Calling America is a new project being done by a couple of British guys that are looking to find out what the U.S. is really like, not just what Hollywood portrays.

Calling America hopes to make a small contribution to exploring the development of culture through new Internet media. In a broad sense Calling America is a call to the heart of culture, to people and their stories. It asks them to share memories and thoughts with others and hopes to form a rich tapestry of tales and imagery.

I think this is an awesome project, and will probably be contributing my own stories soon!

Via David Seah.

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Creativity can be really challenging especially when you’re trying to force it. It generally needs to flow from somewhere unknown, and until you get into a certain rythm, it’s virtually impossible to come up with any kind of creative idea that you’re actually happy with.

Here are my top 5 ways to get my own creative juices flowing:

1. Listen to music. It can be virtually anything you enjoy, as long as it’s inspiring to you. You might also want to gear your selection toward what you’re trying to be creative about, and what you want your mood to be. Metal is often good if you’re trying to write a screenplay for a horror film, while it might not be the best idea if you’re trying to illustrate a children’s book.

2. Mind map. This is invaluable if you have a general idea about what you want to do, but just aren’t sure where to go. There are online tools that can be helpful for mind mapping, but I’ve always found that a scrap piece of paper works best for me. I just start with my topic in a circle in the middle and work out from there. I suggest having extra paper handy in case your main idea sparks more ideas that you want to explore separately.

3. Just start doing. Whether your creativity is directed at writing, drawing, painting, problem-solving or anything else, just start doing it. Sometimes you’ll get great results on the first try, other times you’ll do something five or ten times before you get a result you’re happy with. But as long as you’re actually doing something, it’s better than sitting around twiddling your thumbs.

4. Take a walk. Remove yourself from the situation for a bit and gain some perspective. Take a walk around your block, around your yard, wherever…just remove yourself from the area in which you’re trying to be creative.

5. Find someone to bounce ideas off of. Sometimes all I have to do is say my problem out loud to another human being and then suddenly the solution pops into my head. If you can’t come up with a creative solution to a problem (and anytime you’re being creative, you’re problem-solving to some degree or another). Note that if a person is not available, a dog, cat, fish or tortoise can substitute just fine.

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