Renewal & Creativity
“April is a reminder that life is a beautiful, ever-renewing cycle.” ~E. E. Cummings
When we think of spring we think of renewal, rejuvenation, and creativity. This season is a great time to renew your creative spirit, and we have a few spring activities to help inspire fresh ideas and promote your creativity.
Photography-Grab your camera or smartphone and take a nature hike. Be a nature photographer for a few hours or a day. Look for budding flowers, tiny insects, interesting light patterns, and unusual textures. Take as many pictures as you desire and see what you come up with.
DIY Arts & Crafts-Create your own unique crafts and decorations: Mod Podge terra cotta pots or decoupage pots, fabric paint or maker tea towels, paper flowers, upcycled wall hangings or wreaths…the list is endless. Search the internet for easy DIY instructions.
Artful Workshops and Classes-Enroll in a painting, pottery, or craft workshop or class at your local art center. Try something new while stimulating your brain.
Journaling/Writing Outdoor Retreat-Whether you keep a journal, write poetry or stories, take it outdoors and find a peaceful spot to let nature inspire you. The change of scenery can ignite creativity.
Have any crafts, artwork, poetry, or photography that you would like to share with our readers? Send us details, pictures, and/or how-to’s. We’d love to hear from you!
Angie’s photo of the sunset with the grasses flowing in the foreground.
Speaking of creativity, I want to share a five-word challenge poem that Nancy sent us. She did a great job using the five words we gave to write her own unique poem.
Summer morning; the sunrise created a soft glow on the pond, its still water like mirrored glass.
The scent of morning glory was pungent; the new spring grass fragrant and full of dew.
I shook it off my bare feet, ready to welcome the new day, mourning only its fleeting beauty.
If you missed the challenge, you can read about it in our last newsletter here, March 18 Newsletter.
The anticipated Hawk and the Hummingbird® Coloring and Activity books have finally arrived! Coloring pages, word searches, mazes, connect-the-dots, and more can be found in this fun and educational activity book. Color Ruby’s nest, help Mary the Milk Cow find the buttercup flowers, unscramble words with Billy the Beaver, plus so much more. Find it in our online store here.
Mermaid Reads: Book recommendations and what we’re reading.
Battle for the American Mind by Pete Hegseth. An informative and in-depth look into our current American education system.
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy. This creative and heartwarming book is, as the author says, “for everyone, whether you are eighty or eight”.
Let your creativity shine this month!
True life mermaids (or mermen) believe in themselves, they embrace their creativity and live life to the fullest.
Updates from the writer’s desk…
Goodbye March, hello April. March came in like a lion and well, left like a lion too! April showers should bring some May flowers, though our daffodils are beautiful right now and tulips are blooming too. Festival season is revving up and I will start at a local one here in Gloucester in a couple of weeks. Hope to see you there!
The new Hawk and Hummingbird Activity book has arrived! Filled with coloring pages, word finds, and so much more based on the series; I think the kids will love it.
Spring is a great time of the year to work on your photography as there is so much to take photos of. And the warming weather helps out too! I plan on working on a new photography technique called I.C.M. or Intentional Camera Movement. This is where you intentionally move the camera to blur the landscape or object of interest a little in order to add some artistic rendering to your photos. I'll let you know how it goes. Like anything that you take up, it takes time and practice to get it right. What camera techniques have you used in the past or are using now?
Plenty of books are in the works. A new Tibby the Mouse book is soon to go into production. A new cookbook featuring my photography is in production and hopefully soon will be in print. Another children's picture book is with our illustrator, Helena Crevel. Her talent is amazing, you are going to love this one! As always, thanks so much for your support and interest. I look forward to hearing from you and seeing you this year. Until next time, keep writing and keep taking those pictures!
Stay in touch with Scott and keep up with his exhibits and book signings here, https://www.jsclawson.com/
