What to do when you’re stuck? Making Space Session 4
This week we hosted our fourth Making Space session and we had a wonderful time with the dozen or so Gummies who were present and creating. Guild members were cross stitching, writing poetry, creating zines, drawing and cartooning, making flax, sewing, and much more!
At the end of the session, Eleanor posed a question and the answers were so encouraging and useful that we thought we’d share them with the wider community!
What do you do when you’re stuck, creatively? When you’re trying to make but the flow isn’t there or you’re feeling too much pressure? When it feels like wading through treacle, you’ve lost the joy, you want to be making but nothing is happening?
With huge thanks to everyone who contributed, here is our Guild Approved™ advice for getting out of a creative funk:
Do the worst thing possible! Kristen said that when she’s feeling the pressure on an idea, she often draws with her left hand first– anything she then draws with her right hand will be an improvement! Doing the worst thing possible completely lowers the stakes and might help you to get unstuck.
Change the medium. Susie suggested taking the ideas into a different medium if you can. If you’re text based, why not try to draw your ideas? It doesn’t matter whether you think of yourself as a visual artist or not, even just thinking about the ideas through the lens of a different mode can be liberating.
Fill the well. Laura said that when she’s stuck, she turns to other poets and writers for inspiration. You can’t create if you don’t have inspiration to draw from– an internal well of deep and rich resources. And you don’t necessarily have to read books directly related to your project either. Often reading more widely can stimulating more unusual and unexpected ideas. You never know where the inspiration might come from!
Look at the work you are proud of! Teresa suggested going back to creative work that you’ve made that you’re proud of– you’ve done it before and you can do it again! Looking back at previous work will give you a boost.
Set a timer and stop! Krista suggested setting a timer for your making. Stop when the timer goes off, whether you’re enjoying it or not. Especially if you are enjoying it because then you’ll be even more motivated to come back to it later!
Freewriting. Teresa suggested writing around the problem. Do some freewriting to unlock what it is that you want to make or work on and what you think might be stopping you. Journalling or freewriting might help you to find the block or the reason you’re nervous of starting.
Watch a show that inspires you. Inspiration can also come from the screen and Meg suggested watching a show that you really enjoy because of its visual appeal or its approach to storytelling. What works about this show and how might that apply to your art? You could even do your making while watching your favourite show or while listening to a favourite piece of music to create a fun ambience.
Go elsewhere. A little bit like Laura’s advice about filling the well, Teresa also suggested returning to texts that always inspire you, but it can also help to turn to something completely different to give your brain a holiday! You never know what might spark your creativity again.
Take a class! Mounawar said that we all need new injections of outside expertise and it can be great to take a class or participate in a workshop on your craft. You can learn new techniques, connect with other practitioners, and often workshops remind you of why you love your craft in the first place– and often of how much you do already know too!
You could even teach your craft to someone else! Kristen noted that she always feel especially excited about comics after teaching a workshop and sharing ideas with others. And these days– with youtube videos and online masterclasses– you don’t even have to physically go to a class or workshop!
Use prompts! Relatedly, Meg suggested looking for lists of prompts to kickstart your creativity. Organisations like The Poetry Society or annual creative events such as Inktober will have lists of suggestions.
Finally, Krista reminded us to think about our medieval inspirations and how privileged we are to be living in a time when our crafts are, in the majority of cases, voluntary and our chosen hobbies. We started our making for the joy of it! Remember the joy!
We hope these suggestions are helpful! Do share your own with us through our social media (@guildmedmak on Instagram, @guildmedmak.bsky.social). Our next Making Space event will be in September so make sure you are a member of the Guild to receive the link.
