Creative Blocks + Burnouts
Breaking Down + Breaking Through
As soon as I finally got to sleep last nightātechnically this morningāthe alarm at the grocery store across the street sounded. Blaring and incessantly. Until it stopped just as suddenly as it started.
I tried to go back to sleep, but eventually gave up and got up. If I wasnāt going to get rest, I might as well write. I started in my journal, then drafted this newsletter.
Whatās on my mind? Creative blocks and burnouts.
To me, theyāre like the spooky twins haunting Jack Nicholson in The Shiningāalways lurking, always unnerving. So Iām hoping that shining a little light on them might make go away and at least seem less scary...especially in the middle of a sleepless night.
Itās my own fault, really. For most of the past year, Iāve been burning the candle at both ends so much that Iām shocked I didnāt get blocked or burned out sooner.
Several folk noticed I was running on empty long before I did. And Iāve been in denial for weeks, running on the constant pressure to keep going, to keep growing, and to keep showing up. But sometimes, all that ākeepingā keeps me from justā¦ being.
In my experience, thatās when the creative blocks become creative crashes. So Iām treading lightly and giving myself permission to doodle and noodle as necessary.
What Iām learning (again) is that creative breakdowns donāt always mean somethingās gone wrong. Sometimes theyāre a sign Iāve gone too long without a break. Theyāre not the enemy; theyāre the message.
So this morning, sleep-deprived and slightly delirious, I decided to stop resisting. To write from the block, not push through it.
If youāre in the middle of your own breakdownāor your creativity feels like itās run out of gasāmaybe the next step isnāt to push harder, but to listen closer.
Taking more breaks can lead to more breakthroughsā¦tell a friend.
Happy Fridayā¦and Happy Good Friday too!
Clint šāļø
P.S. After I finish a couple of daily newsletters, Iāll be taking the weekend off to read and recharge. A new montage will premiere on Monday. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
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Thank you. Yes, YOU, boo!
FOR YOUR (SUBSTACK) CONSIDERATION
ON THIS DAY = APRIL 18
BIRTHDAYS
1857 = Clarence Darrow = American lawyer
1889 = Alice Blinn = American educator and efficiency expert š
1918 = Clifton Hillegass = American publisher and CliffsNotes founder
1921 = Jean Richard = French actor and singer
1946 = Hayley Mills = English actor
1950 = Kenny Ortega = American director, producer, and choreographer š
1953 = Rick Moranis = Canadian-American actor, comedian, and screenwriter
1956 = Eric Roberts = American actor
1961 = Jane Leeves = English actor and dancer
1963 = Conan O'Brien = American tv host, comedian, and podcaster
1967 = Maria Bello = American actor š
1971 = David Tennant = Scottish actor
1972 = Eli Roth = American actor and filmmaker
1976 = Melissa Joan Hart = American actor
1984 = America Ferrera = American actor
EVENTS
1775 = Paul Revere, William Dawes, and Samuel Prescott engage in a midnight ride to alert of the approach of British troops before the battles of Lexington and Concord.
1881 = The painted ceilings of the Natural History Museum, London, were unveiled when the building opened its doors to the public.
1938 = Superman debuts in Action Comics #1 (cover dated June 1938).
1986 = Legend is released in theaters.
HOLIDAYS + OBSERVANCES
PORTRAIT + QUOTES OF THE DAY
āI grew up in a wonderful blend of a lot of old culture.ā
Kenny Ortega
Ahhh thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing my work!
I'm so grateful for you, Clint, and I'm so thankful for the light and love you bring into the world.
Thank you for everything you create. You are a beacon.
Re-emergence can be paindul, a struggle, inconvenient and disriptive but it is, if only in my opinion, the only way forward, the only worthwhile path.
I deliberately live in the country. Yes, there are noises but mainly birds (cocks - oops I should say roosters for sensitive US citizens), monkeys, - and they can be loud. Eventually, I learnt to ignore them though to be honest, as a morning person I don't mind waking early. I don't have to get up but van read in bed. Living in the tropics, it's light at 6 am and dark at 6 pm. The birds go to sleep and the monkeys, too, when it gets dark. I sleep quite early.