October 2005 Newsletter #2

R-e-s-p-e-c-t for a Creator's Copyright

"Gold nuggets often emerge from the raw material of words." — Jori Lynn Keyser, The Creative Power of Writing

In This Issue

• October 2005 Journal
• Creativity-Coach-in-Training Update
• What's New @ the CP

October 2005 Journal

by Chris Dunmire

Soapbox: I Know You Like Our Stuff, But…

Every so often this bears repeating to new CP visitors and to those who don't realize that copying and republishing someone else's work from one Web site to another Web site or Blog (or anywhere else) without an author's express permission is an act of copyright infringement. It is indeed a big deal to those who are bound by freelance agreements and to those who don't want their creative efforts to get diluted by online grab-n-snatch thieves.

It's simple: Don't take and reprint other people's work without their permission. It doesn't matter if it's just going in your personal Blog or on a discussion board either. Fair use and crediting a source is okay. Republishing an entire article is not okay.

People who honor intellectual copyright laws have my respect. However, if you are among those who have been copying and pasting entire projects and articles from the Creativity Portal onto other Web sites or Blogs, please stop it and promptly remove them from your Web sites today.

I also invite you to become more familiar with what copyright means, and read my follow-up thoughts here: Respect the Creator's Copyright.

By the way, when I find instances of this happening, I take action. I'd much rather spend my time creating more great content for the Creativity Portal.

Creativity-Coach-in-Training Update

Thank you again to all of you who showed interest in working with me as a client while I pursue my training under Eric Maisel as a creativity coach. With nearly 30 of you and only one of me, you can imagine how difficult my selection process has been.

The good news is that most of you followed the advice in my response letter and are included in the official client pool for all coaches in training. By next week those of you who are paired up with a coach should be hearing something through e-mail. If it's not me, it will be someone else just as willing to help you succeed. I know this because I've already met the other coaches, and they are an amazing bunch.

Chris Dunmire
Publisher, Creativity Portal

What's New @ the CP

Cartoony Lesson: How to Draw a Pumpkin
Learn how to draw your own pumpkin in three easy steps. Once you draw it, color it or make a creative paper carved Jack-O-Lantern!

Scrapbooking: Making Paper Layouts on Your Computer
By Cindy Schrauben
Many scrapbookers create layouts entirely through digital means. The computer and its related components can also be used to supplement pages for scrappers who choose more traditional means.

Curiousity, da Vinci Style
By Linda Dessau
Creativity asks of us a certain level of curiousity. Every new piece of art, music or writing is unknown when we sit down (or stand up) to create it.

Wheel-Thrown Pottery: Tips for a Novice
By Chris Dunmire
Are you curious about what it would be like to make your own wheel-thrown pottery?

Plus: New Pottery and Ceramics Resources

Finding Balance
By Karen A. Dahlman
Living a balanced life may conjure up images of balanced scales, being a "superhuman", feeling even-keeled and in control. Is it possible to live a balanced life?

5-Minute Muse: Creativity for Busy People
By Molly J. Anderson-Childers
This is simpler than you might think; even five minutes is enough time to write a poem or make a quick sketch.

Chapbooks Create Publishing Opportunities: Five Strategies to Success
By Marilyn Zembo Day
If you're calling yourself a writer (even if still in a whisper), then you're concerned with getting your words out there. Certainly, the next step after finding your voice is sharing it.