Let us not, you and I, be paralyzed by the sometimes madness of the world. Let us follow our writing and our being inward to that quiet place within ourselves and let us be centered there.
/Lynn Nelson

I’m putting up a couple of orange Notebook magnets that I’ve “designed” for my Etsy Shop. I love how they turned out!

A blog friend wrote a letter to me about blank books. She wrote:

My blank books still haunt me - I have no idea where to start! I wish you lived nearer! you could run workshops!
I want to use some of the Tolle stuff I am reading and bling it up a bit - but I am not confident and the pages look so nice and clean - what am I to do????

I think I’ve addressed the fear (that damn fear again) of the blank page before, but I’ve been thinking about it again recently.

I think the most important thing for me to keep creating and adding to a notebook, making it into what ever it is supposed to be (a scrapbook, a inspirational book of clippings, an art journal or diary) is to love it. That’s first. I need to love how it looks, how the paper feels, how the binding holds together and how the cover makes me feel. Not any notebook will do, but even if it feels wrong today, it might not be wrong tomorrow…

Because if I love it, I still need to wait for the right feeling to come. It can take weeks or years, but at one point I just know that the right time for this or that notebook has come. Perhaps I need to long a bit for it? When I crave adding stuff (words, text, images etc) into it, when I can’t resist it anymore - that’s when I know. Let’s talk, you and me dear notebook!

If you want advice on what to put into your notebook I can’t give it, of course. Or I can tell you that You Can Put Anything You Want into it! Wanting is key. You have to want to use it, feel it inside of you; is it writing you want to do? Or sketches? Poetry? Daily thankfulness? Or straight collages or layered collages and acrylic paint dabbing? Or writing all those to do-lists or jotting down ideas for future craft projects? Or all of that? With tabs as dividers perhaps…? With the right notebook you can do anything, but you’ve got to start using it.

Open it up and add something. Now.

But before that happy filling is the hesitation… right? And it is in the way of creativity! I want to shout moooove, but it’s sticky. You think Is what I do good enough for this pretty new shiny notebook? Fear of messing it up, as it is so pretty as it is, right? But if you make a page you don’t like, you can turn the page and start over. Nobody needs to know. Just keep turning the page!

Who taught us that “pretty as it is” is a true concept anyhow? I think it was someone with good intentions that told us this as we grew up. Someone who taught us to iron our clothes, clean our hands, eat up our food and shut up in class. To not only be pretty girls, but tidy, organized, neat and well behaved girls. At home, in kindergarten, in school. And where did that ever take us? Oh my how wrong it is to live by those rules. How terribly wrong it is. As a feminist I know it is intimidating to be “pretty” when one wants to be strong, bold and wildly crazy too. And I’m not just thinking of pretty neat blank notebooks now. I’m thinking about our lives. Our homes. Our desk. Our art. Our craft. Our female powers. They. Are. Not. Pretty. And. Tidy.

Who can create anything new in a neat and tidy environment? Maybe some of us need it to be clean and organized as you start out or finish for the day, but everyone makes a mess when they’re really “into it”. When they are being in the creative flow. The Creative Flow is that period of time where you forget about clock time. When your inner critic is forced to the side of the road with a muzzle over his mouth! That’s what Cameron’s Morning Pages is about, to keep writing for three pages each morning - without thinking! If you stop you might feel fear. Just keep going. The Artist’s Way Morning Pages is actually a great way to fill notebooks! Leah is having a group thing that sounds like fun soon. The theme for Everyday Creative in January was play and yes - in February it’s words! Why not pick up a notebook and start collecting words you like in it… If you want to play more in your life maybe Misty Mawn’s Art Journal prompts during January could help you getting started? I haven’t even read them yet, but one day soon I’ll just have one tab in Firefox open and read though them and look at Misty’s beautiful art!

The individual pages might stink, and if you’re letting your evil side (that self critiquing bastard) talk louder than happy you (your creative side) you will defiantly think so, but as a whole it is always beautiful. It’s beautiful and wild because it’s a part of you.

Anyway… Please check out my Notebook Junkie Magnets, I think they are yummy with the orange collaged background straight from one of my art journals!

