November 2005 Newsletter #2

A Textbook Case for Exploring Your Creativity

"I see a field of lavender in Provence, purple stalks bent under a hot summer sun. Shadowed valleys carved in the face of a black woman picking cotton in the pre-Civil War South. Modern color. Antique black and white. Each picture holds a thousand stories. I only need one." — C.E. Staples, Feeding Imagination

In This Issue

• November 2005 Journal
• What's New @ the CP
• Q & A: Help Along The Way

November 2005 Journal

by Chris Dunmire

Creativity Portal Featured in New 'Web-Based Learning' Textbook
I've held this exciting piece of news under my hat for over a year, patiently waiting for the book to go through all of its stages of production before announcing it to the world.

It's true, www.Creativity-Portal.com appears in a new textbook titled "Web-Based Learning: Design, Implementation, and Evaluation" (Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall, 2006) by Gayle V. Davidson-Shivers and Karen L. Rasmussen.

This is the second "in print" milestone for the Creativity Portal in 2005. In May we were featured in Writer's Digest magazine in an article by Robin M. Hampton titled, "101 Best Web Sites for Writers." "Web-Based Learning" is the first book that puts the spotlight on us — and it's written by college professors. What an honor!

Chris Dunmire
Publisher, Creativity Portal

What's New @ the CP

Quickie Collage Workshop
By Molly J. Anderson-Childers
Want to make a collage, but not sure how to start? Specific questions about materials, process, and themes? I can help! In this article, I hope to inspire you to create fabulous collages.

Everything is Connected
By Linda Dessau
In "How to think like Leonardo da Vinci", Michael Gelb defines the concept of Connessione as, "A recognition of and appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things and phenomena. Systems thinking." How does this relate to/connect with our expression of creativity?

Building Healthy Self-Esteem
By Karen A. Dahlman
Your road to a healthy self-esteem is paved by your choices in the present. These tips will help you to develop your self-esteem quotient in your personal and creative life.

Being Creative and Self-Critical
By Douglas Eby
Healthy criticism can help refine our talents and creative projects in the pursuit of excellence. But when it is based on excessive perfectionism or an unrealistic self concept, criticism can be destructive and self-limiting, eroding our creative assurance and vitality.

Creativity and Rebellion: Why They Go Hand-in-Hand
By Tom Filsinger
Studies on creative people have consistently demonstrated that creativity is associated with openness to new ideas, risk-taking, and being inner-directed. Do these traits put creative people at odds with the culture and people around them?

Q & A: Help Along The Way

Update: Where Can I Find Collage Materials?
In September we addressed this question with the intention of producing a helpful how-to article about collage. We are pleased to share this new article by Molly J. Anderson-Childers titled "Quickie Collage Workshop."