Create Art Podcast

Making Fun A Habit Series

30 days to add fun to your creative practice. I will go through Mike Brennan's Make Fun A Habit workbook and help you make fun a habit. I had the pleasure of interviewing Mike on my other podcast Find A Podcast About and talking about his podcast Creative Chats. This workbook leads you through steps to rekindle the fun in your life and get you into a space where you are your most creative. This is a 30-day book and I will be tackling each day as if it were a week and providing you insights on how you can use his ideas in your creative practice. Each chapter is broken up with a short story, questions to ponder, action items, and tips.

You're Never to Fancy to Have Fun

Sometimes our art gets too formal and we forget the joy of creating tings. By loosening up and having fun with our friends and coworkers we can shake things up and maybe release some pent up energy to create something wonderful. At worst you will have stories to tell, at best you have had a great time and have enjoyed each others company, and if we take it one step further and let our audiences in on the fun, they will have a great time and want to come back for more. Don't take yourself too seriously.

Question to ponder

• What were some of the activities you enjoyed as a child?
• How can you incorporate some of those things in your life today?
• What stops you from being silly? What's an easy next step to get you moving in the right direction?
• Who do you know who seems to have fun naturally? Pan a get-together and talk to them about how they engage with fun and play

Action item: Host a party for your friends or coworkers. Have everyone dress up as fancy or as formal as they can. Provide fancy foods, and fine dining, and set an elegant atmosphere but then serve up a pattern interpreter. Hand out silly hats or pirate eye patches for people to wear. For evening activities, bring out Legos, play twister, and have a water gun fight, give everyone a can of silly string, just get creative, and let fun out, to play together.

Tips:

• play games
• do arts and crafts
• go on an adventure
• learn new things
• just be silly

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel: Create Art Podcast YT Channel
• IG: @createartpodcast
• Twitter: @createartpod

Create Art Podcast Newsletter

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If you have found value in this podcast, please share it with a friend as that is the best way to discover new podcasts. I want this to be a 5-star podcast in your...

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

And now for our last prompt of the year – optional, as always! Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem in which the speaker is identified with, or compared to, a character from myth or legend, as in  Claire Scott’s poem “Scheherazade at the Doctor’s Office.”

Poem for Today

A Dark Elf (Drizzit) 

30 April 24 

For ages beyond measure he has existed 

From a race of those who shunned the light 

He stood out from their accursed nature 

He became a hero to some  

A traitor to his people 

And when he tried to pursue his natural instincts of life 

He was abandoned by both 

When I first read of his travels and adventures in Icewind Dale 

It wasn’t his fighting prowess that I admired 

It wasn’t his abilities I coveted 

It was his ability to stand up for himself 

In the face of what others said was right or wrong 

The light that comes from the darkness 

Is always brighter than the light that comes from the sun 

It has much farther to travel 

And more dangers to overcome

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel: Create Art Podcast YT Channel
• IG: @createartpodcast
• Twitter: @createartpod

Create Art Podcast Newsletter

timothybrien.substack.com

Special Message

If you have found value in this...

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

And now for our optional prompt. If you’ve been paying attention to pop-music news over the past couple of weeks, you may know that Taylor Swift has released a new double album titled “The Tortured Poets Department.” In recognition of this occasion, Merriam-Webster put together a list of ten words from Taylor Swift songs. We hope you don’t find this too torturous yourself, but we’d like to challenge you to select one these words, and write a poem that uses the word as its title.

Poem for Today

Albatross 

29 April 24 

The chip on my shoulder 

Grew legs and wings 

And started to strangle me 

It fed me regurgitated lies 

And was my sole source of nourishment 

The weight on my shoulders got so bad 

That I stooped when I walked 

My head was always down 

I was focused on what was behind me 

Instead of the path before me 

I felt comfortable 

I felt safe in my solitude 

I felt good that I would be the harbinger of my destruction 

But then I got tired of being tired 

I got tired of having the weight I didn’t need 

I saw others who didn’t struggle like I did 

And I wanted what they had 

So, I stopped eating the food 

I pried off the wings and feet 

And I threw the bird off my shoulders 

I was able to leap 

I was able to find new food 

I was able 

My back straightened 

My steps increased 

And I was able to do more 

Be more 

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel:

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

our optional prompt for the day asks you to try your hand at writing a sijo. This is a traditional Korean verse form. A sijo has three lines of 14-16 syllables. The first line introduces the poem’s theme, the second discusses it, and the third line, which is divided into two sentences or clauses, ends the poem – usually with some kind of twist or surprise. 

