asleep. Good editors will always look at the page to see if the same words are repeated several times. Use synonyms to make your writing more exciting. Expand your vocabulary to utilize the delicious variety of words available in the English language.

• Excellent writers will not start each sentence with the same word, or start each paragraph in the same way. It looks dull, especially as many readers will scan the page before starting to read. If every paragraph starts with the same word, it can be confusing and tedious to read.

• Sometimes using different characters to tell the story is far more interesting to read, than just one voice within the text. Consider the options for using different styles within your writing such as poetry, prose, letters, quotations, conversation and monologue. Use a variety of techniques to develop the plot and storyline of your writing.

• Reading many different authors’ work will encourage diversity and variety in your own writing styles.  Even if you find you don’t enjoy reading the work, look at the language used to discover why. You may find styles that suit your writing come naturally, but every now and then you should challenge yourself to try a new style of writing, just to expand your skills and continue to engage your audience.

Anyone who is serious about the craft of writing will use a variety of techniques within their work. Diversity adds interest, is more entertaining and more likely to be read. Writers should be able to write competently on a wide variety of topics, in different voices and characters and using a large vocabulary.  Titillate your audience with new words, styles and forms of writing.

Please note:

This is my last post for a couple of weeks as I’m going to take a break over Christmas and New Year period.  I’ll be back in early January 2009 (can you believe we’re almost into 2009!!) to continue on with the CREATIVE HABITS series.

Until then I wish you and your loved ones all the best over the festive season and stay safe and happy.

Best wishes, Jan

V=Variety

Wow, we’re up to V=Variety already in the CREATIVE HABITS series! I don’t know about you but I’ve really been enjoying it – and they’re my articles…

Having eclectic tastes simply means being fascinated by and enjoying variety. Writers who enjoy a wide variety of interests will be able to write to reach wider audiences and will have the knowledge to make their work believable.

It’s said variety is the spice of life, and a writer who has a broad range of interests will never get bored by what they write. More importantly, neither will your audience be bored with your writing. What does this mean?

• You never know when the unusual hobby you have will lead to a story. Writers who have a variety of life experiences can share more readily with their audiences. Your writing will have greater appeal, because of the variety of information included.

• Trivial facts can add spice and variety to any style of writing. Reading and researching on a variety of topics will help a writer to learn interesting facts to engage the reader of their work.

• Writers who have eclectic tastes will find research easier, because they will become fascinated by at least one aspect of any particular topic. A good writer is curious about the world around them and wants to learn more. They then use this experience in their writing.

• People with a very narrow range of interests rarely make good dinner conversationalists and, unless they meet someone else who shares their specific interest, are likely to bore the company. Just as people with a wide variety of interests are popular invitees to dinner parties, writers who have a wide variety of interests are popular with their audiences. A writer certainly will not be successful, if they gain a reputation for being boring.

• Journalists have been described as endlessly curious, jacks of all trades and masters of none. This means that they love to know a little bit about anyone they meet, the trade and occupation they hold and to share the experiences of their interviewees. They are not a master of any trade, except perhaps the one of writing, because they do not experience any trade long enough to become a master of that trade. However, these eclectic tastes, mean journalists can feel comfortable in interviewing a variety of people and writing about many different topics in one day, week or month.

• Any style of writer should encourage eclectic tastes in themselves and aim to experience many different things in a lifetime. This means that their writing will speak to more people and be able to relate to people with different experiences easier.

• Writers do not generally write for an audience of one (unless of course it’s a journal). This means that the audience of the work is going to be made up of many different individuals. Your writing should speak to every one of those individuals, in some way.

• Encouraging variety in your own interests means you will be more likely to write in a way that reaches individuals with those interests too. The more you are interested in yourself, the more enjoyable people will find your writing to read.

• Writers should have a variety of different friends, including those who are both older and younger than themselves, so that they have more understanding of the wider community and can relate their writing to the broadest possible audience.

Encouraging eclectic tastes, researching and writing about a variety of topics helps the writer to reach broader audiences, keep an interest in their work and their writing and to relate to the individuals who read their work.