BellaOnline Forums Beauty and Self Creativity How do the seasons affect creativity?

Are you more creative at different times of the year? Does your muse hibernate through winter? Mine does.

Here's this week's article.

Seasons and even time of the day affect creativity.

I live on a lake in northern WI where I am now looking at the geese and ducks floating lazily before they hear the call to head north...Every day the resident bald eagle makes his morning and evening passes. Last week we had 8 inches of fresh snowfall, this week the temperatures are mild and the snow has nearly melted off my lawn.

There is something about living here and looking out the patio door windows watching the seasons change that open up my muse... I love the changes...

changes in seasons and time can affect your mood, which will also either inspire or drown your creativity to dullness. I find I like to write solemn and dramatic poetry on rainy days, and I like inpsirational and feel-good music when I see leaves fall during the autumn.

I find I am more creative during the fall and winter months. I suppose the reason for this is I enjoy the spring and summer by being much more active, out of doors. I wish to play!

Come the fall and winter seasons I become more introspective, and am able to be still long enough to imagine, contemplate, and create.

Ooh Maralene, that sounds wonderful <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Jeannine, I wish I could make more use of winter - summer is also very tempting for getting out and about, but in winter I feel so sluggish. So I try to make the best of the summer creative sparks and also get out for a walk.

We all have a particular time of the day when we are most alert and creative. For me it has been afternoon. Mornings find me sluggish.

Winters have always inspired me more.

I love getting up at 5 am in the winter, when it's still dark, and writing until the sun comes up. It makes me feel productive and creative!

Same routine for the summer, but I feel less productive because I'm not getting up before the sun rises. And hot coffee and oatmeal tastes better in the winter.

This is the difference between all of us, You are alert in the morning, while I am alert in the afternoons. God has made us in different ways.

I agree you're moods change with the season, but I was surprised that your creativity changes also. Once I thought about it I realized I like to do more creative things in the winter. I think it is b/c I am stuck in-doors with nothing to do. I've always hear boredom breeds creativity. =)

so true, at a particular time our creative juices are up and at times too down

Yes, boredom is a good way to break a creative block <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> One of Julia Cameron's suggestions is no TV or reading for a week - she says you'll get so bored you'll want to write, paint, whatever just to get out of it.

I quarrelled with my husband last night. Then I found I really wanted to write something. So I sat down in front of the computer, began to write down my feelings. To my surprise, I finished a short story in half an hour. Is that a good way to work? <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

It's funny that. I also find that sometimes when logically I should be least creative (like, as you say, after arguing with someone, or when you're really tired) my brain just goes into some sort of rerouting thing and can produce some really good work. Perhaps it is our way of distancing for a while so that we can then process the negative feelings more thoroughly later on.

Glad you got a story done out of that, Hellen <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I'm more creative during the beginning of the month. Maybe because I'm more relax.

I get a bit tense up when the month is coming to an end, as I feel that I didn't do much for the month and time is running out.

I am only affected by weather when it is hot, during those times I have zero energy.

I seem to have different waves of creativity depending on the weather. I do really great work in gloomy weather but love the sunshine and warmth.

I don't have a husband, but I noticed that when I'm full of angst that I write a totally different type of story than I'm used to. I've written the beginnings to 4 new stories that are more dystopian and murder mystery/horror. Now, to get my home computer to cooperate with me.