A Creative Life Online: Finding Inspiration And Creativity Online

Welcome to the second post in ‘A Creative Life Online‘. This post is about finding inspiration and creativity online.

Please read the introductory post about the deliberate, curated, careful consumption of media and how to use the internet as a beneficial tool to nurture your creative life.

Finding Inspiration And Creativity Online

Make Your Scrolling Elf Work For You

The internet is big and the internet is overwhelming. The algorithms are like little, well-intentioned-but-drunk house elves trying to give us the best experience. But, they just give us the same thing over and over again.

I decided to make sure that my house elf only serves up good, wholesome stuff. I’m training my algorithms to be positive and supportive, and to provide creativity online. Ha! Take that Google. I’m in charge now. No one at Google cares, but let’s pretend, ok?

Finding Inspiration And Reason In The Clutter

This is my first list I’m sharing. It does not have a specific theme, because this was in the beginning of my mindful scrolling journey, and I wanted to see how I use what I’ve already done, seen and read.

Some later posts might have themes, but this list has forced me to consider and think about what I have learnt and watched in last few months and how it has contributed to my growth and learning. It’s all about creating a healthy space for your creativity on the internet.

Books:

Fiction:

I read The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides. I had mixed feelings about this one while I was reading it and I think it had to do with the first person viewpoint of the protagonist, which I need to go back and re-examine, but I thoroughly enjoyed the story. All twisty like I like it.

And then if you enjoyed that one you can also read Good Me Bad Me by Ali Land. It is just awesome.

Non-fiction:

Last year I read The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life by Twyla Tharp. She is an American Choreographer and I loved her approach and honesty when it came to creating.

Movies or series:

The Crown, Season 3. I have watched all three seasons now. I took me a moment to get used to the new cast, but once again The Crown was fascinating. I love any historical fiction and this series is a must of anyone who has any interest in writing about history, public figures and real life events. I find it so interesting to see which parts of the story they chose to highlight. Princess Anne wins the season btw.

Social Media:

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If you enjoy a good writerly giggle follow @tcviani on Instagram.

Audiobooks:

The first audiobook I ever listened to was The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. It was not only a brilliant story, but an excellent production and set the bar very high for all audiobooks. I love Saskia Maarleveld’s narration. It is so good. Set in WW2 it deals with the women who worked as spies in occupied France. Well worth the listen or read it, if that is what you prefer.

Podcast:

My all-time favourite podcast is Revisionist History by Malcolm Gladwell. Disclaimer: I love everything by Malcolm Gladwell. He will feature here often.

Images:

World Press Photo: I follow them on Instagram, but you’ll find them wherever you can see images. I love deciphering the stories in the photos. They feature different photographers from around the world who showcase their images.

Last Word

These are a few of the online people, places and spaces that inspire me. I find that I subscribe or follow easily, but I also unfollow or subscribe without mercy. Try these and see where they take you.

Remember to keep an eye on the clock, set a timer if you must, and get off the internet eventually. That book isn’t going to write itself.

Watch this space. Look out for our next post in the series. (Sign up for our newsletter to get our Daily Writing Links, and you won’t miss out.) You will learn to find inspiration and creativity online.

 by Mia Botha

If you enjoyed this post, you will love:

1. 31 Writing Prompts For March 2020
2. A Creative Life Online: How To Use The Internet As A Creative Tool
3. 29 Writing Prompts For February 2020
4. Poetry 101: Kinds Of Poems: The Ballad
5. Poetry 101: Kinds Of Poems – The Villanelle
6. Poetry 101: Kinds Of Poems – The Limerick
7. Poetry 101: Kinds Of Poems – The Haiku
8. Word Count Problems: What’s The Deal With ‘Exactly’?
9. Silver Screen Inspiration For Short Story Writers

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