I’m only doing this because Theresa tagged me, and she is one of my favorite bloggers and online friends. Mostly I don’t post about awards, memes and tags because the more people that read this blog the more of that kind of attention I get and it’s sooo time consuming. Although it’s nice to receive attention and love it is less nice when each gift comes with expectations on me! So time consuming as it is, writing is fun and I’ve made my list contain way more than six facts about me, way way to much info here!

Facts you didn’t want to know about iHanna

1. I don’t like it when other people have expectations on what I should do or don’t do! I’m a rebel like that. I prefer to make up my own mind about when I should do what and how. At work I prefer to know what I should be before I have to do it and not be told “do this now”. I guess you could say I have a problem with direct orders. I think I would freak out in the military world. But on the other hand, it’s a mindset and I can go into auto pilot if I have to, it’s juts not what I prefer.

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Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it. /Rumi [found via jen]

More page details from my Moleskine diary. Doodles and what not.

Doodles around a name.

A drawing I made… She looks so nice, I don’t know where she came from!

One of many word birds I’ve doodled this summer.

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When I speak of writing, the image that comes first to my mind is not a novel, a poem, or a literary tradition; it is the person who shuts himself up in a room, sits down at a table, and alone, turns inward. Amid his shadows, he builds a new world with words. /Orhan Pamuk

You might remember my filled and overfull diary, one Moleskine Blank Notebook, that I’ve mentioned before? A fellow blogger linked to the post about my filled diary and said something about how curious she was about the inside! What was my diary filled with? How does the inside look? It got me thinking and as I was re-reading a few entries and browsing the pages I wished I could share it all with someone, someone like you. Someone curious, creative, longing for inspiration… But for the most part I can’t do that.

I can’t and don’t want to, because my diary is private (and most of my writing within it is therefor not crafted for other eyes but mine)! It’s written for my eyes only (and not very interesting for anyone else I think). Some of it even feels like secrets, at least nothing I’d share with the whole world (not that everyone comes by but anyone has the potential to do it and sometimes that scares the shit out of me!). But something perhaps?

Would you like a little glimpse into my private diary? Tag along then. I’m sharing my decoration drawings (train doodles mostly) and a few quotes that I’ve scribbled within these pages to remember. I thought it would still some of your curiosity but mostly I hope they will inspire you to open up your own notebook and start filling it…

I did take a few snapshots that I want to share here, one creative soul to another….

A collage page about being vulnerable and special… A wrapped up girl who needs more sleep (me) and the Dront (me); a large, clumsy, flightless bird (Raphus cucullatus), formerly of the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean, that has been extinct since the late 17th century.

From the Answers site, the dodo is extinct - but their reputation didn’t die;
With the image of the dodo in mind, speakers of English have used dodo ever since as a four-letter word to express exasperation with a stupid person or stupid behavior. Reflection on the fate of the bird gave us, as early as 1904, a proverbial phrase, dead as a dodo, to go along with the much earlier dead as a doornail or dead as a herring.

It’s faith makes me want to cry! Who was the stupid one?

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Yesterday I finished my Moleskine diary. It’s as full as my brain now. Nothing else will fit in there…

View of my brain right now (from my moleskine diary);

Inside my messy brain there are so many things floating around, just at is in my bags, my room, on the floor under my bead and in my boxes of art and craft material. Things that does not seam to be connected to each other. Seemingly they’re just floating around and not moving me anywhere. And then there is all these questions to ponder…

- Where am I going? It’s three months left of this year and I’m already contemplating 2009 and my choices and priorities for the upcoming year…

- Should I try to do NaNoWriMo this year again? Should I then try another novel or write about creativity and those subjects nagging me?
- What will be my focus for next year? What big project do I want to undertake?
- What shall I do with my blog and in what direction do I want it to head?
- Why does it feel like I’m standing still and not getting anything done?
- What digital project should get my attention and go onto printed paper first?
- What happened to my journalistic ambition?
- Do I want to stop crafting and concentrate on making art? Could I make a decision about what materials I should focus on; fabrics (quilting art), paper (collage), mixed media (collage in bigger form) or mainstream craft (to sell)?
- Could I find online resources that would pay me to write? I want to write badly, but I don’t know where to start and I’m kind of really really slow when it comes to get DOING what I want and need to do!
- Should I print a photo album of this year or last year first? Put all photos from one year in one album or do several smaller ones? Should I do a photo book for print-on-demand that you my friends and readers could order?
- Should I put out another blog book and what year should I pick? This or last year (2007)? Could I do it in InDesign then and make a better layout? But how to get all the images and text in there the most efficacious way?
- Asked before but still have no action plan: what to do with all my Daily Art Cards? Should I do them next year too or something else that will be a daily act of creativity?

