SUZY ENGELMAN BLOCK
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SCBWI-LA  CONFERENCE  PREP  RETREAT  6

7/22/2014

1 Comment

 
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Independence Day
and the Art of Zen
July 4, 2014
♪♪And the rockets red glare♪♪ ... and I am on fire and pretty chill at the same time!  I am mindful to work from the inside out and allow my work to flow just as the grass grows... effortlessly and perfect in it's imperfections.

I have learned that I create more consistently, consciously and wholeheartedly, when I have a balanced combination of structure and freedom. 

So, I am using my existing website as a template for my process.  I have begun by focusing on the empty spaces of this outline... or areas that need more attention.  This gives me an assignment.  I will also revise and improve some existing work before the conference, and afterwords I will continue with this approach because it is working amazingly well. 

My website is designed with Weebly.  It is easy to use for the beginner and flexible enough for the professional.  Just dive in and it's intuitive nature will guide you.  I am continuously fine-tuning with new ideas.
At the present moment,
this is my set-up...
Home page
    Art Portfolios                  
        Kid Lit
        Sketchbook
        Covers
        Dummy
    Soooz & News
    Monkey 2 Monkey Blog
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This method is an absolute winner for me.  Set up your website goals as an outline that represents the best way to present your work.
Then start working on content... quality first, quantity will follow.  This may look very different for every creative venture you may be pursuing.  You need not 'publish' until you are ready but your website in any form will be saved.

Eventually you will see a pattern emerging as you upload your work.  Perhaps a style is becoming apparent, color palette or subjects are repeating.  Notice what works and what does not.  You now have the opportunity to manipulate your online presence in a way that reflects you as an individual from that very first piece you have finished. 

Try it!  If you are a beginner, it will give you direction.  If you are a lifer like me, and have   the inevitable bumps in the road, it gets you focused and back on tract.  The template and  title outline is the key!  Witness it  up on your monitor.  Fire and chill... knowing you have the freedom to create your heart out works best when you know where you are going... the structure keeps your goal right in front of you.

Let me know how this method works for you!

I'm back to work!!
1 Comment

My Morning Kitties 

1/29/2013

2 Comments

 
UGH!!
Getting down to work in the morning! Why is this such an issue for the artist?  Well, there's the computer. The phone. The weather. The fate of the world. There is a lot on our minds!

My 'morning pages' a la Julia Cameron, used to do the trick, but fizzled out. What to we do in order to transition every morning from that huge overwhelming scary world to our funky little inner pea brains? Start and finish a small but stimulating project, of course! 

I bought 4x4" canvases and dug right in ...painting up a hurricane... one little baby storm at a time. Pretty soon, one kitty turned into 3 and in a very short period of time, I was sitting on a massive glut of kitties!! I must say I woke up every morning raring to go, adding to my collection with glee. Eventually I became so motivated that I added other projects to my schedule.

So what did I learn? First of all, the act of doing anything is always better than doing nothing!  Besides, when you do nothing, you never really know when you're finished! AND tangible action stimulates the creative process in ways we cannot imagine...It is only by 'doing' that we see what can actually be done.

We all hit a brick walls at some time or another... It is inevitable in creative life!!  BUT It's important to remember that walls are made of itty bitty bricks. Always begin ... one brick at a time. Or in my case, one  kitty to 2 kitties to 3 kitties to....
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What do YOU do to kick-start YOUR creative day?
2 Comments

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    Artist & Writer

    Suzy Engelman Block
    suspects we are all monkeys at heart.
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