Cats, dogs, bugs, birds, and frogs

the creative process

meandering, lost, sometimes found

days become life

I have been reflecting on the creative process recently – in part because I’m deep into a Major Project (you will learn about it soon!), and also because I have been flipping through old art journals (the art, above is from one a few years ago – I love the title “Cats, Dogs, Bugs, Birds, and Frogs”). I remember doing those pages in the journal, and remember it being fun and energizing.

But at other times the creative process is a slog. And while my one Major Project is going well, there is another one that I am completely stalled out on (and it’s been on my list for months). I keep trying and I am never happy with the end product. I’ve restarted it a dozen times, to no avail.

This has me once again assessing how and when to find energy for art and writing – but more precisely – when the creative process is fun and end-product is something I like! The entire process is difficult to define. Glancing through Rick Rubin’s “The Creative Act: A way of being” helps a lot. The books is a wonderful reminder about how being creative can be playful and fun, but also is never linear or predictable. It is about just doing it, and not being obsessed with an end product, or a specific project. Doing what feels right instead of forcing the act. Pay attention, be open, and lean into it.

I especially like Rick Rubin’s list of things that are not conducive to the work (meaning, the things that go against fulfilling creative work). The list includes “Believing you are not good enough”, “Never finishing projects”, “Impatience”, “Believing a certain mood or state is necessary to do your best work”, and “Abandoning a project as soon as it gets difficult”. These are powerful reminders, and illustrate the strength and power of negative vibes.

I am too stuck on the end product, and too stuck on my own assessment of a work’s quality. I’m sure many of you feel this way too, whether it is with creative work, ‘regular’ work, or in your relationships with others. “I can be better”, “I did that wrong”, “They will think poorly of me”, “I am not worthy” etc. Indeed, lessons from The Creative Act are applicable to so many facets of life.

What to do, then, when feeling stuck or unsure of next steps?

This is the big question, and turning to Cats, Dogs, Bugs, Birds, and Frogs for clues is key, at least for me. Just do stuff. Just make it messy, have fun, and don’t overthink. One pencil line, one sentence, or one wash of watercolour is the step to take. You need not think of the next dozen steps. It starts with one.

I think often of the writer Annie Dillard’s famous line “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives”. This means different things to different people, but when putting it in the context of creative work, the small acts that you take will sum up to great things. Take pleasure in the small moments of time you find for creativity and a fulfilling life as an artist will follow.

© Christopher M Buddle 2025