Poem for Today

Nothing Is Not Me 

28 April 24 

The coffee pushes me forward because I need to be pushed 

I can’t be left alone for too long for I will do nothing 

Nothing is never what I wanted to be, nothing is not me  

Trying to fill the holes that hope to be fulfilled with things 

Amassing things and trinkets just collects dust and debris 

Things filling up nothingness are empty, nothing is not me 

Promises to do better, ideas that inspire,  

It begins with an effort, and then more effort 

Effort is movement, to move is divine, nothing is not me 

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel: Create Art Podcast YT Channel
• IG: @createartpodcast
• Twitter:

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

And now for our prompt – optional, as always!  Today we’d like to challenge you to write an “American sonnet.” What’s that? Well, it’s like a regular sonnet but . . . fewer rules? Like a traditional Spencerian or Shakespearean sonnet, an American sonnet is shortish (generally 14 lines, but not necessarily!), discursive, and tends to end with a bang, but there’s no need to have a rhyme scheme or even a specific meter. 

Poem for Today

Things Left Undone 

27 April 24 

There are squished raisins around the floor being covered by dust bunnies 

There are several records that were desired that are left unplayed 

Multiple piles of books growing monthly that are unread 

The comic books that provided an escape now are trapped in stasis  

Sketch pads that haven’t been scrawled upon with deteriorating-colored pencils 

Left over pressure treated boards from a deck that needs to be sealed and stained 

A fire pit that has never seen a fire lit or had smores roasted upon 

Keyboards that creak when looked at in anticipation of being played 

Awards just waiting to have their time in the spotlight on a wall of love 

Empty cardboard boxes that used to be the home waiting to be recycled 

A neighborhood waiting to embrace the occupants of this home 

An infinite amount of blank digital sheets waiting to be filled with ideas  

Letters waiting to be crafted to let friends know their importance 

And here I am among all of this, bored, wanting to create but never knowing where to start 

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel: Create Art Podcast YT Channel
• IG:...

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

Last but not least, here’s our optional prompt for the day. Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem based on the “Proust Questionnaire,” a set of questions drawn from Victorian-era parlor games, and adapted by modern interviewers. You could choose to answer the whole questionnaire, and then write a poem based on your answers, answer just a few, or just write a poem that’s based on the questions. You could even write a poem in the form of an entirely new Proust Questionnaire.   

Poem for Today

How I Want To Die 

25 April 24 

That depends on when you ask me 

The typical high schooler trying to escape their history 

Then a gun to the head 

If you are asking the spiked haired, leather jacket wearing, dangling earrings punk rock 18-year-old 

In a blaze of glory 

If you are asking the morose warrior poet smoking weed 13 times a day 

He’d want to go out sleeping and continue the deep sleep of death 

If you are asking the Avant garde grad student with a boulder on his shoulder 

Slicing of the wrists comes to mind 

If you ask the homeless philosopher 

Then a bottle of pills seems about right 

If you are asking the man who left Chicago and all his friends for what he called love 

Then a bomb strapped to his chest over a bridge carrying thousands of travelers 

But if you ask me today 

At home 

In my bed 

With my loved ones in the next room 

No tears 

No sadness 

I’d rather be left as the traveler I am 

As my spirit animal demands 

A few words of encouragement spoken to me 

From someone I respect 

A send-off into the other lands 

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

Finally, our (optional) prompt for the day is another one pulled from our 2016 archives. Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem that begins with a line from another poem (not necessarily the first one), but then goes elsewhere with it. This will work best if you just start with a line of poetry you remember, but without looking up the whole original poem. Or you could find a poem that you haven’t read before and then use a line that interests you. The idea is for the original to furnish the backdrop for your work, but without influencing you so much that you feel as if you are just rewriting the original! For example, you could begin, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day,” or “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons,” or “I miss them, but it wasn’t a disaster,” or “they persevere in swimming where they like.” Really, any poem will do to provide your starter line – just so long as it gives you the scope to explore. 

Poem for Today

Said The Shotgun To The Head (Kimo Style) 

24 April 24 

I can taste the metal in my mouth from a double barrel 

Don’t worry, I am not being kidnapped or robbed 

I have done it to myself 

My finger is not on the trigger 

I won’t write the story of my life 

On a blood and brain spattered wall 

For too long I have thought this was the way to end things 

And I felt good that it would be in my hands 

And not someone else’s  

I felt in control that I could end things 

Anytime I wanted to  

Anytime it got too deep 

But now I have too much to live for 

And I don’t want to have those I love 

Seeing the ending of this movie 

I have relied on the pain that comes with carrying a shotgun in my mouth 

And I am tired of the taste 

I have enough metal in my mouth 

With fillings that crack my teeth 

With porcelain crowns that feel off 

With the drilling that it took to put them there 

I am putting the shotgun down 

In front of a crowd 

Hoping they never need to feel the need  

To shove a weapon in their mouth 

My mouth spits wisdom 

And hope 

And encouragement 

And maybe a better path 

The...

