What Does Creativity Look Like (The Creativity Series: Guest Post)

One of my Triberr friends who came to my call is Corinne O’Flynn, another Mighty Writer Warrior. Beyond that, though, I got to know Corinne as a writer during the Rules of Three Blogfest I co-hosted in October 2011.

A pretty darn good writer, as she was the winner of our first blogfest, garnering the votes and admiration of her fellow #REN3 writers. Well deserved, among some tough competition.

Her Guest Post echoes feelings I wrote about recently. GMTA!  Enjoy!!

The Creativity Series Guest Post:

What Does Creativity Look Like?: Corinne O’Flynn

Whether you are staring down a blank sheet of paper and willing the pen to move, standing in front of a blank canvas wishing the brush would take over, crying over your keyboard and stark white monitor, or lamenting the cluttered space in your house and praying for a solution, we all use our creativity every single day.

In my handy dictionary, creativity is defined as the ability to create. 

Create what?

Does creativity belong solely to the arts?  Is it a matter of creating something beautiful, entertaining, or enlightening? I am not so sure about that. Does it require bringing something into being where there was nothing before?
I believe strongly that we humans are rather creative by nature.  Not everyone can be a writer, nor everyone a painter, but everyone is creative.

As a writer, I am often asked where I come up with the ideas for my stories. I would love to reply that there is a fabulous process with thirteen intricate and specific steps which, if followed, will enable each and every one of you to generate fabulous story lines.  But, that’s not the case-at least for me (if you do happen to have such a plan, please share it in the comments!).  Yes, there is a creative process at work, but it is so very subjective and personal.  What works for me will not likely work for someone else and vice versa.

As part of my work at Rowan Tree Foundation  I write essays about my personal experience and thoughts on grief and loss.  When I ask others to consider becoming a contributing writer and share about their own experiences, many shy away claiming a lack of creative ability. Now, you know I don’t believe it’s possible since I’ve already stated that we are all creative.

So what is it?

Creativity requires courage. There is risk involved in creating something that you intend to share. Putting your heart into creating something and then placing it on display puts you at risk.  It is a risk many people are not comfortable taking.

What many people fail to see, and therefore fail to give themselves credit for, is the creativity that they put to use on a daily basis. Some are indeed working on things that are considered mainstream creative endeavors like writing, singing, composing, and art to name a few. But what about the everyday person trying to organize a cluttered space in their home so they can make the space ready for a new use? What about the businessperson who needs to figure out a solution to a budget crisis without letting any employees go?  What about the parent whose children need to be in five places at once and there is only one car?

Creativity takes many forms, and they are not always what we think of as conventionally creative things. It’s important to acknowledge your personal creativity even when you’re applying it to mundane tasks.  If more of us did this, I believe we’d discover how very creative we all are.

In what ways are you creative in your daily life?

Bio:
Corinne loves to write about fictional dark and fantastical things. You can find her on her blog  and on twitter @CorinneOFlynn