Staying Creative, It's Always With Us.

The ebbs and flows of our lives.

Feb 04, 2025

The ebbs and flows of our lives.

In busy times, we can feel overwhelm from having many deadlines, activities, obligations, and dread of the uncertain. Procrastination, as a result, can happen to the best of us.There’s been a lot for all of us in the broader scope of the past five years. There’s usually a lot for us all on a smaller scale of our lives personally from day to day, week to week, month to month, and so on.

Creatively push through and triumph.

Whether it’s your writing, your art, your creative reason, we all have these ebbs and flows in life, as well as any creative pursuits. There is a natural tendency to halt when there’s too much for us. We all of course are different from one another and that means we process, react, and handle what life throws at us in different ways.

I’ve mentioned in the past couple of months that I had two surgical procedures on my neck two weeks apart recently. I knew that would make it a hill to climb with my art and my art business. To stay creative and accountable, and decided to commit to three different monthly art challenges. This would do a few things for me. First, it was a creative outlet, which I need. Second, it gave me things to post about on my social media, my YouTube channel, as well as here on Substack. My Art business as a whole needed this to stay accountable in, as well as my personal self. Third, it would help me persevere through pain and complacency, and push myself. Fourth, it was something to focus on through the weather of December, as SAD can creep in more easily when life piles up as well as Holiday obligations. Staying creative like that was a beacon, it was a focal point. I planned ahead and committed. If you can find a ‘Why’, you can do anything you put your mind to.

Making lists and prioritizing for my business.

My Art business had a bit of a stall, but that’s okay. We need to prioritise, and make sure we take care of ourselves. It’s okay to put your air mask on first, before you can help the others, as the adage of the distressed airplane goes.

I started my art business as a full-time, professional Artist in March of 2024. I decided that some of December’s down time could be for making lists, assessing what was working and what wasn’t, and deciding how I was going to proceed into the second year.

Here’s my first Substack article from last March.

And so it begins, I am ready. First Newsletter

I started a Substack blog and a Patreon blog at the same time. They had identical posts. I decided that Substack is better received by an audience, and I feel the community here. I felt like an island in a void on Patreon. It just isn’t a good fit with where I’m at right now. Maybe I can revisit it in the future, but I dropped it completely for now anyway. Substack is really a better use of my time, whether creating my own material for subscribers who are like a community, or reading post by the many fabulous creatives I follow.

The next thing I was going over was streamlining my YouTube content. I started that in mid-July of 2024. I now know what works for me and my subscribers, and what didn’t as much. I have a better grasp of producing my content. I am feeling good about where I am right now.

Reducing

So I axed Patreon, but more importantly, I streamlined YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook, all which were started last March. I’m no longer throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks.

My Art Studio also is mostly finished, after two years or creating. This helps and I can streamline recording and art making itself. I no longer have a bunch of different setup areas that I make my art.

The art studio in December, before my latest reorganization

This is how I came out of a time of overwhelm, busyness, and life challenge smelling like roses and ready to take on 2025 and my upcoming one year anniversary of going full-time as a professional Artist and art business.

I believe if you have a lot on your plate, and the urge to procrastinate hits or you feel overwhelmed by it so you want to do nothing at all, take baby steps. Make lists and remake lists. Organize, one thing at a time, or all at once, whatever suits your fancy! You can get through it all and not compromise creativity. Sometimes we jump in head first to a lot, but we need to take a step back sometimes for a reassessment. This is what I did for myself and whether this is relatable, or helps you realign in your own way, I’m glad. We are all a part of a community and are here to spark ideas, our joy, and knowing our output is needed.

A 2/3 complete sketchbook spread to try some new watercolors

Here are my Substack articles from December and January, in case you missed them, or want to revisit.

January:

Moving Along The Holiday Season - Monthly Round-up #7 | December 2024-Welcoming January/Welcoming 2025

Sumikundo Black Shadow Watercolor Inks & Kuretake Gansai Tambi Granulating Watercolors - Really Beautiful Watercolors.

Gucai Watercolors And A Giant Ceramic Watercolor Pan - Some Different Watercolors from Paul Rubens

Pastel Macron Oil Pastels - Paul Rubens Macron Oil Pastel Set

Finding Subject Fodder in the Mundane - Wabi-Sabi Still-Lives and Landscapes

My Favorite Artists (episode 2) - Influential Books About My Favorite Artists

Granulating & Precipitated Watercolors, They're Stunning - Two Sets From Paul Rubens

December:

Female Artists of Art History

Moving Along Through The Holiday Season - Monthly Round-up #6 | November 2024-Welcoming December

Paint With Me: Art Whale Watercolors - Let's Try These New Watercolors

A Still Life With Soft Pastels

I hope this article can remind all of us who needed this reminder. Relax, prioritize, make lists, and remember you do not have to do it all, not at this very minute. Take care of you first and reassess as needed.

I hope this finds you well. Take care of yourselves and one another.