The 21st Century Creative

Today is the launch of my new podcast, and it’s something I’ve been planning and dreaming of sharing with you for years.

It’s called A Mouthful of Air. And in several ways, it’s the opposite of my 21st Century Creative podcast. I designed the two shows to work together from the start, although it’s taken a while to get this one up and running.

In this bonus episode of The 21st Century Creative podcast, I explain:

Hello long time no see! I hope you’re doing OK in the midst of it all.

Here in the UK we are very fortunate with our vaccine rollout, it’s making a big difference and we’ve been opening up and getting out and about and meeting up with friends and family we haven’t seen for months.

I keep thinking about animals coming out of hibernation and poking their noses out and sniffing the air and getting excited at the prospect of going out into the world again.

On the podcast front, I was aiming to have Season 6 of The 21st Century Creative ready for you by now. I have started work on it, and I’m doing something a bit different with this season, which I hope will make it more relevant and helpful to you in our current situation.

So anyway, a few weeks ago I was working away happily on Season 6, when I was interrupted by some fantastic news – I received a letter from Arts Council England, telling me I had been successful in the funding application I had made for the brand new podcast I have been working on behind the scenes.

And I really wasn’t expecting to get this funding, because I know it’s always very competitive applying for public funding for the arts. So I’m delighted and very grateful to the Arts Council England for stepping up and supporting my new show.

As well as the money, it’s been a real confidence booster, dare I say it, a real shot in the arm, to know that such an eminent funding body buy into my vision for the show and they want to support it.

At first I naively thought I’d be able to launch the new show at the same time as creating Season 6 of The 21st Century Creative and come back with a bang with both things at once and hopefully surprise and amaze you. But it quickly became apparent that there was no way I could do both at once.

So the bad news is, I’ve decided to pause production of Season 6 The 21st Century Creative until late summer. I apologise for the wait, but rest assured I am not abandoning The 21st Century Creative. Far from it, I’m excited about the new season and I have a considerable backlog of ideas and guests to share with you.

And the new podcast is designed to complement The 21st Century Creative – I actually came up with the idea for both shows at the same time, way back in 2016, and they were always intended to work in tandem.

So let me tell you a little bit about the new show. Because if you The 21st Century Creative I hope very much that you will like the new one too.

It’s called A Mouthful of Air. And in several ways, it’s the opposite of The 21st Century Creative podcast:

Unlike The 21st Century Creative, the episodes are relatively short: 20-30 minutes instead of an hour or more.

Unlike The 21st Century Creative, I’m not releasing it in seasons: I’ll release new episodes every two weeks for the foreseeable future. So you won’t have these long waits for new material from me.

And unlike The 21st Century Creative, A Mouthful of Air does not focus on a wide range of art forms and creative industries.

It focuses solely on my own art: poetry.

If you’re already a poetry lover, I think you’ll find a lot to enjoy in A Mouthful of Air. And do I realise poetry is a bit of a minority interest, even among creatives.

Many people, even professional creators, tend to read just about anything but poetry – fiction, non-fiction, biography, newspapers, magazines, blogs, graphic novels and so on. But not poetry.

And I understand that some people had a bad experience of poetry at school, that put them off. Or they get the impression that modern poetry has become a bit academic and elitist – poets talking to each other, in a way that doesn’t really mean much to the rest of us.

But the thing is, poetry used to be a part of everyone’s lives and it used to matter – way back in history and even prehistory, when we were a tribe gathered round the fire in the evening, it was the poet, the bard, who would recite poems of heroism and adventure, humans and gods and monsters, love and loss. And those poems were how we made sense of our world.

And it struck me that a podcast is the perfect medium to recreate our own version of that original experience – of finding a quiet time in the day, and listening to a voice speaking words that conjure images in your mind and feelings in your heart.

So Episode 1 of A Mouthful of Air goes into that story in more depth and explains what I think poetry can add to your life, and how the podcast will give you a ‘way in’ to poetry that is very different to the way it’s taught in a lot of schools.

