Where is my Creativity?


‘The use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness.’

Oxford Dictionaries

Internal and external factors

Before delving into my own experiences, let’s look first at how we define creativity. The first things we think of are often, as in the definition above, imagination, ideas, and inventiveness. However, creativity is influenced by many factors, both external and internal. Internal factors may include personality traits such as being open-minded, adventurous, and experimental. External factors include whether you are in the right environment, an environment conducive to creativity, and what resources in terms of ideas, writing, inspiration, or people that are available to you.


Creativity can be more prevalent in some people or places than in others. For example, it is often rooted in people or cultures who do not conform. Perhaps it is a wish to explore new avenues of thought and expression, rather than to be told how to think, work, or behave. As a result, it attracts a greater following, and is popular among those who see its value.

Who are creative people?

Some occupations are considered creative while others are not. Writing, music, and art are creative pursuits, but jobs that are considered normal, routine, or that involve tasks that leave little room for group innovation or personal development would not be considered creative. Sometimes there is confusion as to what would constitute creativity. Many writers of fiction wouldn’t think running a business would be creative. For many a business represents the antithesis of their creativity. Yet there are other fiction writers out there; some of whom have had previous backgrounds or relevant knowledge in the working world; embrace creative business practices and actively encourage creativity in their businesses. It may depend on how we define creativity and which type of creativity we enjoy.

Balancing creativity

Have you thought about how much you are using the creative part of your brain, and whether this can suffer if you spend too much time using the other parts of the brain: editing, running a business, etc.? Independent authors sometimes need to be editors and publishers too. Indeed the number of tasks expected of ourselves can be overwhelming. It affects our mindset, and it’s not out of the question to assume it can also affect our creativity.

My experience – author and editor differences

I find, as a copy editor and proofreader, the skills I need are quite different from those I use as an author. It can be confusing when you think of yourself as both, or combine job roles in order to succeed. In 2016 I went to Bradford Literature Festival and I was confronted with the problem, as if my brain was a hat and I could don the author or the editor one at will, and yet without having decided which one to use I was left with no hats on, confused, so to speak. Do I introduce myself as an editor and have business cards ready just in case? Or do I aim to take advantage of opportunities to improve the quality of my own stories and improve my publishing and marketing model? I didn’t know, and attended as an observer. If you consider yourself a professional at anything, you shouldn’t be going to a place where your target audience is only to observe or take a mild interest.

You need to prioritise in life, and that means deciding on a structure, and brain pattern, and sticking with it. Everything else has to be secondary, for a specified time. I chose to prioritise my freelance copy editing and proofreading, and there is a part of my mind that notices how differently I think now: planning, organising, targeting, and analysing. I see things through the lens of efficiency. I plan and research my novels more than I used to and only consider jumping in when all the pieces are in place. Patience and preparing quality become paramount.

When being an indie author was the priority my mindset was less calculating, searching for promotional events and literary opportunities or the next best thing, and making connections with readers, were the most important priorities. Having stalls and holding writing sessions helped too. In my experience, authors seek out approval and they have a real passion for their writing and the inspiration their writing comes from; they have a unique background and world view to share. Writing during this time revolved around my direct experiences of having Asperger Syndrome. The condition was an ideal research topic and this informed the attributes and struggles of my characters. I wrote, and wrote, and wrote, without caring too much about planning or self-editing until I had drafts down. I was moving forward all the time without knowing exactly where I was moving, yet at the same time I was impatient, uninformed, and without having planned sufficiently, but these weaknesses are not necessarily characteristic of most authors.

Prioritising has helped me rectify some of the mistakes of one mindset, and has prevented confusion. As much as we humans want to have the ‘best of both’ it isn’t possible; you’d need two minds, and we can only aim for the ‘best we can’.

Have you noticed any differences between what you consider the creative part of your brain and the non-creative part?

Leave a Reply


Retype the CAPTCHA code from the image
Change the CAPTCHA codeSpeak the CAPTCHA code