Apparently I have a Tumblr account, which I totally forgot about. I tend to do that. Create accounts at the newest shiniest thing on the intertubes then completely forget about them. Also apparently I did some serious pontificating there about creativity, my cowardace about putting my stuff put there, etc. Yeah I know. Weird. Some of those things were actually good and fairly intelligent, if I do say so myself. I came across it while lazily spending the morning in bed googling myself. Don't judge me - you have done it too.

So the one that struck me the most this morning is about how people give criticism, and our general lack of knowledge around how to do it correctly. While creativity rarely happens in a void, bad criticism can shut it down completely. Here is a copy-n-paste of what I said there. Do you agree? Do you think I am being overly harsh, or have I hit the nail on the head?

~In my ongoing to search to find something out there that will help me get over myself and continue creating, I have noticed something interesting.

But first, let me say that my view of the creative process up till now has been you hole up by yourself. You write/photograph/paint/sew/edit, etc, until whatever it is you are creating is polished and good. Then you present it to the world and get your kudos and praise from regular people and stone throwing from the trolls and voila you have success. I love to get feedback and encouragement as I go. My experience has been that when you ask other people for that what you actually get is thier vision of how your project should be. My mother was very fond of molding anything I did until it was no longer the personification of the vision I had for it. It was then her project, and she expected credit for it.

When I decided I wanted to write I started going to writing groups thinking that I would get the encouragement I needed, only to be shot down horribly by members of the group. Any time anyone had a good idea or an engrossing story, instead of encouraging the writer they would pick apart the petty details that didn’t matter. They would shoot each other down with scathing remarks about things like a writer’s choice in clothing for their characters or pick to pieces the choice of titles. I watched them all do this to each other and left in frustration. This was not helpful to anyone nor was it encouraging. It cemented my theory that creativity is a lone animal.

However, as I read more and more about what successful creative people have to say about it the more I am inclined to think that creativity doesn’t happen in a void. Yes, certain things you have to do alone. But it seems that creativity begats creativity. How many artists have said they saw the Mona Lisa or some brilliant art piece and were inspired to go home and do something themselves? How many writers tell about the daily activities that triggered an idea for a story that developed into a book?

And they also had someone, somewhere along the line, who told them they were good and gently steered them in the right direction.

In my opinion most people, even experienced creative types, don’t understand how to critique. Critiquing isn’t about saying “This is bad. I don’t like it. You need to change X,Y and Z.” It is about looking at the beauty that is already there and making little suggestions that will enhance that beauty. It is about putting aside your personal taste and looking at the project for what it is. Not a lot of creative types do that instinctively. We tend to look at a project and begin assessing what we would do if it were our project.

There are people out there who can objectively critique and help. They can look at a piece of art and explain to the artist why the overall design would fit together better if they used a different color, instead of just telling them the color is off. They can read your story and tell you why this paragraph breaks up the continuity of a story. They can look at your movie and explain why that last scene didn’t work with the rest of the story. And most importantly they can express what they like about a project.

We need more people like that. That is what helps creativity to thrive. Though we can’t change how other people do things, we can change ourselves.

We need to step back and think about how we felt when we first started, and explain our critique in a way that is more of a learning experience than a destructive experience. We need to ask ourselves “Is this really a valid criticism, or is this just my personal taste?

This is how we can help each other through those damned walls. If I had people like that to show my work to during the polishing process, I wouldn’t be so disinclined to show anything to anyone ever. That little voice inside that likes to pipe in with “This is shit. Why are you even trying?” would be easier to silence.

Hmm…well, it’s just a theory. I welcome thoughts on the subject.~

So, that said...Thoughts? Agree or disagree? Why?

Well, it has been a very productive weekend. I haven't finished recording and posting stories yet, but it still has been very productive.  

     I spent several hours yesterday rewriting the story arc for the webseries. This is re-write number 3. Re-write because the direction it was going has changed so dramatically I had to go back and change the first few episodes and reconfigure the story arc. For some reason this time my characters are telling me where they want go with it, and it is not what I had in mind at all. However, it is truer to the characters themselves, so I guess I don't mind the rewrite. It is also necessitating the addition of more great characters, so I starting losing track of it all. And little jokes, story threads and character interactions are popping in, giving little touches to what was a good silly little story thing. It has become more than I meant it to be. I do not think it is bad. But it really isn't what I had in mind when I started this. it is tons better. I just hope I can make it fully to fruition. 