Personally, I’ve been reading poetry all my life. Because me it’s the most magical, memorable, moving, funny and entertaining of all the arts.

And I appreciate that it’s not that way for most people. So on this show I’m inviting you into my world, to experience the pleasure, the joy and sometimes the consolation that poetry brings me.

I’ll take some of my favourite poems down from the bookshelf and read them to you, and talk about what makes them special to me.

I’ll also be reading some of my own poems, and sharing what went into them.

And, I will introduce you to some of the amazing poets I’ve met on my journey as a poet.

Several of the first poets who appear on the show were fellow students of mine years ago, at the Poetry School and the City Lit in London.

I remember sitting in those classes, hearing them read amazing poem after amazing poem, and thinking what an incredible evening of live entertainment I was being treated to, over and above from anything I was learning from the class.

Now, those students are award winning poets, with multiple books and prizes to their name. And I’m delighted that they have accepted my invitation to come on the show and share their poems with you. And they are giving me the most amazing readings and interviews about the creative process behind their poems.

As well as the students, you will hear a little more from and about two of my teachers, who you have already heard here on The 21st Century Creative.

The first guest poet on the show is Mimi Khalvati, who has been teaching and mentoring me for almost 20 years, and who I interviewed back in season 2 of The 21st Century Creative.

In Episode 3 of A Mouthful of Air Mimi reads a delightful poem about ‘eggs’ and has some wise and inspiring things to say about writing in general and sonnets in particular.

And in Episode 4, I share a story about a breakthrough teaching session I had with Kristin Linklater, the renowned voice teacher who I interviewed all the way back in Season 1.

(By ‘breakthrough’, I mean, of course, ‘terrifying’. It’s also quite funny in retrospect.)

Kristin is sadly no longer with us, having passed away last year, but I hope to pass on some of the spirit of her work on this show.

At this point, you may be curious to check out A Mouthful of Air. Or maybe you’re thinking:

Fair enough. And rest assured, there is plenty more to come on that front in future seasons of The 21st Century Creative. Plus… you may find A Mouthful of Air surprisingly relevant to your own creative practice.

You see, here on The 21st Century Creative I focus on the things that are common to all the arts and creative disciplines – motivation, mindset, imagination, working habits, emotional intelligence, communication skills, courage, stubbornness and persistence, and so on.

But it’s also true that, in the words of James Joyce, ‘In the particular is contained the universal’.

On A Mouthful of Air I get really specific and particular about one art form. I look at individual poems in close up, and consider what went into them. I talk about craft, and I interview poets about their craft and their creative process.

And friends and members of the Patreon group who have heard the first few episodes have told me they have gained some valuable insights into their own creative practice. So maybe this show will have a similar effect on your creativity. If so, I’d love to hear from you about that..

If you’re curious to try the new show, where can you find it? Actually in quite a few places.

Poetry is a multimedia art form – the same poem can live in a listener’s ear as well as a reader’s eye.

So A Mouthful of Air is a multimedia podcast. Here’s where you can get it:

Obviously start with your favourite podcasting app, whether that’s Apple Podcasts or Spotify or Google or whatever. And search for ‘A Mouthful of Air’.

And start with Episode 1, I know that sounds blindingly obvious, but it’s designed as an introduction to the show, it explains more about why poetry matters and what it can offer you, and also how to get the most out of the podcast.

You can also read all the poems on the website AMouthfulofAir.fm and on Instagram @airpoets

And, if you want me to email you the audio and full transcript (including poem texts) of every episode of A Mouthful of Air, you can sign up here: AMouthfulofAir.fm/subscribe

You might find the text version particularly useful, because one of the things I’m encouraging you to do on the show is to read the poems out loud to yourself – so you’ll always get the poem text in that email.

Why would you want to read the poems out loud? Well, you’ll have to listen to episode 1 to find out.