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Sometimes when I go through a magazine that I’m throwing away I cut out words, quotes and phrases that catches my eye. Often I feel that they refer to what I’ve been thinking about, what I am or what I want to become. Sometimes they are just funny facts or tidbits of information that fascinates me. I plan to use the big letter cut-outs in my Art Journal, but somtimes I just glue words together randomly in my diary. I fill a spread with words, like this:

Sometimes these quotes can be rather mysterious, taken out of their context, but that is what I like about them. Who said that, what did they mean and what does it say about me that I cut it out? One of the quotes above translates to:

- Maybe it’s the force of gravity that prevent things from being at several places at once…

Another one reads:

- The unreal becomes real and the new “reality”.

Poem starters maybe, thought provoking for sure. If you have a notebook or diary that you use mostely for writing (like I do in my Moleskine diary) it might look a bit boring to you when you compare it to other peoples Art Journals and Visual Sketchbooks, right? A fun way to spruce things up a bit without being too artistic, is to splatter paint on your page!

Fill your hard brush with lots of water and watercolor paint, and use your finger to splash out the paint randomly on your page. The result will vary but what I’m looking for are those little tiny dots of paint that will remind you of egg-shells. Use only one color or several, and when it’s dry you can write over your paint and maybe feel even more inspired to write a poem or a journal entry about your day?!

Have fun with it and enjoy your weekend!

Writing and Being: Embracing Your Life Through Creative Journaling - Heal your past, claim your present and transform your future by G. Lynn Nelson. Here comes my book review now!

Once I decided I want to read more about the craft of keeping a journal I browsed through all (?) the books on the subject at Amazon before I picked one, just one for now. It’s called Writing and Being: Embracing Your Life Through Creative Journaling and it’s written by a guy named G. Lynn Nelson. He is a author and academic writing teacher that has been journaling, like me, for most of his life. He asks of all his students to start writing a daily journal and keep writing no matter what. He says that we need to find our own language and words, because it is important for our personal development, thinking and creativity. We have been taught how to write in school so we know how to use the traditional “critical, left-brained, technical writing”, but we also need to find how to express emotions and our soul on paper! I absolutley agree with him on this though I haven’t thought about it in these terms before.

I’m extremely happy with my choice of buying this book! I feared that it would be of good use mostly for beginners to get them started and that I as (I must say) experienced diary keeper wouldn’t get much new info from this book. Gosh, was I wrong! It’s actually strange that I haven’t read a book about journaling until now, but now was the right time for this I guess.

There is so much to learn and know, how can we ever think we’re fully learned? We can never have to much information on subjects that we love and practices we want to pursue. I do love writing with a passion and have done so since my childhood. I can’t imagine I’ll ever stop writing… I’ve had an ongoing diary for 21 years now and never stopped (!) even though I don’t write daily. You might call me a writing addict but after reading this book (and many articles on the subject) I know it’s one of the best addictions one can have! Write write write everyone!

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My hand moves across the page, and I’m liking my own handwriting. It feels strange to like it now, I’ve disliked it for so long! I want to create sentences that are beautiful, like poetry. but what comes out is mundane daily ephemera. Nobody will remember what we had for dinner, but I will. I’ve written it down. And sometimes I get revelations, about my now and about my past. That’s when it’s exhilarating to write.

I’m in love with journal writing right now, I take it with me everywhere and write when ever I can! I think it has to do with my meditation practice, as I mentioned before. Trying not to think is the best way to release ideas and find new ways to think. A good way to channel thoughts into something useful is to write them down. A journal is always there for you to listen to your thoughts, what ever they are about.

