5 Steps To The Most Creative Summer Of Your Life

June 1^st marks the beginning of meteorological summer, a prelude to the solstice and a promise of endless hours of sunshine ahead. In this season of growth and green, there is no better time to recommit to our creativity.

Here are 5 steps to doing just that – and the power of each one is in the intentionality we put into it.

Be – Not Just Do

This is always hard for me, which is why I put it first. If given the choice between seeing myself as a human being or human doing, I’m going to grab a box of tools and get right down to it. I love being busy, with all the activity and the sense of accomplishment that entails. But I can sometimes go too far, pushing myself to keep doing out of fear that if I stop, I’ll never get the momentum back.

Then I had an epiphany recently while on a short trip with my husband to the Columbia Gorge between Oregon and Washington State – a place that teems with waterfalls, especially this time of year. Standing there, amid all that thundering water, I was suddenly reminded of what creative flow looks and feels like. (See it here and listen to my musings in the moment.)

There’s a sense of gravity (the Newtonian variety) that puts everything in motion. Our creative flow is the same force of nature. Even when we step away from what we’re doing and allow ourselves to just be, we can trust that our process continues.

Make an “Artist Date”

Author and inspirer Julia Cameron, in her classic The Artist’s Way (I still have my much used, dogeared copy), recommended a weekly solo outing for an “artist date” to “fire up the imagination … spark whimsey .. encourage play … [and] feed our creative work by replenishing.”

These dates need not be complicated or expensive. Although strolling around the Louvre would be an amazing artist date, I fed my senses this past Saturday at the local farmers’ market. Rosy radishes, a palette of salad greens, amber jars of honey, exotic purple asparagus – all around me stretched a panorama that would have made Monet proud. I mentally catalogued and savored it all – colors, aromas, sounds, and sensations. I went home with far more to nourish my creative soul than locally grown produce.

Committing to the Time to Write

Having recharged and replenished ourselves, it’s time to create. As my local writers’ enclave Wordcrafters (where I’ll be teaching a half-day intensive on mystery writing this summer) always says: “Be writing!”

This is where those long summer days really come in handy. I’m a morning person – when the sun is up, so am I. That’s my prime time! I don’t need to isolate myself for the entire day, but I do need uninterrupted hours.

That was a very pleasant discovery when I wrote my first two novels in my Ohnita Harbor mystery series, and it’s still true as I complete the third. When we commit to our creativity, without unnecessary distractions, there are enough hours in the day – and especially a long summer day.

Get Comfortable with Saying “No”

Amid all the busyness of summer, it’s easy to get overbooked and overwhelmed. To keep our commitments to create, sometimes we have to say “no” – or, at least, “not right now.” It can feel uncomfortable, even selfish. But I know from experience that the alternative is letting my creative time get pushed aside, which is an invitation for my old pal resentment to show up and stay awhile.

That’s why we need to make our creativity a priority. We get to reschedule or suggest an alternate time so that we can achieve balance among all that we want, need, and choose to do.

Treat Yourself to Your Perfect Day

For me, it begins right around sunrise on a Saturday, just as the horizon pinks with the promise of a new day. With my mug of tea in hand, I’m at my computer and writing creatively. After several hours, I let what I’ve written “sit” while I head out for a run on the trail…

Whatever that perfect day of creation and recreation looks like for you, make it a reality by planning it out – and putting it on the calendar. Just as important as savoring the day is recording what you see, experience, and feel – your ideas and inspiration. And when your perfect (or even imperfectly perfect) day is done, decide what you want to do the next time.

(Want to hear more? See my video on the 5 Steps to a Creative Summer.)

A new season, a renewed beginning. As summer blossoms this year, we can bloom right along with it – and reap an abundance of creativity.

Let’s Start the Conversation:

What’s on your creative wish list for this summer? What’s your prime time for being creative – and how can you commit to it? What does your perfect day look like?