I’ve spent a lot of time working on A Mouthful of Air and I’m thrilled to be sharing it with you today. I hope you enjoy it. And I look forward to seeing you back here later in the year for Season 6 of The 21st Century Creative.

In the meanwhile please stay safe and stay creative.

Each episode of The 21st Century Creative podcast features an interview with an outstanding creator in the arts or creative industries.

At the end of the interview, I ask my guest to set you a Creative Challenge that will help you put the ideas from the interview in to practice in your own work.

And in the first part of the show, I share insights and practical guidance based on my experience as a Creative Coach since 1996.

If you’d like my help applying the ideas from the show to your own situation you are welcome to join us in the 21st Century Member’s Group.

This will give you access to Goal-setting, Accountability and Q&A videos, as well as other exclusive insights and glimpses behind the scenes of the show. Due to the pandemic, membership is currently on a pay-what-you-want basis.

Your membership fee will also support the podcast and help to make it sustainable.

Become a Patron!

Make sure you receive every episode of The 21st Century Creative by subscribing to the show in iTunes.

The post My new podcast (and why it’s the opposite of The 21st Century Creative) appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Michael Bungay Stanier is a leadership coach and bestselling author whose earlier work, The Coaching Habit, has sold over three quarters of a million copies and helped leaders use coaching to unleash creativity in their teams.

In this final episode of Season 5—Episode 50—Michael returns with his new book, The Advice Trap, to show you how to tame your inner Advice Monster and transform the way you lead and communicate.

‘Our advice is not nearly as good as we think it is.’ – listen to the full conversation.

Michael Bungay Stanier is a coach and author who teaches leaders how to move from rushing to solutions towards being curious a little longer. His first book, The Coaching Habit, became a modern management classic, and his new follow-up, The Advice Trap, tackles the hidden costs of our default advice-giving habit.

Explore the Advice Monster questionnaire at theadvicetrap.com and find Michael’s free resources, including The Year of Living Brilliantly course, at mbs.works.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in

The post Avoiding the Advice Trap with Michael Bungay Stanier appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Krystal Lauk is the founder of Krystal Lauk Studios in San Francisco, where her illustrative work brings humanity and playfulness to tech interfaces for clients such as Google, Uber, Facebook and The New York Times.

In this episode, Krystal shares her journey from analogue artist to leading a studio at ‘the intersection of delight and clarity through illustration’, and reveals how persistent outreach and smart hat-switching turbocharge a creative business.

‘I really think that it’s big online because this is a way to bring humanity, to bring that expression onto the interface.’ – listen to the full conversation.

Krystal Lauk is an illustrator whose studio crafts engaging visuals that help tech companies humanise their products and tell complex stories with clarity and charm. Her clients range from Google Play and Uber to editorial features in The New York Times, and her work has been recognised by American Illustration and the Society of Illustrators.

Explore Krystal’s portfolio at KrystalLauk.com and learn more about her studio’s work at LaukHaus.com . Follow her on Twitter or Instagram.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post The 21st Century Illustrator with Krystal Lauk appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Cynthia Morris is a veteran creative coach and author of The Busy Woman’s Guide to Writing a World-Changing Book, with over two decades of experience helping writers and entrepreneurs bring their ideas to life.

In this episode, Cynthia reveals practical strategies—from mindset shifts to time-management hacks—to guide busy creatives through every stage of the book-writing journey.

‘Writing a book is hard! It’s not an easy thing.’ – Cynthia Morris on why commitment and curiosity are your best allies. Listen to the episode.

Cynthia Morris is an author and creative coach who has helped countless writers overcome self-doubt and launch projects since 1999. Her latest book, The Busy Woman’s Guide to Writing a World-Changing Book, offers a step-by-step roadmap for carving out time, managing mindsets and sustaining momentum—no matter how hectic your schedule.

Explore The Busy Woman’s Guide to Writing a World-Changing Book and discover Cynthia’s coaching programmes and resources at originalimpulse.com.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post Writing a World-Changing Book with Cynthia Morris appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Emily Kimelman is a bestselling thriller author whose Sydney Rye series has sold hundreds of thousands of copies worldwide.

Her adventurous spirit shines through both her writing and her life – from sailing the seas on a houseboat to roaming the US in an Airstream trailer while building a thriving author‐entrepreneur business.

‘I could do better than that’ – Emily Kimelman on the moment she decided to become a writer (and it turned out she could).

Travel writer turned thriller author, Emily Kimelman has crafted a global career by writing from India’s beaches, Costa Rica’s jungles and even her own Airstream trailer. Her Sydney Rye novels pair unflinching heroines with exotic locales for pulse-pounding adventure.

After overcoming childhood dyslexia, Emily embraced self-publishing on Kindle, leveraged ebook marketing tactics to build a loyal readership and later scaled her operation by delegating business tasks – all while embracing a life of travel.

Discover Emily’s globe-spanning thriller adventures and dive into her Sydney Rye series at emilykimelman.com – the perfect gateway to kickstart your own creative expedition.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post The Adventure of Writing with Emily Kimelman appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Naomi Dunford has been helping unconventional business owners sell their work online since 2006, long before content marketing was a household term.

In this episode she shares her contrarian approach to marketing for creatives – from reframing disempowering beliefs to spotting creativity in the world around you.

‘Creative people are the only people who are good at marketing’ – Naomi Dunford explains why marketing and creativity are inseparable. Listen to the episode.

Founder of IttyBiz and author of irreverent marketing advice for solopreneurs, Naomi rewrote the rulebook on content marketing for small and unusual businesses. She recently retired and passed the baton to her long-time assistant, but generously returned from retirement to share the insights she’s gathered in over 14 years of helping ‘weirdos sell things on the internet’.

Explore Naomi’s complete body of work in the IttyBiz Karma Store on pay-what-you-can terms, with proceeds funding micro-loans via Kiva. Dive into her books, courses and audio programmes – all designed to turn your marketing doubts into creative superpowers.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demand

The post Naomi Dunford on Marketing for Creatives appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

How do you build a thriving music career when you make ‘wonky electronica’ on a six-string bass and refuse to stream on Spotify? British solo-bass pioneer Steve Lawson has spent two decades answering that question – and his solution turns the usual music-business logic on its head.

This week he explains why smaller can be smarter, how a Bandcamp subscription funds his art, and what the rest of us can learn about making creativity sustainable for the long haul.

‘My priority is twenty years of meaningful creative practice – everything else serves that.’ – listen in to discover Steve’s contrarian blueprint.

Steve Lawson is hailed by Bass Guitar magazine as ‘Britain’s most innovative bassist’. Eschewing bands, he layers melodic, ambient textures live with loop pedals and a MIDI controller, creating expansive soundscapes from a single instrument. Beyond the stage he is equally radical: shunning mainstream streaming services, he releases several albums a year through ‘Steve’s Ever-Expanding Digital Box-Set’ on Bandcamp, where a modest annual fee gives fans his entire back-catalogue plus every new release.

The result is a tight-knit community whose support pays his rent and frees him to make music – and teach – entirely on his own terms. In this conversation Steve unpacks the thinking behind the model and offers a refreshing alternative to the ‘million streams or bust’ narrative.

Immerse yourself in Steve’s music – and explore the subscription – at music.stevelawson.net. His main site stevelawson.net hosts essays on creativity, tech and the changing music economy.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post Making Music Sustainable with Steve Lawson appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

What does it take to write thirty-plus books, host a weekly show with millions of downloads and still find time to experiment with the latest tech? Best-selling thriller author and creative entrepreneur Joanna Penn believes it all comes down to smart routines and an unquenchable curiosity.

