Creativity

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Writing Down the Bones : Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg / Paperback - 171 pages / 1986. There are countless books about the process of writing, whether for publication or for personal explorations. Spending ome time with Goldberg's techniques is one of the quickest cures I know for curing writer's block, and for bringing life, grace and "flow" to your writing.

A Soprano on Her Head : Right-Side-Up Reflections on Life and Other Performances by Eloise Ristad / Paperback - 203 pages / 1982. I don't think Ristad necessarily set out to address the musical variations of "writer's block," but she has some fabulous methods and perspectives that apply to both musical performance and creative expression generally. This is also a book I'd heartily recommend to anyone who has long wanted to sing or play music but doesn't think they have any "talent" for it.

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain : A Course in Enhancing Creativity and Artistic Confidence by Betty Edwards / Paperback / Revised edition / 1989. A classic for tapping and freeing creativity in the visual arts, and one of the early books to incorporate applications of the left brain/right brain concept.

Drawing on the Artist Within : An Inspirational and Practical Guide to Increasing Your Creative Powers by Betty Edwards Paperback - 240 pages / 1987. This is a follow-up to "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain," and approaches Creativity in the visual arts as a tool for self-exploration. You need not be any kind of an artist to make some surprising and wonderful discoveries using the exersizes in this book.

At a Journal Workshop : Writing to Access the Power of theUnconscious and Evoke Creative Ability by Ira Progoff / Paperback - 422 pages Revised edition / 1992. Whether you adopt the entire "intensive journal" approach or not, Progroff's techniques and exercises add immeasurably to the depth and coherence of journal-writing. In particular, I've found some of his exercises incredibly effective for breaking out of the inevitable "stuck points" - those loops of self-examination in journaling that concern the issues that seem to follow us in different disguises throughout our lives.

=	titles I've read & recommend
Books without checks are by authors whose work I respect, or are books that others have requested or recommended.

Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh / Paperback Reissue / 1991. I first read this classic account of a personal retreat when I was in high school - and it's continued to provide creative inspiration over the years. Lindbergh's retreat, done at a beach cabin, illustrates the process of stripping away the demands of our daily activities and deepening the appreciation of the harmonies just beneath the surface. While some of her personal issues might seem dated in the wake of the feminism of the past 30 years, she was ahead of her time -- and the result is a timelessness that continues to speak to us.
Gift from the Sea - Hardcover Reissue edition / 1991
Gift from the Sea - Large Print
Gift from the Sea - Audio Cassettes recorded by Claudette Colbert