Some links to get you going:

• Three beautiful things - a blog where Clare writes 3 things she is greatfull for every day - and these are some beautiful and inspiring lists! Could you come up with 3 beautiful things today? Right now?
• The Journal Series - articles by Jazz blog about writing (lots of great reading)
• Tips for beginners about journaling, an article by Bridgette Guerzon Mills
• So what is reflecting? - article I like in the blog New Century Notebook (does not update often but has a nice archive)
• How to keep a manifestation journal
• Note to self video - poor man’s therapy? It’s a book by Samara O’Shea who also has written the book For the love of letters! I want to read both. [via sama]
• + Don’t say it at Happiness Project

3 Beautiful Things in my life

1. Hello Kitty Bubble Gum with stickers in the mail from my friend

2. Lavender Chicken and sticky rice for dinner

3. My green Mango armwrist watch with a new clockwork inside

Have a creative day!

Breathing in, I am aware of my whole body. Breathing out, I smile at my whole body.

I did this page in my writing diary yesterday. It’s about what I want this summer, what I’m going after and sending out. Mindfulness is my new mantra and I try to grasp it’s concept.

MINDFUL is an adjective;

1. Tending toward awareness and appreciation: conscious, heedful, observant.

2. Cautiously attentive: careful, heedful, observant, watchful.

It is just a word, right? But to me it is the Super Power above all. I think it’s a beautiful word. I love the feeling of being mindful because it transforms me into the person I want to be. It makes me see and feel more of everything, it makes me embrace all of it. It’s easy to be but hard to sustain.

In Buddhism it plays a central role as mindfulness also is a technique in which a person becomes intentionally aware of his or her thoughts and actions in the Present Moment, non-judgmentally. While I try to become more Mindful I practice meditation and have done so for the past couple of weeks. I hereby pledge to continue through the summer and beyond!

Have you decided what your summer will be about yet? Do a page in your journal to find out what is important to you.

Right mindfulness (often also termed Right meditation) involves bringing one’s awareness back (i.e. from the past or the future) into the present moment. By residing more frequently in the present moment, practitioners begin to see both inner and outer aspects of reality. Inner reality may unfold as one sees that the mind is continually chattering with commentary or judgment. By noticing that the mind is continually making commentary, one has the ability to carefully notice those thoughts, and then decide if those thoughts have value. Those practicing mindfulness realize that “thoughts are just thoughts”; the thoughts themselves have little or no weight. One is free to release a thought (”let it go”) when one realizes that the thought may not be concrete reality or absolute truth. Thus, one is free to observe life without getting caught in the commentary. Many “voices” or messages may speak to one within the “vocal” mind. It is important to be aware that the messages one hears during “thinking” may not be accurate or helpful, but rather may be translations of, or departures from truth.

As one more closely observes inner reality, one finds that happiness is not exclusively a quality brought about by a change in outer circumstances, but rather by realizing happiness often starts with loosening and releasing attachment to thoughts, pre-dispositions, and “scripts”; thereby releasing “automatic” reactions toward pleasant and unpleasant situations or feelings. [via answers]

If you want to get started right now, here are some help:
* Take a Deep Breath - article on easy mindfulness
* Relaxation & Meditation Timer - set the timer and sit still for a while and listen to music while breathing in and out, in and out, in and…

To me creativity and meditation/mindfulness goes hand in hand. I never get as much ideas as I do when I try not to think about anything. I would like to read more about this as I think it is interesting. If you have any books, articles or links to share, please do so!

My visual style is spilling into my diary; my writing book. It’s a good thing, and it excites me. It’s like I can’t believe what I see when I look back a couple of weeks. Did I fill this book like that? Where does this rabbit come from? It’s still mainly my handwriting all over the pages, mostly in straight lines from top to bottom. But sometimes before I go to sleep I “prep” a page, like this:

Other times I make a collage on a whole spread. They are very different from anything I’ve made on loose papers or in my Art Journal. I find this fact fascinating. That the “form” guides us when we create. Have you noticed? Do your art look different when you do it on a canvas for example? It’s like the size of the pages and the structure, how big the notebook is and how it’s bound matters to what I create in there! It will reveal a new way of making a collage or writing the text. Noticing this I understand how important it is the constantly be challenged when you create. Sit in different places. Write with different pens. Change the format of your art. Never go stale!

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