     One thing I noticed was I kept having to flip around through my notebooks to make sure I was referencing each character correctly, and not leaving dangling story threads through out. I found cheap foam board at the Dollar Tree, which I had planned to use for light bouncing. I decided that having everything easily accessible was a better idea. 

So now, my walls look like this:

     I just taped the foam board to the walls using packing tape. I will still be able to use the other side for lighting. I also am saving a few to put animation notes on. As crazy as it looks, it is actually helpful. I have never been in a writer's room, but after I did all this I realized this room now looks like pictures I have seen on the intertubes. So maybe I am on to something. Probably a lot less efficient, as it follows my logic not general conventions, but still. Sitting back and looking at it all I feel like I actually accomplished something. And I feel that much closer to this thing becoming a reality. 

     Also this weekend my friend drove me to the hardware store so I could purchase some supplies. I bought plywood, 1x1, 1-1/2x1/2, etc. I glued and nailed the boards together for a frame, then I glued and nailed the plywood to the top. Once it is dry I will have a base I can clamp to the table and attach a background. 

Here are some pics:

     So that's now done. I also purchased some small pieces of sheet metal. I am still figuring out what exactly I want to do with them. One of the ways I anchor my puppets is by using magnets. Unlike some, I put my magnets in the feet and use a metal base. Even if I feel the need to go the other way with my new puppets, a sheet metal base for the floor will give extra stability. I just haven't exactly decided how to execute it yet. 

     So that was my weekend. I still have a ton to do, but I feel like I am moving forward instead of stagnating. 

We are well into holiday season now. It is finally starting to feel like winter here. I am sitting in a cafe, planning and scheming. It has been a while since I posted anything, AGAIN, so again I am compelling myself to post.

I still haven't completed anything, which frustrates me. My computer had to be set back to a restore point, so I lost all my audio. Which I thought I had added to my latest restore point but didn't. Nor can I find the flash drive it was stored on originally, and I left on it in case something like this happened. I had it in the front pocket of my purse, so there is every possibility I dropped it somewhere. I have been all over my place, and my work, and didn't find it. At least I have another source for it, if he still has a copy. But nothing has been done with my recorded audio. I did get myself a copy of Aardman's 3-D Animation book. well, Peter Lord's animation book, but as he is the co-founder of Aardman I guess it can be counted that way. It has a lot of good information. I looked closely at the lighting setups in the book. One thing I have been struggling with is correct lighting. I have decded to make myself some cheap lights using torn apart lamps and coffee cans. I am guessing if I get the right kind of bulb or insulate the outside of the coffee can I can keep from burning myself. I have also been looking at how they animate Wallace's mouths. It is interesting. I think I get it, so i am going to attempt to put my existing mouths into a block of clay that matches the ehad of whatever I and attempt to animate some dialog that way. Just for testing purposes. The book has really got me excited gain to play around with things again. I have a table that currently houses my computer. I have decided I am going to clear it off completely and use it as my new staging area. My old was a card table. This table is much more stable. May make it easier to keep from bumping or moving things until I get enough money for an onionskinning program. And a camera that will allow me to shoot from it directly to the computer. I plan to get a sheet of metal and attach it to a 1x1 frame. Use that for my anchoring floor. Then I will get a piece of plywood and add blocks of wood to the back so I can clamp it directly to the back of the table. I also plan to get a clamp that can attach to my camera to stablise it a bit more. I found one I like online, only to find out they stopped making them. So I am looking for another one that is similar. It is a C clamp with a ball joint and a camera platform on the top. You can loosen a knob to move the camera to whatever position you want then tighten it again to keep it there. I have only seen one other like it, but the web site looks iffy. I thought of trying to make one myself, but a walk through several hardware stores tells me it may be more difficult than I can do right now. Especially without power tools.

this weekend I intend to record more stories and to get them all posted here. We shall see if I actually get it done or sit in front of the microphone doubting mself again. I tried to do itlast weekend, but I just kept clamming up. I do not know what my problem is. Maybe i will invite a friend to listen in so I feel less like a loonatic talking to myself.

OK, I think that'll do for now.

Have a great weekend.