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

And now for our (optional) prompt. Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem about, or involving, a superhero, taking your inspiration from these four poems in which Lucille Clifton addresses Clark Kent/Superman.

Poem for Today

Right Bicep  

23 April 24 

The embodiment of vengeance sitting on a throne of the bones of the souls he has damned 

Is embedded on my right bicep 

Part of the right arm of justice 

That I use to correct the wrongs 

That have occurred 

He sits there with a face so dour 

He sits there looking exhausted 

He sits and views all the work left to be done 

It never ends 

This world isn’t fair 

As I teach my children 

But there are those in this world 

That come in after the tragedies 

To make sure they never happen again 

I put you there 

Because I have always desired to be  

An instrument that can dispassionately dole out vengeance 

But I find my emotions take hold 

And I cannot damn another soul for their wrongs 

I am not the judge, jury and punisher 

So, you will have to sit on my arm 

Until I can burn out the emotions 

And one day be like you 

Without a heart 

Without a soul 

Reach Out To The Podcast

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]
• YouTube Channel:

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

And now for our (optional) prompt! Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem that repeats or focuses on a single color. Some examples for you – Diane Wakoski’s “Blue Monday,” Walter de la Mare’s “Silver,” and Dorothea Lasky’s “Red Rum.”

Poem for Today

The Color of High School 

21 April 24 

I remember the scene shop in the theater where other students were tagging the walls with Rush, I was blasting out UB40’s Red Red Wine 

I’d sing that song till my throat turned red 

Feeling the words touch my soul every time 

Filling me with hope that I would find a love worthy of that song 

Drinking the apple wine Night Train with its dark red label 

When at my lowest points I’d scrawl on my notebooks our mascot the J-Hawk 

With a gun pointed at his head 

And the pale blood of loneliness and teen angst splattered against an indicated wall 

No one saw these depictions 

Which is probably for the best 

The walls of some of the hallways glowed when we lost power 

A high school built initially to be a prison had few windows 

At least that is how the story went 

The stoners and the underground kids flicked their lighters 

And we found our way to the blazing exit signs that always had power 

The crimson letters guiding us to safety 

At the D Door 

Where smoking was tolerated 

I’d see teachers and students monkey fuck each other 

To light their cancer sticks and cowboy killers 

And the rhythmic dull red glow of the embers matched their breathing 

My high school was a vampire's paradise 

Gym uniforms, sport uniforms, the carpeted triangle 

All reflected their devilish desire for blood 

There was blood at every fight 

There...

What is National Poetry Writing Month?

Welcome, art enthusiasts and wordsmiths alike, to another episode of Create Art Podcast! We are diving headfirst into the enchanting world of poetry as we celebrate National Poetry Writing Month (NaPoWriMo). This annual event, which takes place every April, encourages poets and aspiring writers around the globe to embrace their creativity and commit to writing a poem each day for the entire month.

The Beauty of National Poetry Writing Month:

NaPoWriMo, similar to its prose-centric counterpart National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is a celebration of the written word and the boundless creativity that can flow when one dedicates themselves to a daily practice. Poets of all levels of expertise are invited to take part, from seasoned wordsmiths to those just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of verse.

Create Art Podcast has always been a haven for artists to share their creative processes, and NaPoWriMo offers a unique opportunity for poets to reflect on their craft. With a daily commitment to producing poetry, participants discover new facets of their writing style, experiment with various forms, and explore uncharted emotional territories.

Prompt for today

Our optional prompt for the day challenges you to write a poem that recounts a historical event. In writing your poem, you could draw on your memory, encyclopedias, history books, or primary documents. If you’re interested in a little research, you might find interesting this collection of letters written during the American Civil War, or this collection of primary documents concerning South Sea voyages. Or perhaps you might find something of interest in digging through Europeana, an online clearinghouse of digitized materials from cultural institutions across Europe.

Inspiration for this poem came from Ronald Regan Radio Address

Poem for Today

Crate Digging 

20 April 24 

A package had been sent it me 

The shape familiar 

Just over 12 inches square 

So carefully I opened it 

And found placed with care 

A record sleeve with no picture 

And the only writing on it was Ronald Regan 1961 

I opened it and found the familiar shape of a 12-inch record with no label 

So, I took off the record I had played last 

Something by Miles Davis or john Coltrane 

And put this new, mysterious record on the platter 

Recovering from the demon rum and weed 

That my jazz obsession claimed on me 

I pressed the play button 

And the tone arm raised,  

Moved over to the starting groove 

And set down as delicately as a mother placing her newborn baby down for a nap 

I sat back into my easy chair 

As the sound of Ronald Regan’s voice came over my speakers 

There was no music 

Just his voice droning on and on 

He told me the horros of socialized medicine 

And how that would destroy my savings 

How it would cost me my livelihood 

How it was unamerican 

How my son, he must not have read my FBI...