Tim Myers does a bit of everything: he’s a writer, songwriter, storyteller, visual artist, and senior lecturer at Santa Clara University, where he teaches writing. We got together to talk about the nature of creativity, which Tim calls a “sacred mystery,” including everything from the way our childhood creativity is changed by the culture as we become adults, the necessary role of play in the creative process, the transcendent experiences of awe and wonder and how they fuel us, the wisdom of following your gut, and a whole lot more.
Episode breakdown:
01:39 Kids are instantly creative, often play traditionally.
06:50 Creativity influenced by nature, nurture, educators.
15:50 Importance of creativity in education and society.
21:22 Differences between play in childhood versus "professional" adults.
24:56 Nancy switched to teaching, advisor, and writing lit mag.
30:49 Encouraging exploration of language and creative thinking.
37:04 Parents see child, lifetime of giving love.
40:35 Zen story about finding wonder in life.
45:27 Believing in progress through challenging circumstances.
50:34 Art, festivals, play as a primal need.
56:21 Semantic split between "religion" and "spirituality."
01:01:14 Falling in love based on unique personal idiosyncrasies.
01:07:23 Experimenting with writing schedule structure.
01:13:45 Craft is in choosing words for impact.
01:19:22 Writers and feedback.
01:25:00 Tim struggles with generalist vs specialist identity.
01:26:31 Passion for storytelling and visual art emerges.
01:35:38 Weekly writing schedule reduces overthinking and focus on perfection.
Check out the full show notes at fycuriosity.com, and connect with me and fellow creatives on Substack.
Please leave a review for this episode and in it, tell us how play influences your creative process.
If you enjoyed our conversation, I hope you’ll share it with a friend.
Want more? Here's a handy playlist with all my previous interviews with guests in writing.
”Unhiding” with Dr. Kelly Flanagan
Creative Pep Talk #44: Comebacks
Writing from the Trenches with John Roedel
Creative Pep Talk #43: Do It Anyway
Inside Book Publishing with Tom Colgan
Creative Pep Talk #42: Motivation
Sales for Creatives with Annie P. Ruggles
Creative Pep Talk #41: Listen To Your Wisdom
Authenticity and Enthusiasm with Hillary Webb
Creative Pep Talk #40: The Truth
Replay: It’s Gonna Be Great with Paul ”PB” Bessenbacher
Replay: Creative Pep Talk #21: Rest
The Smart Travelista with Linda King
Creative Pep Talk #39: Parallel Universe Time
Creative Pep Talk #38: You’re Normal
Trust, Flow, and Gratitude with Gael Wood
Creative Pep Talk #37: Leave Room to Be Wrong
Writing YA Fiction with Shanti Hershenson
Creative Pep Talk #36: Start Where You Are
Colin Who? with Colin Spaull
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