Tag: Inspiration

20 Things that Made My 2025

On By Alice StrathernIn Personal

It’s time to wrap up the year. Some great experiences made 2025 really special. It’s going to be a tough one to say good-bye to. Luckily, I got to make beautiful memories with the people I love, and this entry is a testament to everything that left a mark.

Here’s my 20 things:

  1. The miracle that it is to see my son grow. This year he started pre-school!
  2. Seeing my husband accomplish great things in many ways.
  3. Hello Meteor. This musician composes ethereal songs. You may close your eyes while listening and find yourself in another dimension. Here’s a playlist I made in case you’re curious.
  4. Finally putting all the links of the content I create on linktree. Something that stood out this particular year: I’ve talked more openly about my book on TikTok.
  5. Reading Leviathan by Paul Auster. I can’t believe I had not read this author before.
  6. Janet Jackson’s music. Simply. Mindblowing. Also, realizing that I’ve loved Fleetwood Mac’s music all my life. The album “Rumours” is one of my favourites now.
  7. Travelling to Victoria, BC for the first time with my family.
  8. Tasting the best poutine ever at Garrick’s Head Pub, in downtown Victoria, BC.
  9. Celebrating five years of running my e-newsletter.
  10. Going out more often. I got to meet a wonderful author, Samara Knight.
  11. Songs I didn’t know I was going to like: Out of my Body by Brain Tan. Pink + White by Frank Ocean. Hysteria by Def Leppard.
  12. Travelling to Seattle, Washington
  13. Going to Lumen Field to support the Seattle Seahawks.
  14. Being delighted with coffee and pastries at Storyville and Freya Bakery & Cafe in Seattle.
  15. Visiting Elliott Bay Book Company in Seattle.
  16. Visiting the Funko store in Everett, Washington.
  17. Reading more of Isabel Allende’s work.
  18. Staying in contact with my best friends throughout the year.
  19. Coming across Bon Chic on YouTube.
  20. Learning that, according to the yearly Spotify wrap-up, I’m 53 years old. I’m currently 37.

 

Re-Arrange and Create: Transforming the Pieces You’re Handed

On By Alice StrathernIn Inspiration, Mindset

Creative life means re-arranging all the pieces that come your way. Every circumstance, pleasant or challenging, is meant to activate something in you.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about a drawing class I took in junior high school. I remember feeling anxious about “not doing it right”. I had not drawn anything in a long time. I was also worried that the instructor would laugh at my basic skills. Still, I wanted to give it a try and feel as free as I did when I was a child.

One day, he doodled some random lines on blank sheets and handed them to each of us. Then, he said: “Draw something out of this. Let your imagination find the form.”

I thought that was brilliant. There were no rules and no expected outcomes. Just the freedom to deliver something unique.

Even though I doubted my skills, I loved the idea of re-arranging those lines in a way that worked out for me. It was liberating to be the one defining the form. In case you’re curious, this was my end result: a fish swimming in a pond. I wish I would have kept that drawing.

Years later, I still think of that particular exercise. Especially, when adversity shows up in my journey.

Back then, part of me wanted more lines, more shapes…something to make the process easier. It was uncomfortable to “figure it out” on my own. Now I realize what I was doing: resisting the “lack” of elements. Fighting the exercise itself. Once I embraced the challenge, I was able to make progress.

Creative living often asks us to do the same.

At any given point, life hands us unexpected events, detours or blank spaces. It invites us to re-arrange the pieces we’re handed. Some moments are joyful; others, test our resilience. Regardless, we, as creatives, have the power to transform them and turn them into an experience that helps us grow. At our own pace and in our own way.

So when an unforeseen situation arises, pause and ask yourself:

“How can I re-arrange this?”

“What could this be teaching me?”

“What shape wants to emerge from this moment?”

 

The answers may lead you somewhere you never expected. Maybe toward a new skill, a new strength, or a new perspective. Sometimes, the point is to discover more of yourself and more of what you’re capable of doing.

What’s something in your creative life that you can re-arrange today?

The Art of the Minimum Creative Effort

On By Alice StrathernIn Inspiration, Mindset

Doing the minimum creative effort on any given day might be the most powerful creative habit you can build.

Life shifts constantly. Schedules change, responsibilities pile up, and some days it’s impossible to give your creative projects your full attention. That’s why the common mantra “make something every day” can backfire.

The phrase suggests that each day should yield a finished product. While initiatives like Inktober, The 100 Day Project, and NanoWriMo encourage commitment, they can also add pressure.

For me, as a writer, my minimum creative effort is simple: sitting at my computer for 30 minutes to write a page of my new novel. Let me tell you: it works. I’ve proven myself that small actions accumulate over time, and repeating this action consistently pays off.

It’s deeply satisfying to know that I’ve touched my project, even briefly. Since I juggle multiple interests, I also assign specific days to different creative pursuits. That way, I rarely get bored. There’s always something new to work or experiment with!

The main take away? There’s power in focusing on minimum creative efforts. Small steps compound into meaningful projects. A single sentence added to your draft keeps your novel alive. A sketch, even a rough one, plants the seed for a larger idea. A note on your business plan keeps momentum flowing. Slow progress is still progress.

Artist Carolyn Yoo, author of the Substack See You, describes her approach like this:

I make lists of the smallest or largest actions I can do in a day to feel like I’ve meaningfully contributed to my creative work, then I’ll estimate the time it takes to do each action and order them by time period.

