A creative challenge is a defined creative commitment with a beginning, an end, and a payoff for finishing. It might ask you to draw every day for a month, complete one unfinished project, or follow a series of steps that helps you get back to making art. That structure is part of the appeal. A creative challenge can help you build a habit, make progress on something you have avoided, or get past the blank page. The problem is that the challenge itself can become another b

What if your art block isn’t actually a lack of creativity? Sometimes you don’t need another idea. Sometimes (I'd say most times) another idea actually won't help. What do you need instead? You need time, space, a clear next step, or a break from the running commentary in your own head.

"I used to make art." Sometimes it's painting. Sometimes quilting, pottery, sewing, knitting, or keeping a sketchbook. The medium changes, but the sentiment doesn't. I've heard that sentence hundreds of times. People think they’ve lost their creativity. I don’t think that’s what’s happened. I think they lost their rhythm. I know, because I did too.

Showing up matters. I’m a big believer in sitting in the seat, lowering your expectations, and being willing to make imperfect art. But I also want my studio time to count.

For a long time, I treated studio time for artists as optional. It was something I would get to after I had taken care of everything and everyone else. In other words, I treated it like leftover time. The problem was...there was rarely anything left over. The Real Problem With “I’ll Get to It” Creating is a form of self-care, and that kind of time tends to be the first thing to go when life gets busy. Why? Because studio time is usually beholden to no one but o