Dear Messy Pants,
I’m pleased to share this week’s Beautiful Mess with you. Ashley from Tennessee shares her inspiration board and writing desk. I must tell you that Ashley has been an inspiration to me since we were in high school together because she never seems afraid to participate fully in whatever she is doing. Her zest that’s completely invigorating.
Apart from being a writer and fellow visual geek, she has a ridiculously warm personality. I’ve learned so much from watching this woman, I should have to pay for it.
Ashley says:
The first picture is my writing board. (It’s 2 big doors that my mom and I painted with metallic paint so I can use magnets on it!) It’s where I put up writing ideas, and plot details, and visual inspiration for the various stories I’m working on. I have some random magnets like my Spock Magnet Doll and my Hogwarts magnet. I have quotes about writing and for inspiration. I just throw stuff up there and I find that if it’s organized I don’t like it as much. When it’s more chaotic, my eyes wander more, and look at different things and it gets my creative juice flowing a little more. And I ONLY put things related to writing on here. No reminders about anything else. Those go on my various white boards. :) So this mess is very specific and purposeful.
The 2nd image is my desk. It seems that no matter how many times I try to organize and clean it, this is just what it ends up looking like. This is where I do all my work — which includes writing, graphic design, video editing, research, social media management, and other media development. I have various notebooks (which are each in themselves a mess! No one else would understand my organization) and business cards and pens and SD cards and hard drives and just random stuff. Food – gotta eat during the day! and usually about 7 glasses since I always forget to take my cup downstairs and end up bringing a new one up :)
I try to be organized but ultimately, the chaos helps me think better. It drives everyone around me nuts but it works for me.
You can read more about Ashley’s work and creativity on her blog, Spread the Joy Blog. I especially love the essay that explains the goal of the blog.
If you loved this post, please share it and/or participate. Tell us about your own creative messes in the Comments. Or, you can send in your own messy post to be featured here on Oisercage. For full details, read the first Beautiful Mess and why I started this series!