Carolyn Yoo

 

We don’t create with the same intensity every day, and nor should we. Creativity moves in seasons. Some periods are abundant and high-energy, while others call for rest and gentler effort. It’s natural. The key is to honour those cycles instead of fighting them.

When energy is low, ask yourself:

“What is the minimum I can do today to feel satisfied?”

It might not always involve direct action on your craft. Researching, reading, or simply talking with like-minded creators all count as staying engaged. What matters is connection to the work, not constant completion.

Austin Kleon, a writer who draws, puts it beautifully:

Find the one-armed, half-brained, miniature version of what you do. (…) The answer will be different for everybody. For me, the bare minimum is pretty bare. If I go for a walk, write at least two pages in my diary, and read a few pages of something decent, I can be pretty functional. (…)

Take a little time to figure this out for yourself. Once you know your bare minimum, then you can figure out what you have to do to make it happen.

Austin Kleon

 

So, what about you? What’s your minimum creative effort?

Try defining it today. Whether it’s a single line in your journal, a five-minute sketch, or one not saved on your phone. Then celebrate it. Those little steps carry you further than you think.

You Don’t Have to Start Quickly

On By Alice StrathernIn Beginnings

First of all, happy new year!

May you have a wonderful 2025 full of great experiences. May you accomplish all you have planned for yourself in the next 12 months.

Whether you are full of energy or not, here’s an interesting approach to consider as you take the first few steps into your goals/resolutions:

Austin Kleon always has a great perspective on beginnings.

Remember: you can go slowly and still reach your goals.

Wrap-up: 20 things that made my 2024

On By Alice StrathernIn Miscellany, Personal

Every year is unique, and that’s such a beautiful thing. You never know what will come your way. Isn’t it great that you discover new interests out of “randomness”? Isn’t it wonderful that you also get to celebrate milestones? All events, no matter how big or small, are worth noting.

Every discovery, every win, reveals a piece of our journey in life.

Here’s my traditional list of 20 things that made my year.

  1. Celebrating my son’s milestones as a toddler
  2. Completing 200 pages of my new book
  3. Visiting Spokane for the first time
  4. Visiting Barnes & Noble for the first time
  5. Switching to Threads
  6. Reading “A Radical Awakening” by Dr. Shefali
  7. Reading “The Power of Now” by Ekhart Tolle
  8. Reading “Aura” by Carlos Fuentes
  9. Discovering binaural beats
  10. Enjoying a great meal at Major Tom
  11. Trying a baked Alaska for the first time
  12. Bashar
  13. Discovering bandcamp and getting into vaporwave music
  14. FM Skyline
  15. Jared Pike’s dream pools
  16. Music inspired by dream pools
  17. Liminal spaces
  18. The pleasure of reading Long Reads
  19. Rick Rubin’s podcast
  20. Having meaningful conversations with Meta AI assistant on Instagram

Creative Fears: What if People Criticize Me?

On By Alice StrathernIn Mindset, Personal

One of my creative fears as a writer was being criticized.

I used to doubt my storytelling skills. I thought that, as soon as I hit the “publish” button, I would receive comments at how “meh” my plot and characters were. As I was getting ready to release Kaleidoscope Eyes, my first novella, I feared I’d only get one-star reviews.

Truth is, this is my current rating:

In the age of rates and reviews, I’ve learned that remaining true to my calling is what matters the most. I’m writing, I’m sharing, and I’m constantly improving. Even while experiencing all kinds of fears, I decided to put my novella out there. I was aware that some people would like it, and others not so much.

So how do you deal with that fear of criticism? In my experience, there’s no step-by-step formula. However, if I could mention one thing that has been useful for me, that would be a mindset shift: let reviewers tell what they want to say, either positive or negative. Let them be. Having a piece of work in the public eye involves getting all sorts of comments. That’s inevitable.

Ask yourself is their feedback is useful to you in any way. If so, then implement them in your next pieces of work.

External opinions are out of your control. All you can do is staying committed to deliver your best work possible every time you share/publish online or in any other format.

Dare to be disliked. Your work is not for everyone, and that’s okay.

Being Seen

On By Alice StrathernIn Inspiration

There comes a time when you need to share your creations. It all might start as a private endeavour, but eventually, you just know that they need their own space to keep growing.

You might be uncomfortable with the idea of being seen. You might feel like you need more experience or practice. Or even popularity.

Never underestimate the power of showing up a little bit at a time. Whether you show your face or record your own voice, it all compounds to a greater purpose: sharing your unique vision with an audience.

The world needs you.

 

When Building Creative Identity, Consistency is a Superpower

On By Alice StrathernIn Beginnings, Mindset

What’s your creative identity? If this the first time that you ask yourself this question, let me give you a starting point: consistency is an element of it. It’s a superpower that is yours to discover. It’s present in the small things you do every single day to move forward with your creative projects.

Actually, the ‘small’ things, are not so small.

I accumulated small but consistent habits that ultimately led to results that were unimaginable when I started.

James Clear

Consistency is born from building habits. James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, is well known for his insights on tiny changes that bring remarkable results. His work has introduced profound perspectives on identity-based habits for lasting change. Among his many notable proposals is the idea of creating a new identity that reflects the behaviour of the creative person you want to be.

How is creative identity linked to consistency, and how does that help? According to Clear, you’ve got to start believing new things about yourself and prove them through small repeated wins.

Continue reading “When Building Creative Identity, Consistency is a Superpower” →