Struggling to fit creativity into your busy life?
Daunted by your creative project?
Wondering if it’s all worth it?
Welcome to the Gentle Creative
My name is Cali Bird and I love to give gentle, encouraging advice on getting going with your creative project.
I help people find the time and courage to be creative alongside other things that you have to do (like work or take care of your family!) I’m guessing that you don’t have a trust fund or lots of servants so you are going to have to keep working and/or looking after your family while scratching that creative itch.
Let’s find a way for you to do your creative project in realistic bite-size chunks that fit around the other things you have to do in life.
If you want to write, or make music, or make art, jewellery or crafts (or whatever floats your creative boat) it is easy to get caught up in “will I make money from it?” or “am I good enough?” or “I’m too old to do that”.
Forget all of that rubbish. Get on and create in the best way that you can just for the sheer joy of doing it.
Next Steps…
- Sign up in the box at the top of the page and get the Gentle Creative manifesto. You’ll get some great tips to help you bust through your fears and get creating now.
- Scroll down and read some blogs.
- My latest writing is on Substack. Check out my newsletter over there and subscribe. There are also some links to the articles below.
- Buy the book: Don’t Give Up Your Day Job – Practical ways to lead a fulfilling life and still pay the mortgage. Click on the picture of the book and it will take you through to a website where you can purchase a copy. It’s only £8.99, is an easy read and contains a few exercises that will get you started on a project that will feed your soul.
- Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter by using buttons below.
Check out these blogs to get started on your creative journey…
Unlocking Big Magic – Conversations About Creativity
Welcome to a series of conversations on the fabulous creativity book by Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic. Published in 2015 this book soon became a creativity “bible” for me. Even if you are not a fan of Elizabeth Gilbert’s other books (such as Eat Pray Love) I still...
7 books that have defined my creative process
Isn’t it wonderful how a book can change your life! Today I have written about the books that have had the most influence on enabling me to live a creative life. Some are specifically about writing and others are about creativity in general. The common thread that...
How to return to art if you haven’t done it for a long time
You loved making art, you were good at it but you haven’t done it in a long time. Now you don’t know how to return to it and be an artist again. Your life has changed since then. Maybe you have children or parents that are growing older and need your help. You had to...
How to find time to create when you are tired all the time
It can be difficult to find time to create when you are tired all the time. Life can be very busy these days. You have so many responsibilities. It’s not just work. You have your commute time, things to do with the family, parents who are getting older and need...
Why you should aim to make lots of crap art
You finally got around to painting, or writing a short story. You’re pleased that you’ve done it but there’s no way you’re going to show it to anyone. It’s crap. It isn’t exactly how you wanted it to turn out but you don’t know how to fix it. You know the perspective...
I can’t afford to give up my day job. How can I be an artist?
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to afford to fully devote yourself to your art? You wouldn’t have to worry about having a job to pay the bills. The only thing you would need to ponder would be what to do for your next creation. Sadly, for most artists this just...
Check out my Substack newsletter
I’m not adding new blogs to this website at the moment. My latest writing is on Substack. Check out these recent articles. (You can subscribe and get them straight to your inbox too)
How To Deal With Other People’s Expectations Of Your Writing
Would You Like An Extra Month Of Writing Time?
Are You Tortured Because You’re A Really Slow Writer
Should You Stop Writing Because You’re A Bit Too Weird?
Want An Escape Route From Your Day Job? Your Book Won’t Provide That
Want An Easy And Realistic Way To Achieve What’s Important To You?
The Only Way To Beat Resistance Is To Do The Work
Why It’s Hard To Write, Even If You Really Want To
Writing a Novel Is Like Doing An Archaeological Dig
Do You Want To Smash Your Time Management?
Don’t Shy Away From Tricky Topics
How To Be Content With Your Writing Pace
Do You Need To Lower Your Writing Expectations?
Would You Really Write More If You Didn’t Have A Job?
