darren r hill

the creative minimalist

Despite using planners and to-dos I am not achieving my goals, why? Let’s see why.
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In my latest vlog I discuss how being creative helps with my mental health. The ideal is to consume less and create more.
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I’ve not been happy with my creative space for a while. I don’t mean to sound whiny about that. I don’t have much room to work with and the space that I do have hasn’t been working. At the same time, I am very, very grateful for the space that I do have and I…
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My creative field notes as we enter summer at the passing of Beltane.
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I take a look at how perfectionism so easily hinders creativity.
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It’s the end of January so time for a review of how things are going, or not going. How are you doing with your intentions and resolutions? I remind myself how important reviews are in the creative process.
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Lost — Weekly Creative Prompt
Welcome to the new complete weekly creative prompt. We begin with a single creative prompt word and expand it to inspire fiction writing, journaling and a host of other creative activities. These creative prompts, are to give me, and anyone else who wants to join in, some focus to our creative work.

When it comes to being unsure of things, this past year has had quite an effect. The pandemic and its consequences have left many of us not knowing what to do or not being able to do what we want to do. Feelings of confusion and uncertainty have been abundant. Therefore, this week’s creative prompt is:

Lost — unable to find one’s way; not knowing one’s whereabouts

this is one meaning, there is also the meaning concerning something that has been taken away or cannot be recovered

Let the prompt ‘lost’ inspire you in any area of creativity that you are interested:
- writing fiction
- journaling
- art journaling
- songwriting
- photography
- painting
- composing
- blog posts
- art therapy
- anything that could use a little nudge to begin
Let’s expand the word a little further…

Fiction Writing Prompt

The Fiction Writing Prompt aims to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.

Whichever way I looked. Whatever direction I faced. It made no difference. I was lost.

Writing Prompt Expanded

The word lost can be used in a variety of ways. It can relate to something very real and very physical, with either the object or subject lost. It can also refer to internal feelings, it isn’t just the TV remote that gets lost. This flexibility makes the word a great metaphor.

This prompt is all about describing the situation and feelings of being lost.
- Are you physically lost somewhere?
- What is the predominant feeling associated with being lost?
- How do your senses tell you that you are lost?
The writing perspective is the first person. This often makes it easier to explain feelings and use metaphor and simile? However, you can change to the third person. You also have complete control over the context and setting. Has your character gone out and got lost, have they woken up to find themselves someplace unknown, or are they having an existential episode? The choice is always yours… but don’t get lost deciding.

Journal prompt

Journaling allows us to hold conversations on paper. From private diaries to creative art journals, we pour out our deepest thoughts. Exploring our feelings of uncertainty, or of memories and moments that we no longer have, are meaningful journal entries.

Questions to answer, thoughts to explore or images to create in your journal:
- What is the most treasured item you have lost?
- Have you ever been so unsure about the future that you felt lost?
- If you get lost, do you panic or are you a shining example of calm?
Theory of General Creativity

I now have ‘lost’ written on the board above my computer. I am confident it will inspire me on my creative journey this week. Several months ago I was lost when it came to a musical direction, but now I seem to have found my way. However, there are many times within the songwriting and recording process when I don’t know what direction to take. I am momentarily lost. Then the journal will come out, or I will ‘explore’ the musical landscape until I find my way.

Let ‘lost’ inspire your music, photography, and painting this week.

Finally…

As always, these creative prompts are optional and entirely open to your interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story, something a little more grandiose.

As mentioned before, this isn’t a ‘challenge’ but the prompts can be used that way if you want. If you do create anything using them, I would love to see or hear about it. Leave a link in the comments below or tag me on any social platform.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
11 July 2021
Creative accidents Friday Field Notes

fig 1 brilliantly big hope – art journal page

Time for a Friday Field Note report from The Creative Minimalist. It seems I have found some creative inspiration. By some, I mean quite a lot. At times, it has felt like one idea has led to another and then another. I am quite certain that creativity breeds creativity. As I began to note what has been happening this past week or so, I realised that my creative cup was very much overflowing.

But there have been consequences. I don’t want you to think that the week’s creative adventure has been painless.

Injuries

fig 2 coffee injury

Coffee is an essential part of my creative process. However, carrying my French press and cup to the creative studio led to a nasty blister on my little finger. I didn’t realise the cup was so hot until my knuckle began to swell. If you are of a nervous disposition, you might not want to look at the picture on the left… I suppose I should have said this above the picture… sorry.

Songs and music

Seeing my little keyboard in the picture above leads me to report on my music progress. I have four songs that are coming together nicely. The lyrics are almost finished. The latest song is a reworking of a tune from many, many years back (yes, when I had hair). I have been pencilling in and then inking in the lyrics as they begin to work. I will work out how to share some audio snippets for future field note reports, but meanwhile, fig 3 shows you how I work on lyrics in my Music Grimoire journal.

fig 3 your touch lyrics from the music grimoire

ATCs and art journal pages

fig 4 ATCs

fig 1 at the top of this field note report shows a journal page that I created. I am not a painter or fine art artist, I do enjoy playing with mixed media and creating abstract shapes. Recently, I have been inspired by Dianne Fago’s ATCs. So, I pulled out the inks and some good watercolour paper and had a play. So far, the results are interesting, but the main reason for doing them is to learn and have fun. It is so easy for me to forget to play. fig 4 shows a selection of the ATCs I have been working on.

