The Artist’s Date: 3 Reasons Why Your Creative Practice Needs Them

When was the last time that you took some time away to invest in your creativity?

Well, probably fewer of us lately as the pandemic continue, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not important. There’s a tendency to focus on the output of creative work—the story, the novel, the painting, the photograph, the song, etc. We tend to spend less time focusing on the stuff going on between our ears that makes that creative output possible.

And yet, this stuff between our ears has an enormous effect not only on the creativity and creative energy that we bring to our work, but also about how we feel about ourselves during the process.

Creative Boost

Creativity is always helped along when we’re feeding it. I don’t know that I’ve ever come back from an artist’s date without feeling a creative boost. The intensity varies, of course, but there’s always at least a spark of an idea there. So often in our busy lives, we don’t stop to just think, to let our minds wander, to see the small things around us.

Having an hour or so every week (or whatever you choose) to just experience can give you new ideas, help you reframe a problem in your plot, or give you real-life fodder for things like dialog, description, etc. We know from science that doing new things sparks creativity and you can use that with every artist’s date. Try something new, go to a new place, or even just try a new route to an old favorite.

The key here though is to put that creative boost goal on the back burner. The more we try to reach for creativity, the more it sometimes tries to evade us. With an artist’s date, do it for the enjoyment and the time for you. The creative boost will come from that.

Creative Self-Care

Creative work is often hard. We create; someone hates it. We put our hearts into something; someone leaves a scathing review. I don’t know of a writer or other creative who exists who doesn’t have at least a few inflicted wounds of the soul. There’s a reason why creative burnout is a thing.

Artist’s dates are great because they can be these nurturing islands in the sea of creative angst. You get to choose something that nourishes you, that gives you rest or energizes you, depending on the day. There are weeks were my artist’s date is literally an afternoon on the couch with a book or a movie. Those are the weeks where I just need rest. There are also weeks where I go to a gallery, take the dog to a new park for a hike, or wander around a museum. That’s self-care on a different (mind) level.

The great thing is: you get to choose. What do you need this week? What’s your brain and body telling you?

Creative Value

One of the unintended side effects of artist’s dates that I discovered in my own world was that they were great self-care. Making them a regular part of my creative practice meant that I was taking time for me. I was saying that I had value in the hectic pace of life.

One of the things that I see often when working with writers and other creatives is a devaluing of ourselves and our work. That starving artist mentality is real in our minds. We don’t invest in ourselves as humans or as creatives. We go for the “free” or cheap options on things because we believe that there’s no money to be had. Now, I’m not advocating for spending wildly, but investing in yourself can have huge benefits. Artist’s dates are just one way of doing that — of seeing yourself and your creative talents as worthy of time, money, and investment.

There’s something powerful about acknowledging that you, as a creative, have value and that you’re worthy of investment. The world often tells us the opposite. Reclaiming that value is important.

With that all artist’s dates have to offer, what are you waiting for? Carve out a date for yourself and let it feed your creativity.