Is 2022 The Year You Write That Book?
Here are all the older blogs. Happy reading…
Ever Had Writer’s Block?
Then I'd like to talk to you please. I’m fascinated by writers who don’t write. You know, they’re suffering from some kind of writer’s block. I’m wondering whether I could create a course or coaching product that would help them. But before I can do that, I need to...
My Favourite Books – Off The Shelf Podcast interview
Are you curious about my favourite novel, or favourite childhood book or the best book I've ever been given? Then check out this podcast interview with the lovely Phoebe from Pause Books. We also talk about writing with a day job, making handbags come to life and...
13 Reasons Why Failure Is A Good Thing
Failure hurts. But if we are to have any chance of achieving our goals or deeply-held desires, we must be open to it. Here are 13 reasons why failure doesn’t have to be a bad thing. It allows us to learn.It is better to try and fail (and learn) then never give it a...
The Empowering Voice of Female Writers
Cali was delighted to be included in the Cool Conversations with Creatives panel on the Read My Lips radio show on the Voice America network. She talks about how her writing process is a hybrid of plotting and pantsing, and what drives her to write. The show also has...
When Real Life Became Fiction
In this interview on the Arm Cast podcast I talk about the real life inspiration behind Tales of the Countess Why I started calling myself the Countess of Kennington Why the handbags have rather naughty names And why, in my head, they have always talked! Enjoy! You...
Your Language Will Tell You If It’s Resistance Or Wisdom
Have you ever caught yourself thinking “I must be f**king crazy to do this”? It might be writing a book or starting a business or embarking on a few months of travel. You want to do it. You’ve planned towards it for a long time. You are inexplicably driven to do this....
Interview on A Sample Chapter Podcast
Would you like to hear me read the first chapter of Tales of the Countess? In this podcast I chat with host Jason Meuschkle about the ethos behind Gentle Creative, my writing habit and then I read the first chapter of the book. You can listen to the interview on...
Would You Still Do It If Failure Were Guaranteed?
When I was a life-coach a common question I used to ask was — “What would you do if it was guaranteed that you couldn’t fail?” This is a freeing question which allows people to brainstorm possibilities without having to commit themselves to potentially difficult...
Divinity and Beyond – Our Top Takeaways from Unlocking Big Magic
And now we reach our conclusion. If you haven’t watched any of the previous Unlocking Big Magic episodes this is a great episode to watch because we recap our three most important takeaways from the book. I talk about my favourite sentence - Fear is a desolate...
Liberate Your Creativity
We’ve reached the penultimate episode of our Unlocking Big Magic conversations. This episode is based on the Trust chapter but I would like to rename it as the “lighten the load chapter” – or “the liberation episode” Why do I say that? Because it covers topics such...
Unlocking Big Magic – Persistence and Perfection
We are now at my favourite chapter of Big Magic – Persistence. I found it hugely profound because it touches on all the issues and challenges I have, combining a day job with a writing life. It talks about time, energy and the attitude we need to have when going about...
Do You Need Permission To Be Creative?
If you are always making excuses as to why you can’t, or shouldn’t, get on with your creative practice then the Permission chapter of Big Magic is for you. It’s packed with stories and information that will dismantle each of your excuses and leave you free to get on...
Newsflash – Tales of the Countess is published
Yes, at last my debut novel is available.
What if your handbag could talk? What if it could help you sort out your love life?
The book is a romantic comedy about the need to be happy in yourself before you get your man. However, it has an unusual twist. The main character, known just as the Countess, has a collection of handbags that talk. Think Sex and the City meets Toy Story.
The bags, along with her teddy bear, are her chief confidantes who provide the Countess with support and advice as she nurses a broken heart and attempts to move on with her life.
One Amazon reviewer says: “I couldn’t put it down & might even have got a tad emotional towards the end. It’s different, quirky, excellently written & perfect for the times we’re in.”
For more info see www.calibird.com