Martha Alderson - Boundless Creativity: A Spiritual Workbook for Overcoming Self-Doubt, Emotional Traps, and Other Creative Blocks

For the last twenty years, Martha Alderson has created invaluable, popular tools to help writers understand the essential components of plot development and storytelling. Now, in Boundless Creativity , she brilliantly applies the principles illuminated in her breakthrough book, The Plot Whisperer , to the creative process. In this clear, inspiring workbook, Alderson lays out the spiritual voyage to higher creativityilluminating a clear path to inspire and guide anyone with even the hint of a creative dream. If you want to successfully navigate the highs and lows of living a creative life, youll want this book as an essential companion. Laura Davis , coauthor of The Courage to Heal , author of I Thought Wed Never Speak Again and Wholehearted , and founder of The Writers Journey workshopsMartha Aldersons new book is an indispensable creative coach whispering, Keep going, on every page. Holly Lynn Payne , novelist, screenwriter, and founder of BooxbyOpen-minded individuals looking for a road map to realize their creative potential will find this and more within the pages of Boundless Creativity . Prepare for a deep dive within to answer questions about personal fears, misbeliefs, and the origins of self-doubt that may be holding you back, and then learn how to let go of it to live your best creative life. Angela Ackerman , coauthor of The Emotion Thesaurus A brilliant, thought-provoking resource that serves not only as an inspiration for creative projects, but also as a meditation for writers, filmmakers, and artists ready to dive deep, overcome challenges, and produce their best work. The Plot Whisperer has done it again! Hallee Adelman, PhD , author of Way Past Mad , and producer/director of Our American Family In Boundless Creativity , Martha Alderson offers an inspiring, much-needed pattern for realizing our creative goals. By aligning our planning with the steps of the Universal Story, she guides us through the pitfalls and triumphs we artists experience as we travel down to the dark caverns and up to the light pinnacles of our creative dreams. Not only does the author share her own revelations, she coaches us through the fears and triumphs we all face while planning and executing a work of art. A workbook to prize, useful for creatives and workshop leaders, as we aim toward personal and professional fulfillment. Gini Grossenbacher, MEd , award-winning author of Madam of My Heart and Madam in Silk ; editor; speaker; JGKS Press publisher; and director of Elk Grove Writers and Artists, an AWA affiliate Boundless Creativity demystifies and normalizes the highs and lows of the creative lifecycle. Through a transformational program that Alderson compares to alchemyA ritual of subjecting base metals (the imperfect individual) to scorching fire (challenges and change), burning off the dross (burdens and flaws) and transforming into gold (the fully realized individual)she guides us to identify and defang the demons that suck us into that familiar tar pit of self-doubt and creative paralysis. No matter your mediumdriftwood, paints, musical notes, flour/flowers, words Boundless Creativity will lead you back to your belief in the miraculous. Back to your belief in yourself. Elaine Taylor , founder of the nonprofit, The Grief Relief Project, for people poleaxed by loss; and author of Karma Deception and a Pair of Red Ferraris

Publishers Note This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering psychological, financial, legal, or other professional services. If expert assistance or counseling is needed, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books Copyright 2020 by Martha Alderson Reveal Press An imprint of New Harbinger Publications, Inc. 5674 Shattuck Avenue Oakland, CA 94609 www.newharbinger.com Cover design by Amy Daniel Acquired by Elizabeth Hollis Hansen Edited by Jennifer Eastman All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data on file CONTENTS To Luisa WELCOME TO YOUR BEST CREATIVE LIFE THROUGH THE UNIVERSAL STORY Are you intrigued by the idea of living a spiritually and emotionally satisfying creative life? Perhaps your imagination vibrates with excitement, but you dont know where to begin. Youre bored and readyeven desperateto enliven your life. Maybe youre a writer who shows up to write every day but often feels blocked. Or youre a painter whose trek of living up to everyone elses expectations leaves you yearning for your true purpose. Depressed in the mire of routine, you dont believe youre imaginative and brave enough to live an artful and joyful life. Or youre content with your life thank you very much . Dive a bit deeper. I bet that while your mind and habits fight to remain the same, your heart and vision root for change. Boundless Creativity seeks to change your perception of life from a place of self-doubt and stuck patterns into a series of creative breakthroughs. Our spiritual nature is to embrace creativity, just as all of life is made up of creative energy. Throughout this workbook, youre invited to cross over from passive reader to active creative or maker by answering questions, performing exercises, and completing a creative project. For example, before we go any further, you have a decision to make.Are you willing to risk changing in meaningful ways to live your best creative life? Circle your answer.
Yes No By personally interacting with the material in this way, you pull ideas and beliefs from your mind into your body as you take action, circling and writing and creating something new.When asked if they were currently living their best life, a group of creatives I surveyed responded no far more than yes. Those who answered no expressed a variety of missing factors. Confidence, self-worth, and time topped the list. One creative cited a need for outside help. A housekeeper and cook, a nest egg, and dogs and kids who leave me alone. Im serious! How about you? Are you living your best creative life now?
Yes No Take a moment to draw or write what living your best creative life looks like, even if only in your imagination.
A MYSTICAL BOND Creativity connects us to our spirit. Youre writing a difficult scene and suddenly the exact right word pops in your mind. An unexpected refund check arrives in the mail with enough money to pay for that new easel you were convinced you couldnt afford. You need help with a project, the phone rings, and the person you want is on the other end. Are these simply remarkable coincidences, or is something else involved?When the lines of communication with our spirit are open and free flowing, we have access to an endless supply of energy and support. Yet if we havent already completely forgotten about our wonder, all too often, the static weight of our emotional history causes us to struggle to realize our artistic ambitions and live our best creative life.I dont think theres ever been a time when I havent felt part of a spiritual bond that has nothing to do with the intellect or the rational and everything to do with intuition, imagination, creativity, and trust, but my relationship to the mystery was much clearer and more absorbing when I was child. Then, I didnt question the awareness; I simply believed. Doubts crept in as I attended school, suffered pain and betrayal, and matured. If it cant be perceived by the traditionally recognized five senses of taste, smell, touch, hearing, and sight, its simply a hunch and not real. If you cant prove your intuitive awareness scientifically, then its nothing more than magical thinking. But despite these doubts, the truth is that the knowing never left me.What inner truth or knowing about yourself and how you view life has never left you?Next page