The Creative Mind

Many actors, writers and other creative people are considered shy or introverted, or identify themselves as one or both. They are not the same thing, of course, although many people may talk about others, or themselves, as “shy” when they are perhaps introverted.

"To my immense frustration, I didn’t have a pen that worked, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one…” J.K. Rowling about first developing "Harry Potter."

"Some of the titular outsiders featured in Alissa Quart’s new book...are crazy."

"Even if you don’t consider yourself an outsider or a rebel, Quart’s book has several lessons for creative work, particularly when it comes to making art outside a heavily commercial system."

Her book: Republic of Outsiders: The Power of Amateurs, Dreamers and Rebels. http://buff.ly/169QlGx

Gordon Parks (1912-2006) was often referred to as a Renaissance man, as noted in an obituary, and lived up to the label: “In addition to his photography, film work and poetry, he composed a symphony, sonatas, concertos, film scores, and wrote novels, instructional photography manuals, essays and three memoirs."

Lady Gaga says "I want women - and men - to feel empowered by a deeper and more psychotic part of themselves. The part they're always trying to hide."

“I hope I’m becoming more eccentric. More room in the brain.” Musician Tom Waits

Being eccentric – choosing not to be more safely mundane – can help our creative thinking and courage.

As psychologist Robert Ornstein, PhD has noted, “If you spend too much time being like everybody else, you decrease your chances of coming up with something different.”

In the preface to a photography book, singer–songwriter, poet and visual artist Patti Smith describes the experience of many creators.

“The artist, in turn, sacrifices his leisure, the pleasure of being vague, of drifting half-present or merging unconsciously with the terrain. For the artist is driven, is one apart, estranged from all save his one eye."

"I'm extremely excited and extremely nervous," says the designer, one of five celebrities taking part in Canon's "Project Imaginat10n," of helming a love story/fantasy inspired by 10 user-generated photographs.

Topics include:

Self-esteem and personal development;

Eric Maisel course “Your Life in the Arts”;

Imagination and Grounded Reality

  and much more

J.K. Rowling spoke in her Harvard Commencement Address about the power of our imagination for creativity and innovation, and understanding other people.

One of psychologist C.G. Jung‘s concepts is “active imagination.” Jungian analyst John Beebe comments about it being “a kind of dialogue between conscious and unconscious.”

Creative and highly talented people often have imaginational intensity – an ability tapped into by Rowling and so many other artists.

From tiny writing desks to giant painting studios, the only thing all of these creative studios have in common is that they inspired their successful inhabitants to create greatness.

Martin Howard: It's not just the preserve of Albert Einstein and Prince – eccentric behaviour benefits society and helps us live longer

"Eccentricity. We all know it when we see it. Chances are high some of you reading this are eccentric, and we British are quietly proud to lead the world in producing Grade-A loons. National icon Oscar Wilde, for example, used to take a lobster on a lead for walks."

Creating may be at times a collaboration, and it can be helpful to get input from others, but many artists say they create primarily to please themselves.

What happens if you realize you are smarter and more capable than most people? Do you celebrate being exceptional, or try to hide?

One of the many inspiring quotes by Steve Jobs: "Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you, and you can change it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that other people can use."

But Jobs also recognized he was exceptional. “It was a very big moment that’s burned into my mind. When I realized that I was smarter than my parents..."

Susan K. Perry is a social psychologist and author of many articles and non-fiction books. She comments about writing her first work of fiction.

'Over time, this fictional world has become so familiar to me, that it seems to truly exist “out there,” overlapping my own, rather more ordinary, life.'

'But it’s been hard work to make it as good as I feel it is now...I learned so much during this long process that I’m truly glad I dared to write fiction.'

“My Adderall helps me think so much clearer.” [From an ADD forum.]

Who wouldn’t want that?

Steven Zeitchik says in his article about the movie “Limitless” that “down-on-his-luck New York writer Eddie (Bradley Cooper) ”takes a magic potion – a “miracle street narcotic in the form of a translucent pill, NZT that enhances mental performance beyond any reasonable expectation. (Yes, it’s fictional.)”

Many people face challenges in their lives they not only overcome, but are able to use for enhancing their creative work.

Emma Thompson: “I’m very lucky I write as well. I don’t see how I could be as effective a mother as I’d like to be if I had to go away and act all the time."

From post: Motherhood and creative work http://developingmultipletalents.com/78/motherhood-and-creative-work/

“I’m an only child and I’m just a real loner kind of person, and yeah, kinda dark. But I’m happy. Not sad. I’m just shy and nervous… I was a loner in high school. I keep to myself, but I love life.” Actor Clea DuVall

Creative performers have three seeming contradictions - energy/rest, extroversion/introversion, and openness/sensitivity, along with other key traits, notes cognitive psychologist Scott Barry Kaufman.

“I just thought making movies was something done by geniuses, and I was very clear that I wasn’t one of those.” Jane Campion

When “The Artist’s Way” author and creativity coach Julia Cameron has asked people to list ten traits they think artists have, their responses have included: “Artists are broke,” “Artists are crazy,” “Artists are drug-addicted” and “Artists are drunk.” Other myths and ideas about being an artist: