Creative Happy Hour

This is far from a boring episode! In fact, the subject of boredom is trending in 2020. During the pandemic and through all of our extra time at home, many of us have felt the effects of boredom. We've tried to alleviate that boredom through Netflix, crafting, organizing, and baking...but often, that doesn't work. Why do people get bored? Is there a link between boredom and creativity? Is it possible that boredom is sometimes good? What are some of the most boring activities, and why? What is the most boring art, and should art be boring? Are you bored at work? And what are the ways of getting rid of boredom that actually work? We'll be drinking the most boring of cocktails, the vodka and soda (don't worry, we're gonna tell you how to doctor it!), and getting drunk on the creative possibilities.

Empowering seems to have become something of a keyword in the past few years. Technically, it means to give (someone) the authority or power to do something. What does empowering mean for creatives? How can you empower yourself and others as a creative, an artist, or a creative entrepreneur, and how do you use your creative power for good?

In this episode, we'll discuss these questions and interview special guest Brad Walsh, a photographer who specializes in boudoir photography and uses it and his podcast, Empowerography, as a powerful platform to help empower women.

What do the founder of IKEA, Cher, Richard Branson, Chuck Close, and Justin Timberlake have in common? They all present some form of neurodiversity, from ADHD to Dyslexia to OCD, and they all credit all or part of their success to these learning or processing differences.

35% of entrepreneurs label themselves as dyslexic.

Neurodivergence is at the core of creativity.

Innovation has always come from the edges.

We are not saying that people with learning differences are automatically more creative, even though many famous creatives, artists, and creative entrepreneurs did have learning differences.

This episode is more about how to set yourself up for creative success when you have a learning difference or neurological differences.

We'll be drinking a muddled cocktail, the mojito, while we get drunk on the creative possibilities.

Leonardo da Vinci declared more than 500 years ago that "Art is never finished, only abandoned."

But in reality, typing "The End" at the end of your manuscript or signing a painting can be one of the most rewarding parts of the process. Setting yourself up to finish your creative work is one of the most important elements of creative success.

In this episode of Creative Happy Hour, we drink a cocktail called The Bitter End and get drunk on the creative possibilities as we discuss why finishing what you started is so important, how to make sure you finish your creative work, and how to know when a creative work is finished. For the writers out there competing in NaNoWriMo, we'll also discuss how to wrap up your story and how to create a compelling ending.

The mushy middle... sounds pretty bad, doesn't it? The mushy middle, or saggy middle syndrome, refers to what happens when you get stuck slogging through the middle of a creative project, whether it's a you're a writer working on a book, an artist working on a painting, a musician creating a piece of music, or a creative entrepreneur launching a business venture. In this episode, which lands in the particularly challenging third week of NaNoWriMo, we'll be drinking a cocktail aptly named "a Lonely Island Lost in the Middle of a Foggy Sea," and getting drunk on the creative possibilities as your host, Dr Karena Akhavein, PhD, gives you a creative pep talk that will help you to firm up that mushy middle and move your creative project forward.

First impressions matter. In this episode, we'll be we'll be sipping Vesper Martinis and talking about how to make the best impression possible as a creative, an artist, or a creative entrepreneur, and with your creative work, be it writing, art, or a new venture. Also, we'll be celebrating the second week of NaNoWriMo by talking about how to write a compelling first scene for your novel. Join host Karena Akhavein, PhD and get drunk on the creative possibilities.

Have you ever heard of NaNoWriMo? In this episode, we talk about National Novel Writing Month- a creative challenge where you attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November. Is this a good idea? Why should any creative challenge themselves? What are the right ways and wrong ways of challenging yourself? If you're trying to start NaNoWriMo, how do you even start? And when is it OK to decide to quit? And we discuss all of this while sampling the Vesper Martini in honor of James Bond. Whether you're an experienced author or a new author or even just a writing-curious creative entrepreneur, you'll want to check out this episode and get drunk on the creative possibilities.

Andy Warhol wanted a cool blank gravestone with just the word "Figment" on it. He got a conventional grave in a suburban cemetery in Pennsylvania, next to his parents. A small consolation: the grave is live-streamed 24/7, an art project called "Figment." Frida Kahlo had a super cool funeral procession complete with communist flag and Mexican folk songs, and her ashes were placed in a pre-columbian frog shaped urn that now sits in her museum. Nicolas Cage has already set up his own mausoleum, an epic Illuminati-inspired pyramid placed in a New Orleans cemetery. Steve Jobs' grave is unmarked, not surprising for a creative entrepreneur who left a huge mark despite being a bit of an enigma in life.

In this episode, we'll drink whiskey on the rocks and discuss the weird and wonderful creative graves and gravestones of artists and creatives. We'll use that as a jumping-off point for a discussion of creative legacy: how do you shape your own creative legacy and what should you consider? How can you ensure that you do leave behind a creative legacy?

Join host Dr Karena Akhavein for an uplifting time that will get you drunk on the creative possibilities.

Anger is normal; nature hardwired into our brains for protection. But here is the paradox: when anger goes out of control, it destroys, yet anger when it is understood and controlled is a constructive force, one that can be used for creativity, change, and growth.

Today we'll be talking about murder & art.

-Which artists, writers, and musicians were murderers?

-Which works of art have actually killed people?

-The weird world of murderbilia: Which serial killers and murderers produced art and what does it mean? We critique serial killer art.

-The murderous life of Caravaggio.

-How does rage impact creativity?

-How to channel anger into art and creativity.

So grab your drink, and join me, so we can get drunk on the creative possibilities. I'm your host, Doctor Karena Akhavein, a PhD creative and writing coach, educator, and lover of all things storytelling.

We'll be drinking the Bloody Murder cocktail

• 1 tbsp cayenne pepper
• 2 oz Vodka
• 3 oz tomato juice
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Habanero slice as garnish
• Celery salt (optional)

Dissolve cayenne in half the vodka, add the rest of the ingredients, shake and serve over ice in a Collins glass.

The Dance of Death ...the Danse Macabre... St Vitus' Dance: It's an artistic theme, a creepy historical anecdote, and an allegory that may inspire is to be our best creative selves. In this episode of Creative Happy Hour, host Karena Akhavein, PhD will go over the historical facts behind the Dance of Death and introduce a modern organization using the Dance of Death as a death-positive performance. Next, we'll interview Damon Mahoney, a gifted artist, writer, designer, and ballet dancer who has played Death onstage and who has a unique insight on the subject, while drinking the corpse reviver cocktail. We'll also be chatting about how to keep dancing or being creative even as we age or become less able bodied, because after all, being creative is a way of keeping death at bay. So grab your drink and get ready to get drunk on the creative possibilities.