Emily 1. Collaborative Fuel


At the start of this semester, myself and seven other students embarked on the creative project: Willow Patterns - The 24-Hour Book Remixed, which aims to change and explore the traditional notion of the 'book'. This project is done in collaboration with the Queensland Writers Centre and aims to examine how a story can be presented, not only within the traditional written format but also within the creative process itself.

Over the next few months, each student is asked to reflect on the progress being made within this project and upload it for others to read and consider. At this early stage, we as a group are still brainstorming what outcomes we want for the process and how exactly we can better illustrate and demonstrate the 'creative process' to a wider audience. Thus this blog will focus on my initial reaction and understanding of the concept: the creative process.

Initially I felt a little confused about how to explore and present the 'creative process' in a more tangible format (stories, poetry etc). This was mainly because 'creative process' is such a broad term, and initially I was unsure of what it meant within this particular context. When I started working on the first assessment, which was to outline our initial plans for the project, my confusion over what the creative process actually meant made it difficult to then formulate concrete plans on how to express it.

To solve problems like this in the past, I have always found knowledge to be the best solution: to find out more about the subject, to do more research etc.

In this circumstance I did the same thing, conducting research, in order to alleviate my confusion. When reading, I came across a journal article by musician Patricia Plude, who stated that the creative process put simply, was the entire journey from the birth of an idea, to the finished product; where the creation is first heard, viewed and experienced by others and takes on a life of its own (2000). This process is profoundly unique to the individual, some stall at the re-modelling stage, while others struggle to get their preliminary ideas off the ground. Plude also emphasised the importance of sharing these experiences with fellow creative practitioners as it is often through collaboration with others, that can fuel and re-ignite the creative process in others. Sharing the process through a public platform also allows for greater understanding and appreciation of what each individual goes through to 'create', and so the final product automatically gains more value (2000).

This research relates to the Willow Patterns project as it suggests that by sharing the creative process of The 24-Hour Book (all the re-writes, saves etc) in a public setting, we can encourage collaboration with the greater public, which could make the creative process ongoing, due to the further stimulation it provides. Furthermore, by sharing and expressing the creative process we can potentially increase the value of Willow Patterns and its creators.

This research has given me a better understanding of the creative process and what is expected of us when representing it. I am now ready to effectively brainstorm with the group on ways to express it.

Plude, P. (2000). Supporting the creative process. The American Music Teacher, 49(4), 88. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/217459900?accountid=13380   

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