Almost every artist goes through it at some point. Regardless of your medium, be you a visual artist, a writer, a musician, or something else entirely, you might find yourself in a creative rut. No matter how many times you try to put pen to paper, it feels like nothing is coming out. It can be frustrating and may have you even start to believe that you’ve lost whatever spark it was you had in the first place. However, that’s rarely the case. There are ways to get yourself out of that slump. Here are a few worth considering.
Try out some prompts
Sometimes, you don’t need to do anything drastic, you just need to start working on something to unclog the pipes in the old brainbox. To that end, finding art prompts to work with can offer just that. By taking the first step of the initial idea from somewhere else and just getting down to working with it, you can turn back on the faucet, allowing your creative side to start flowing freely again. It’s always worth doing this as a first step.
Engage with new media
As an artist, you need to feed the beast; the beast being your imagination in this case. As the saying goes: writers read. This can expand to musicians, painters, and further beyond. You need to engage with media in the realm that you’re working in, whether that’s finding established reading lists like those from Pan Macmillan, diving into classic cinema, visiting art galleries, or otherwise. Don’t just stick to engaging the medium that you work in, either. Tap into other forms of creativity. You never know where the spark of inspiration is going to come from, after all.
Switch up your mindset
If you’re stuck in your own head, then sometimes finding a way to get out of it can be just the help that you need. There are a lot of different ways to do this, such as meditating or journaling to get some distance from your thoughts, going out for a walk or people-watching to get out of your own space, or even altering your mind a touch with the help of providers like Nothing But Hemp. Of course, that latter one has been used by creatives to uncover the untapped parts of the mind for years upon years, now, and shouldn’t be underestimated.
Get out into the world
The input that you transform into your art doesn’t have to come solely from your own imagination, or the art that you, yourself, engage in. It can just as easily come from sources beyond your comfort zone. For instance, travel can be an excellent source of inspiration, helping you see new places, experience new cultures, and uncover new emotions that can pour into your work.
If you’re having trouble getting out of your creative slump, then whatever the case, you need to switch up what you’re doing. If the tips above aren’t cutting it, then you have to find different avenues to try.
