Author: Andrew Zahn

I'm a son, husband, dad, business owner, actor and good sleeper/eater. On this blog, I pave a highway for creative growth by providing food, water, and shelter for those wishing to live, work, and play with creative zest.

Ideation Exercise for Creative Flow

15 minutes on the timer. Write down as many ideas as possible.

Rules: no rules. Even the ‘dumbest’ idea can eventually become amazing art or science.

  1. Make bubbles professionally.
  2. Eat only orange things.
  3. Grow something new.
  4. Climb a rock and write a poem on top of it.
  5. Spend a day living like a blind person.
  6. Grow a beard.
  7. Shave a beard.
  8. Shave your head.
  9. Shave the dog.
  10. Charge money for something you’d normally do for free.
  11. Do something for free you’d normally charge for. Continue reading “Ideation Exercise for Creative Flow”

iPad 3 and the Technology Buffet: Does Technology Help Creativity?

With the new iPad coming out in a few days I’ve heard a voice creeping up from inside me.

It says things like:

  • The iPad 3 will help you be more creative.
  • You’ll write more if I buy and iPad 3.
  • The iPhone and MacBook are just distractions. You can use an iPad 3 just for writing. It’ll help you focus. No, for reals Andrew. It will help. You won’t play Angry Birds, Words with Friends, or The Little Baby Chicken Goes to the Graham Cracker Factory. It will help you be more creative! Buy and iPad 3!!! Continue reading “iPad 3 and the Technology Buffet: Does Technology Help Creativity?”

An E-Mail from Yourself: Creative Life

From: You
Subject: Your Creative Life
Date: Today
To: You
--------------------------------------------------------
Dear You:
Remember me? I'm you, but it's 20 years down the road.
I know this is kinda weird because you don't remember
writing this e-mail, but I'm sending it anyway.
I wanted to remind you that you're amazing, you have
what it takes, and your creative life is astounding. It's
imperative that you keep creating. What I've realized
(now that it's 20 years later) is that many people depend
on your work. You may not feel like your work matters, but
it does. So keep creating. Keep living a creative life.
Don't stop.
Don't worry if it's bad.
Just keep working.


 Continue reading “An E-Mail from Yourself: Creative Life”

	


	







	

		
		
The Shortest Short Stories: Tiny Stories
	


	
	
	

		
Whilst traveling, my wife and I ran into a friend who had this book:


Tiny Stories


It’s a fascinating (tiny) book of idea generators, saucy illustrations and super teeny-tiny stories. Coupled with this post of writing prompts I read yesterday, I thought I’d try my hand at a few tiny stories as well.


Please leave your own tiny story in the comments so we can all enjoy your creativity.


Tiny Story #1


She didn’t like it when Janice talked that way.


But then again, Janice didn’t like the way she listened either.


Tiny Story #2


When in doubt, stop doubting.


Tiny Story #3


He liked watching people draw, but his favorite was brush on canvas. That sent him reeling.


 Continue reading “The Shortest Short Stories: Tiny Stories”

	


	





	

		
		
Where the Beauty Is (or Isn’t)
	


	
	
	

		
A few years ago Joshua Bell, a Grammy award-winning world class violinist, played a brief concert in a Washington DC subway for 43 minutes and made $32.17 in donations.


He usually makes around $1,000 per minute.


The Washington Post conducted the experiment. A short excerpt from the full article:


“His performance was arranged by The Washington Post as an experiment in context, perception and priorities — as well as an unblinking assessment of public taste: In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?”


The 43 minute concert, played on Bell’s $3.5 million dollar Stradivarius, was captured on video…


 Continue reading “Where the Beauty Is (or Isn’t)”

	


	





	

		
		
How to (not) Write a Blog: Biggest Blogging Mistakes
	


	
	
	

		
Blog Mistake Number One: Poor Title


The best way to keep readers from enjoying your awesome posts is to write a poor title.


Amancay Maahs (Creative Commons)


Your title should engage the reader, build value and provide them with a possible answer to a question they’ve always wanted to know. For instance, you’re reading this post (most likely) simply because of the title “How to (not) Write a Blog: Biggest Blogging Mistakes.”


For some great tips on writing engaging headlines, check this out.


Blog Mistake Number Two: Distracting Errors


If you wint your credibulit to be shot to the wall, make stupid errors just the ones’ in this sentence


Distracting aren’t they?


Tip: if you’re not great at catching grammatical errors, have someone who is gifted in that arena proofread your posts before hitting that publish button.


 Continue reading “How to (not) Write a Blog: Biggest Blogging Mistakes”

	


	







	

		
		
What’s on Your Milestone
	


	
	
	

		
How do we know we’re moving if we don’t have milestones?


Every now and then, it’s fun (or challenging) to see where our creative life is going.


Ten minutes of reflection, strolling through some photos or just a ‘year in review’ with my wife will often reveal where we’re at and where we want to be.


 


Here’s a few recent milestones in pictures…


The Good: our ‘made out of a tomato tree stand’ Christmas Tree. Creative. Saved money on a real one. Looks interesting.


 Continue reading “What’s on Your Milestone”

	


	





	

		
		
Give it Away Now
	


	
	
	

		
There’s a river born to be a giver

Keep you warm won’t let you shiver

His heart is never gonna wither

Come on everybody time to deliver.


“Give it Away” RHCP


You’ve got to give what’s in you.


Don’t know what’s in you? Think you have 100% nothing to give?


That’s a lie from hell.


And I’m 100% serious.


You’ve got something in you. It’s something that’s begging to get out.


The words you’re reading right now might make you itch. Not the scratchable kind. An itch in your gut. In that place where it aches when something sad or beautiful happens.


 Continue reading “Give it Away Now”