In this episode we dig into two of Joanna’s freshest obsessions – razor-sharp productivity and the fast-moving world of audio – and discover why both matter more than ever in an era of lockdowns, online everything and voice-first gadgets.

‘If you can change a writing habit you’ve had for years, what else might be possible?’ – tune in to hear Joanna’s toolkit for reinvention.

Joanna Penn is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling thriller writer (as J.F. Penn) and the host of The Creative Penn podcast, a fixture of the indie-publishing world since 2009. She has turned her fascination with the business – and neuroscience – of creativity into a series of practical handbooks that help writers thrive in the 21st century.

Her latest titles, Productivity for Authors and Audio for Authors, arrived just as the pandemic pushed millions of creatives to master new routines and new media. In this conversation Joanna shares field-tested tactics for getting work done at home, plus a tour of the audio landscape from podcasts and smart speakers to AI-generated voices.

Dive deeper at The Creative Penn where you’ll find Joanna’s podcasts, courses and a library of free resources for writers. Fiction fans can explore her thrillers at jfpenn.com, and anyone curious about voice tech can test a sample of Joanna’s AI-generated voice on her site.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post Joanna Penn on Productivity and Audio for Creatives appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

Letterpress printer Nick Hand greets each working day in an Aladdin’s cave of cast-iron presses, wooden type and the rich scent of ink – a world away from the glow of a laptop screen.

From this Victorian workshop in the heart of Bristol, Nick runs the Letterpress Collective and The Department of Small Works, reviving endangered printing skills while collaborating with poets, musicians and designers on fresh-as-today posters, books and playing cards.

‘If you are a wizard, these are the materials you make magic from.’ – discover the spell of antique presses and modern creativity in this episode.

Designer-turned-printer Nick Hand founded The Department of Small Works and the Letterpress Collective to safeguard Bristol’s last working presses and type. He produces fine letterpress prints, teaches workshops and documents British craft through cycling expeditions that have become three celebrated books of maker interviews.

Browse Nick’s prints and book a workshop at the Department of Small Works, or explore press history and events – including the annual ‘wayzgoose’ – at the Letterpress Collective.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post Traditional Crafts in the 21st Century with Nick Hand appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.

What happens when a mathematician peers into the circuitry of artificial intelligence and discovers the stirrings of imagination? In this week’s episode, Oxford professor Marcus du Sautoy explains why he believes machines can already surprise us – and how their digital ‘dreams’ might soon expand human creativity.

Du Sautoy’s latest book, The Creativity Code, asks whether algorithms can compose music, paint pictures or write poetry that genuinely moves an audience. Our conversation ranges from AlphaGo’s famous ‘move 37’ to the jazz-improv powers of Sony’s Continuator, shedding light on the opportunities – and limitations – of AI art.

‘Mathematics is a highly creative subject.’ – listen in as Marcus reveals how numbers, patterns and neural nets could reshape the arts.

Professor Marcus du Sautoy holds Oxford’s prestigious Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science. Renowned for demystifying mathematics on television, radio and in seven books, he now turns his attention to algorithms and art. The Creativity Code explores how machine learning is rewriting the rule-book of games, music, painting and storytelling – and what that means for human ingenuity.

Experiment with Marcus’s recommended tool at deepdreamgenerator.com, explore his research and media projects via the Simonyi Professorship website, and pick up The Creativity Code for a deeper dive into AI’s creative frontier.

Hosted by creative coach and award-winning poet Mark McGuinness, The 21st Century Creative podcast helps you succeed as a creative professional amid the demands, distractions and opportunities of the 21st century.

Each episode features insights from Mark and interviews with outstanding creators – including artists, writers, performers, commercial creatives, directors, producers, entrepreneurs and other creative thought-leaders.

Make sure you receive every episode by subscribing in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Join the mailing list to have every episode delivered to your inbox, along with the free 21st Century Creative Foundation Course.

The post Marcus du Sautoy on AI and the Future of Creativity appeared first on Creative Coach | Mark McGuinness.