19 Tips for Creative Self Iso
how to make the best of things in coming days
How often have we wished we could take time off work and isolate ourselves at home to write a book or start that creative project?
Did we wish a bit too hard?
With the world in the grip of the COVID-19 Pandemic (how did we not see it coming?!) and our governments telling us to stay home for who knows how long, there is nothing left to do but bite the creative bullet. It’s not going to be easy, so here’s 19 tips to help you through.
- Set up your creative space. If there is no-one in the house but you, take the oportunity to spread out. Turn your whole place into a creative studio, set up small or large work areas in different rooms for different aspects of your project, (a scrap booking table, a painting easel, a sewing/collage area etc).
2. Set specific goals for what you want to achieve in your “home retreat” period.
3. Set up daily/weekly timetables for how you will achieve this.
4. Keep the hours that suit you — sleep late, nap in the middle of the day, write way into the night or rise at dawn.
5. Play loud music, dance for five/ten mins every hour.
6. Do daily yoga, pilates and body building work outs with cans of beans or bottles filled with water.
7. Eat well but eat lightly, make sure you have one good main meal per day.
8. Take time to enjoy your morning/afternoon tea or coffee. Use your best crockery, make a ritual of it. Sit in a special place and watch the steam rise.
9. Set up a meditation spot with cushion, mat and meditation object. Once or twice each day sit in stillness for 10–20 mins. Empty your mind, slow your breath down, enjoy the now-now.
10. Read haiku poetry and have a go at writing your own. One of my favourites is Issa. Appreciate the micro detail of things. Adopt a haiku way of looking at life.
11. Enjoy cleaning. Take your time, slow it down, get into all the nooks and crannies you’ve been avoiding for years, then sit down and write for ten mins without stopping.
12. Make lists of things you observe around you. Open the senses, jot down feelings, thoughts, reflections, the concrete detail of things. Leave small notebooks in different room for catching ideas as they come. Adapt old tips and prompts for your current needs.
13. Make contact with one or more fellow creatives. Set a time that suits to check in daily by phone, FaceTime, Whats App or Skype. Ten to twenty mins daily sharing intentions, work and feedback.
14. Resist Netflix (save it for special times), put your devices away for a designated time period each day and enjoy screen-free time. Find a comfy chair and read in delicious silence for an hour or so, or the whole day if you feel like it!!
15. Make time for lolling about in different locations in your house, a cosy arm chair, a divan, a banana lounge. Listen to all your favourite music, daydream, stare out the window…
16. When depression and hopelessness hits, don’t beat yourself up. Express your feelings — write, dance or paint it out. (Make a list of the things you have actually gained by being in self isolation). Reach out to fellow creatives, if you need to, have a good weep, a good moan and groan, a movie binge, then at the end of it set yourself a creative task.
17. Don’t forget humour! Appreciate the absurdity of our new lives in an ever shrinking world. When fears surface use gallows humour to zap them into submission. See how many jokes you can make up or collect.
18. Of course if you are at home with kids or other family members this is going to be more challenging but you can apply all of the above in a collective manner.
19. Make a commitment to having something to show at the end of your “home retreat”. A draft novel, a film script, a performance piece, an album of songs, a body of work — paintings, sculptures, poems, short stories, articles, a series of zines. Make plans with others to have a collective showing or a group show when this nightmare is over. And don’t forget to let us all know!
Jan offers services and a writing mentor and creative coach. If you are looking for a creative mentor to help you make the most of this time, feel free to get in touch here.
Jan Cornall is an Australian writer/performer /mentor who leads international creativity workshops and journeys for writers and artists. Past locations include Bali, Vietnam, Burma, Cambodia, Bhutan, Nepal, Tibet, Fiji, Japan, Morocco and more.
Insta: @_writersjourney @jancornallsongs