Synopsis: How often do you notice the texture of a painted wall or the scent of a friend’s house and, importantly, how they make you feel? Connect your observations and your emotions and transform your creative practice with this essential toolbox packed full of exercises, tips, stunning images and personal experiences from dynamic artist Philippa Stanton. There is creativity in all of us, but it can easily be buried beneath our everyday concerns, or need a spark to bring it back to life. Whether you’ve lost your mojo or just need some fresh ideas, artist and photographer Philippa Stanton’s lively guide...
Welcome to My Creative Notebook, I’ve always been fascinated by the creative process and believe that everyone has their own personal collection of skills and abilities, which just needs time and encouragement to develop.
Finding the time and space to be creative is vital to sustain creativity, one of the most important actions in any day is to seize the moments which sometimes occur when you least expect it; to simply stand and stare, to be inspired by a beautiful view, hear a bird singing, or to watch your family laughing together. Treasure these moments; they form the rich tapestry of living in a creative way.
There are so many amazing sources of inspiration and I hope in this space to share ideas, thoughts, words, books, resources, art, photography, events and interviews, which I hope you will enjoy and find inspiring.
Despite this space being rooted in technology, I see My Creative Notebook as a starting point from which to go and do things!
The Writer’s Eye – Amy E. Weldon Observation and Inspiration for Creative Writers
Synopsis: Learning to write starts with learning to do one big thing: pay attention to the world around you, even though just about everything in modern life makes this more difficult than it needs to be. Developing habits and practices of observing, and writing down what you notice, can be the first step away from the anxieties and doubts that can hold you back from your ultimate goal as a writer: discovering something to say and a voice to say it in. The Writer’s Eye is an inspiring guide for writers at all stages of their writing lives. Drawing on new research into creative...
Interview with Claudia Carroll, Author of The Secrets of Primrose Square
What inspired you to start writing? Like a lot of authors, for about as long as I can remember, I’d been scribbling down stories and embarrassingly rough drafts for novels. But then like most people, I just assumed that book deals were something that happened to other people so I’d just shove what I’d written into the back of a drawer and vow not to mortify myself by even talking about it. Took me a very long time and a LOT of courage to get brave and actually put a book out there. In the meantime though, I was working...
Interview with Annie Robertson – Author of My Mamma Mia Summer
We loved the way you brought Mamma Mia references into your book, is it a favourite film of yours?It took me a while to fall in love with Mamma Mia. When it first came out I really didn’t get it but then, after several years, I was re-introduced to it and I began to see it differently. Now I can’t get enough of its energy and joy. I’ll be first in the queue when Here We Go Again is released! Your descriptions of the island are so vivid, that as a reader, you feel utterly transported there, how did you...
Interview with Author – Veronica Henry
As A Family Recipe is about to be published I had a wonderful opportunity to interview Veronica Henry about her inspiration and her life outside her books. We love the structure of A Family Recipe, what was your inspiration for writing the book in that way?I wanted to write about two different generations in one house; the relationship between a grandmother and granddaughter, and how their lives are intertwined. And it was my family recipe box that provided the key to that relationship – how the recipes in it had been handed down through the generations, and reflected what was...