The Craft: Exploring the Creative Process

[Rebroadcast of Ep. 14]

In this episode, Carter asks Colby about what he learned from reading Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport.

Be sure to check out Newport's latest book, Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout.

Do legitimate common denominators exists across creative disciplines? If so, can we clearly identify these parallels and unify our thoughts about the creative process? 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby wrestle with these questions. They begin to sketch (tentatively) a unifying “theory of creativity.” Such theory might help us, they hope, navigate a broad swath of tools and techniques that vie for our attention.  

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction 

2:22 Theory of Creativity 

9:48 Theoretical layers 

14:08 Marketing example

21:32 More trees and metaphors 

28:40 Intermediary tiers

36:26 Conclusion 

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling - https://carterdavisjohnson.substack.com

Send feedback or ideas - [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

Why did John Steinbeck almost give up writing novels? 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby inaugurate a new series, Creative Case Studies. Their first installment is a story about American writer John Steinbeck. Specifically, Carter recounts Steinbeck’s creative collapse after writing The Grapes of Wrath. In the midst of personal and professional tumult, Steinbeck attempted to reinvent his craft and develop a new way of thinking. Carter and Colby discuss this creative transformation, considering how we might learn from Steinbeck’s crisis. 

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Chapters: 

0:00 Introduction 

2:55 Steinbeck bio

4:11 Crisis and reinvention 

14:28 Takeaways 

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling - https://carterdavisjohnson.substack.com

Send feedback or ideas - [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

Is my work improving? This is a crucial — yet difficult — question to answer.

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby discuss how to track creative growth, the difference between lead and lag metrics, and an interesting phenomenon they've seen unfold in many artistic careers.

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction 

2:15 Lead and lag metrics

11:38 Evaluating growth 

23:19 Refinement or reinvention

31:11 Tracking growth 

33:27 Comparing work

38:38 Conclusion 

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

You have probably heard the phrase “writing is revision,” but how do you actually revise? What does good revision — practically speaking — look like? 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby discus the central protocols that drive their revision processes. The conversation includes both paradigmatic approaches and practical tactics. 

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:59 Protocol 1: Separate creation and revision

2:28 Protocol 2: Accept the iterative process

6:24 Protocol 3: What is the work actually doing?

9:20 Protocol 4: Find root problems

11:40 Protocol 5: Movement

13:29 Protocol 6: The Car Test

16:22 Protocol 7: Transitions

20:44 Protocol 8: Necessity

27:01 Protocol 9: References

29:35 Protocol 10: Work Destructively

33:32 Protocol 11: Collaborate

39:35 Conclusion 

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby do a year-end review for 2023. They survey the year’s successes, shortcomings, and lessons, reflecting on moments of inspiration and the second year of the podcast. 

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction 

1:19 What went well?

7:16 What went poorly?

13:51 What did you learn?

24:26 What inspired you?

30:10 Favorites

37:02 Year Two

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

Do I need to create a category of one? 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby explore the role of category design in creative pursuits. Their conversation addresses a root problem: How do you avoid being “just another voice” in your craft? In addressing this challenge, they wrestle with multiple potential solutions and the consequent tensions. Do categories wrongly fetishize novelty? Are categories equally pertinent in business and creative endeavors? Their conversation is a general introduction to the subject of category, which will — no doubt — reemerge in later episodes. 

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction and creative exigence 

6:10 Should novelty be our goal? 

12:22 Alternative ways to individualize

15:40 Category size and limit 

18:58 Innovation and functionality 

24:48 Shifting definitions of category 

28:00 The law of division 

31:00 What to prioritize? 

35:59 Concluding distinctions 

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Links:

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

Category Pirates

Dada and the Pre-Raphaelites (Carter's Substack)

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

How do you write a dissertation? We’re not sure, but Carter is about to find out. 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby discuss Carter’s recent benchmark in his doctoral program. He shares some advice he received during his last exam and thoughts about embarking on his largest project to date.

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction 

3:42 Setting parameters for daily work 

12:07 Just typing

16:29 Identifying themes 

21:24 Trusting your voice 

26:19 Stepping away

30:06 Leaving a little in the tank 

32:22 Conclusion

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Links:

Steven Pressfield

Greg Mckeown, Effortless

Paul Jarvis, Company of One

Cal Newport 

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

Are you looking for sage creative advice from a master writer? Look no further. 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby discuss a number of quotes on the creative process from Annie Dillard. Their conversation, following Dillard, cuts across the Craft’s four creative first principles: create, revise, share, and sustain. 

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction 

2:05 #1 Live a life

7:13 #2 Cut ruthlessly 

18:08 #3 Spend it now

29:23 #4 Return to the concrete 

36:38 #5 Write as if you were dying 

38:22 #6 Embrace the idiosyncratic 

42:18 Conclusion 

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Links:

“Write as if you were dying.” Read Annie Dillard’s greatest writing advice

Why an English Degree? (Dwelling)

Annie Dillard’s Books

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.

I feel uninspired. What now? 

In this episode of The Craft, Carter and Colby discuss different types of creative roadblocks. They explore the phenomenon of “stuckness” in regard to artistic identity, specific projects, and skill development. They also share a list of actions/ideas that can help reinvigorate and reinspire. 

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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:03 Pressfield and showing up

5:32 What now?

10:09 Types of creative roadblocks 

12:29 Identity 

17:37 Shoutout: Negative Space 

20:23 Projects

27:49 Skills

34:42 Conclusion 

35:05 Bonus: Freewrite Reaction 

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Links:

• Steven Pressfield’s books
• Negative Space #007: Falling back in love with Photography
• Freewrite: Distraction-free writing tools
• Mythic.computer

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Support The Craft:

Subscribe to Dwelling (Weekly writing from Carter)

Send feedback or ideas to [email protected]

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Cover art by Elizabeth Newell. Learn more about her work at elizabethnewell.work or on Instagram @elizabethisadesigner.