You Don't Have to Feel
Creative to Be Creative

By Michael Putlack | Feb 1st, 2024

The idea of being creative can be daunting. There is so much that you want to get down, but you’re just not in the mood for it. You might feel like you need to be in a certain headspace, or maybe you’re just a perfectionist, or you could just find the task overwhelming. All of these things can create a difficult mental barrier to break through. Don’t feel bad though. EVERYONE feels this way! So, here are four tips that help me out when I’m just not feeling up to being creative.

1. Set time aside specifically for your project.

Easier said than done, right? But making sure to have your creative time set aside in your calendar really will help you prioritize it. Especially if you keep a crazy schedule like I do, if you don’t slot in that time, it’s going to get gobbled up by other projects, people, or even just housework. It also helps to know when you want to get those creative juices flowing so you can start working yourself up to it ahead of time.

2. Give yourself a deadline… and stick to it!

Let’s start this tip by admitting something that the bosses at our nine-to-fives probably wouldn’t appreciate us thinking: deadlines are a human construct. Seriously! Unless you’re delivering an organ transplant or fighting a fire, none of us are probably out there saving lives. But here is another thing about deadlines… they work!

Since I decided I was going to really dive into making YouTube videos with my Shadowdark prep and solo series and hold myself to weekly episodes, I’ve had no choice but to sit my butt down and get working when time starts ticking. I lived my life, for better or worse, as a procrastinator, and there is just something about a deadline breathing down my neck that forces me to turn it on. It can help you, too!

3. Absorb art that inspires your work (but not too much).

You probably already know that being creative means stealing from everywhere, but we all have certain things that we find most inspiring. Right now I’m working on my ShadowLost campaign setting, and I’ve been finding a lot of inspiration from Genndy Tartakovsky’s TV show Primal. (Seriously, it’s really excellent if you haven’t seen it!) If I’m not feeling up to working on that project, I plop down in front of the TV, and watch one episode. I really do mean just one! It would be too easy to get sucked into an hour and a half of TV and, all of a sudden, there goes the time you had set aside!

If you’re inspired by a book, you can read just one chapter. If you’re inspired by a movie, fast forward to the parts that vibe most with what you’re working on. Focus on that thing for 20 to 25 minutes. Take notes on it, analyze it, decide what things you’re going to borrow from it, and when your time is up, go implement those ideas in your own work. It’s going to give you an awesome jump start.

4. Just do something.

This might seem reductive in a “pull yourself up by the bootstraps” kind of way, but I promise it’s not. If you literally force yourself into a chair, open whatever you’re working on, and just force yourself to work on it even just a little bit, you’re going to find that starting to stimulate your mind. Just cranking out one measly sentence can suddenly turn into two, then a paragraph, then a page. It’s hardest to get the ball rolling, but once it is, it can be hard to stop.

Being creative can be tough, but it’s critical to remember that creativity is an adventure. And no adventure would be complete if it weren’t littered with obstacles. Incorporate these tips into your life and I know you can get yourself going when you absolutely do not want to. Soon, that blank page will be a whole chapter, or your solo campaign will have three more scenes in the books, or that prep work is done and ready to go for the D&D session tomorrow night. I know it is tough, but I also know you’re tough, and I know you can do this!