Author Confessions: Creativity Requires Courage
As kids, we draw and color and it’s all considered great. I remember in preschool, coloring a drawing of grapes, green. Those were the only kind of grapes I knew at that point because that’s what my mom bought. The teacher told me I was wrong. They should have been purple. It left a mark to the degree that I remember it all these (few) years later.
I love to be creative. It takes courage and reliliance to write a book and work through the publishing process. Edits can be scary and I internally carry some scars from some of those editors which mar my view of those stories. Until I read them again and am reminded that they are great. The process to get there for some of them, was messier than for others.
Pillow I made for a special anniversary.
Pocket of a bag I made.
I embroider and have made gifts with designs I’ve created. I don’t know all the possible stitches out there but I know enough to make some fun designs. I’ve made some bags that I use that have embroidered pockets. I’ve made pillows. It’s a hobby I enjoy. When it’s a pre-drawn design there is less fear than if I create my own. Creativity takes courage. The pillow above was based off a clip art image.
A few years back I watercolor painted huge flowers on our bedroom wall. That took courage. I’d never done it before! In our new home, my hubby wanted me to do something similar. I spent days painting but decided I didn’t like it and painted over it and began again. I won’t show you the first attempt–but this is the final one! I’m so happy with it! This one took me only five hours. The bed goes in the center of the wall and I already know how I’m decorating the middle.
Master bedroom wall – bed goes center.
I’ve also made cards and almost anyone I’ve gifted them to love them, but I often am far more critical. I know others make more complicated designs but it is a fun hobby.
When you see something beautiful, at a craft fair or anywhere else, even if you don’t want to purchase, please the the creator know that you appreciate the beauty because it took courage to not only craft it–but to put it out there for others to see.
God didn’t have fear in creating us and this beautiful world even though He already knew we would fall into sin and would need to rescue us. As much as I want to create beauty, in a garden, in my home, or through writing, embroidery, or making cards, or writing novels or anything else, God is the author of all beauty and I need to be clinging to Him and thanking Him not only for His creativity but for allowing me to create as well. I am able to overcome my fears and have the courage to create when I’m seeking Him first.
Do you enjoy creating anything? My husband fabricates things from scrap metal. While he’s not going for beauty, he finds a way to make things to serve a functional purpose. I admire courage he has to create as well. I would love to hear about what have the courage to create.
I mentioned that creativity is an attribute of God but it’s not one that we often think about. Without creativity we wouldn’t have innovation or try new things. There would be no music, no books, no art, no masterful gardens to walk through and enjoy. Buildings would be bland but functional, or would they? Even functionality requires creativity, doesn’t it?