But there have been accidents along the way. In addition to my coffee injury, I had an ink spill. It could have been a lot worse. I am so grateful that it didn’t fall onto any of my electrical equipment.

fig 5 the desktop ink spill

Dianne and Darren Discuss

To finish off, here’s a link to our latest discussion video. In it, we talk about creativity and the process, and you’ll see that we’ve both been quite creative in recent weeks.

https://youtu.be/4QKj_B7HUUQ

I’ll be back with another Friday field note report soon, until then, may you find inspiration and may your creations bring you and others joy.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

9 July 2021
Mushroom on a Wordless Wednesday

I found a mushroom in the garden

Then I found a few more.

7 July 2021
Turning up the heat on Music Monday
This past week, I have been working on several new music tracks. The way they are coming together, and new tracks seem to be wanting to join in, it feels like this could be a new album. I want to avoid committing at the moment, but it is beginning to feel that way. This week’s creative prompt is heat, which is apt as it feels like the creative heat is rising. A new album could be on the way. It’s a long way off, but the muse is beginning to weave her magic.

The current track list is:
- Astral Visions
- The Sun and the Moon
- The Path
- Your Touch (soon)
I know that is only four songs, but a couple of days ago it was only two. At this rate of growth, I might have the album outline by next Monday. And, seeing as Mondays are Music Mondays, I’ll keep you up to date.

Meanwhile, and to tie into the weekly creative prompt, here’s a version of Heat by Soft Cell that I found on that YouTube. Someone has spliced the recorded audio with an old TV recording, enjoy.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
5 July 2021
Heat — Weekly Creative Prompt
Welcome to the new complete weekly creative prompt. We begin with a single creative prompt word and expand it to inspire fiction writing, journaling and a host of other creative activities. These creative prompts, are to give me, and anyone else who wants to join in, some focus to our creative work.

When I planned out the creative prompts for this month, I had vague thoughts about summer. I had hoped the UK might be enjoying glorious sunshine and that I would be reading in the garden. As is so often the case here, we are not enjoying record temperatures. However, Canada and the US Northwest have, and it has caused many problems. Therefore, this week’s creative prompt is:

Heat — the quality of being hot; high temperature:

this is just one definition, the word can be used in a variety of ways, but high temperature was at the front of my mind when I was thinking about this prompt

Let the prompt ‘heat’ inspire you in any area of creativity that you are interested:
- writing fiction
- journaling
- art journaling
- songwriting
- photography
- painting
- composing
- blog posts
- art therapy
- anything that could use a little nudge to begin
Let’s expand the word a little further…

Fiction Writing Prompt

The Fiction Writing Prompt aims to stretch the literary muscles. No rules. No word counts. Simply write and explore.

I couldn’t think about anything else. All that mattered at this moment was the heat.

Writing Prompt Expanded

Thankfully, most of us have never faced extreme weather conditions, and if we have, they are rarely as bad as the disaster movies. But anything out of the ordinary, however short-lived, gives us a glimpse of what things are like. A UK heatwave has little in common with the temperatures in Death Valley, but how the temperature makes us feel is key.

This prompt is all about describing an extreme. We need to build on our experiences and exaggerate.
- What metaphors and similes can you use to describe the heat?
- How does the heat compare to what the ‘narrator’ has previously experienced?
- What sense are most affected and why?
The writing perspective is the first person, and as always, this makes it easier to explore the feelings of the character. The setting and everything else is open to your imagination. Is your writing about a hot day, or is it describing something long term and more sinister? Enjoy, but stay cool.

Journal prompt

Journaling allows us to hold conversations on paper. From private diaries to creative art journals, we pour out our deepest thoughts. Heat, as a term, and prompt is quite abstract. I find looking through a thesaurus can be a great way to find creative angles on words and terms. I also find it a rabbit hole that I easily fall down, so beware. For art journals, illustrating heat will be an interesting challenge.

Questions to answer, thoughts to explore or images to create in your journal:
- How have you coped with extreme heat in the past/present?
- What is the worst part of too much heat?
- What colours describe heat?
Theory of General Creativity

I now have ‘heat’ written on the board above my computer. I am hoping it will inspire me on my creative journey this week. Although I long for a nice, warm summer, I know that too much heat isn’t always good for my creativity. But, with the sea only a few minutes away, I have no excuse if I need to cool off. And what better place to explore creative ideas. No excuses Darren.

Let ‘heat’ inspire your music, photography, and painting this week.

Finally…

As always, these creative prompts are optional and entirely open to your interpretation. Use them as a starting point for a short story, something a little more grandiose.

As mentioned before, this isn’t a ‘challenge’ but the prompts can be used that way if you want. If you do create anything using them, I would love to see or hear about it. Leave a link in the comments below or tag me on any social platform.

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest
4 July 2021
Found colour and texture at Teignmouth – Wordless Wednesday

Thank you for reading this post. Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.
namaste
d
xox

If you enjoyed this post please support my writing by making a donation of any amount.

Sign up for my (ir)regular newsletter to keep up to date with my creative adventures, including special offers, and join me on Instagram | YouTube | Twitter | Pinterest

30 June 2021