Artists like movement — creator gift basket — True Bug Links
May 5th, 2024 — Tuscaloosa, AL
"When I'm writing, the first thing I do is take my shoes off. My hands get hot. It's so fucking physical," Maggie Rogers told the New Yorker writer Amanda Petrusich. "When I'm onstage, or when I'm making something, I'm not thinking about who I am or what I'm trying to do. Time gets really sinewy. It's spidery and slow. There's wonder. And it's just special, and I'm in it and my hands are up, and I'm figuring it out." Hat tip to Amanda for her excellent profile on the singer songwriter.
Living legend playwright/screenwriter, Tony Kushner also likes movement to create. He told Adam Moss for The Work of Art, that he needed get on subway to write act 2 of his Angels of America. Moss notes that many of the artists he interviewed for his beautiful book felt more creative during movement. Swimming, walking, dancing, riding transportation. "Because I do find that in my own painting, it’s a physical sensation. It’s a physical high. And it’s one of the really satisfying aspects of it," Moss told Ezra Klein. Ezra himself mentions that he gets more done on airplanes because maybe there are less distractions.
I buy that. Sometimes you have less distraction when you're in transit — less guilt, perhaps, (I'm here anyways — might as well write) for the tortured writers (like me) who have felt guilty about tapping at a keyboard rather than upping personal market value and making cash in my free time. Culture, context have warped my brain that way. I'm working on it.
To get to that act of writing — making stuff — for me, whether that's journalism related, or a poem, has been getting over that barrier. Moving, sitting stuck on a train or plane, getting in the moment, music, get me closer to that physical high Moss mentions.
And I've had a jam-packed book/digital shelf to help get me there — to convince me that writing/creating is a worth while endeavor. For the record: it is. I believe what cartoonist Lynda Barry has said, creativity is biologically a part of us. Creativity has always been a part of my life — it makes me feel more alive. Maybe it does for you, too? Maybe you feel something when you move, a small itch on the finger tip, or a lyric roasting on your tongue, a blossom of ache and ooze compounded in your chest? It's actually the opposite of an itch — it's a welcomed biological event.
If creativity is your jam, or you're just curious, maybe some the following books and resources can be helpful. And I'm making a wiki to constantly update with, HERE, that I'm calling it The Creator Gift Basket. In addition to the links above, here's a paragraph of stuff I have found useful:
Cal Newport's Time-Blocking method — it has helped me budget my time. You tell time what to do, not the other way around. Lynda Barry’s What it Is. If you need help getting started, Jami Attenberg’s Craft Talk newsletter AND her book 1000 words can be a steady and useful drumbeat of motivation. Read how Jesmyn Ward came back from tremendous loss to write another amazing novel. I'd be amiss if I didn't mention Longform podcast, which has kept me writing for nearly a decade; I fell in love with this pod when I rode the subway in NYC everyday. If you need some myth busting and help connecting to your creativity, I recommend Todd Mitchell's Breakthrough. Writing also means the political, even when it is fantastical. See Mariana Enriquez on Political Violence and Writing Horror. Similarly, read this Q&A from Pulitzer winner Viet Thanh Nguyen, where you get a jolt to write with answers like this:
For me, there are dozens of more resources. They are piled in my mind, digital, and physical spaces. I consult them often. But it's time I actually wrote. As sports writer, Will Leitch has said, you just got to do it. Make it. And that's what I am doing with a particular novel. It's what I am doing here on True Bug. I won't say much about the novel here, but it's something I am excited about. If I put my hand to the ground, I can feel it wanting to sprout up.
I also see a poetry collection ruffled in the shrubs; I can see and feel many non-fiction pieces taking root. Much deeper, I can feel a science fiction novel bellowing.
Part of the reason I started this website, True Bug, was to get out of the waiting room. As my friend Erica, who helps editorially with this, and will be writing soon, told me over email: it's the waiting for responses that are the worst part. So, this is us making stuff and getting out of that nagging feeling of waiting. (And to anyone who wants to join — contact us!)
This is a space where we can write, share cool stuff from our information ecosystems, a space to advocate for good causes, and so much more. So if you're reading, we appreciate you. We want to grow this thing out — offer the great links to great or interesting work every week, along with some good writing. All human made and curated stuff.
Further down the line, when we get this going, we may ask, membership style, for donations, to keep the lights on and help support the work we do. We may grow into a subscription service later on, but there will always be free content. Either way, if you like what you read, share this with people who might like this writing, or find the links interesting or helpful. Tell anyone and everyone.
I appreciate your time and sticking with me. It's great to have you here.
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Lastly, I'll make this quick, here are some links to some great media from the week:
Homepages are back, baby. With AI on the rise, Google SEO being vacuumed up, platforms are in a glitch and deprioritize the posted link, homepages, a throwback, may be where media is going.
Pregnant women can't get divorced over in Missouri.
In the sphere of the protests, how the university isn't living up to it's ideals — a thoughtful walk through what's happening on campuses across the country.
ElevenLabs is making an army of AI voice clones — are we ready?
In addition, are you ready for Justin Nobel's new book out Petroleum-238 — a seven year investigation into Big Oil's radioactive secret. I am hoping to review it later this week. Justin writes with such muscled power and elevates your interest by keeping you in the verbs and nouns of the action. Worth your attention.
PJ Vogt, giving behind the scenes commentary at how he built his strong-fan base podcast, Search Engine.
ENDIT.
P.S. Heard this song on Milwaukee Radio earlier today: It's Milwaukee's own Kid Millions's Victim to the Beat. It put me in a good mood while chopping an onion.