Creative Outlets for Busy Minds

Happy Thursday, everyone! Ever have days where your mind just will not slow down enough? You have everything you needed to get done finished, but your mind is still going a mile a minute? One of the best ways to settle a busy mind is to find something creative to do. During the COVID Pandemic, a lot of people started crafting things; from knitting to sewing to resin pouring, small shops started popping up all over the internet.

While many people have made buinsnesses of their crafting, just as many do not. All of it depends on the amount of time you have, how much money you can spend on your outlet, and the decision to do something that also has the oppourtunity to become something more stressful. Let's talk about the some things that would not be buiness opportunity-type outlets. Diamond Art Diamond Art started popping up several years before COVID, even I took part in buying a few including two that were customized prints. Generally, depending on what extra tools you want to have, the start up is where the money goes into. However, there are many companies that advertise online that you can get a free kit when you just pay for shipping. It was one of those kits that I had gotten my start with. I, personally, also sank money into a diamond sorter and storer as well; and I have seen some people online pay for the backlight, which is also super helpful as I will be the first to admit that some of those pictures are really dark and it can be hard to see the symbol correlated with the specific diamond.

They come in so many different sizes, too! The very first one I ever did was maybe about 3x4 inches in size. I had it done quickly, but when I ordered the 24x19 it took me a good week to finish it! Grant it, I possibly could have finished faster if I had also used the tool that helps you place multiple diamonds down a at a time but I struggled with it when I tried to use it and just felt more comfortable doing each one individually. However, a word of advice if you choose to do them is to keep them on a desk and not let a kid or dog near you while doing it. I lost count how many times Zeus jolted the bed and my diamonds went everywhere!

All in all, though, Diamond Art is a fantastic way to calm your brain. You can zone out despite changing out diamonds and the focus it brings. However, that focus can be a great way to calm your mind as well. If you have ADHD like I do, being able to sit for a long period and focus on something is super relaxing; and once your mind is relaxed it's easier to focus on other things too.

Adult Colouring Books Some people will laugh at this, I admit that even I did at one point too, but honestly who said that you have to stop using colouring books as you get older? You choose whatever colours you want, and it also has the bonus of helping keep your fine motor skills sharp and precise.

If you want to, you can choose to get all fancy and buy the expensive coloured pencils, pens, gel pens, or even the fine tipped markers; I generally go classic and just buy Crayola from Walmart. That brand has been my go to brand since I was a kid in school, and they're honestly decently priced still to this day. Keep in mind I am in New York, but at Walmart I can pay $8 and get a pack of 50 or $16 and get 100! Obviously those are just basic pencils, nothing fancy like the twistable or erasable, but it's still a pretty good deal.

Bringing around to the colouring books themselves, there are hundreds of different books! Walmart has a decent selection, and I know that Michaels has a great one too! You can also find them at Joann's, Target, and many other stores! They are generally located with the books and/or magazines depending on the store, sometimes you can even find them with the art supplies. This isn't even including what you can buy online! Recently I even came across a company on a Facebook ad that you can purchase a box where they will send you markers/pens and at least two books. Adult colouring books have become a dime a dozen and generally cost anywhere from $5-20 depending on the size of the book, both paper size and page count wise.

FanFiction Pardon me as I crack my knuckles in preparation for this one. (I write with a smile.) FanFiction for many people who love both reading and writing is a massive outlet! There are many different sites in where people have posted them, and that is not including anyone who has started up their own website to post their stories. The two most popular websites for FanFiction are fanfiction.net and Archive of Our Own, also known as FFN or AO3. Once upon a time, Wattpad was also known for having fics posted as well but many have fallen out of favour of using it in recent years especially as AO3 has grown during that time. While it should surprise no one, the most popular fandom to write about is Harry Potter. FFN alone has almost a million fics dedicated to it; over 840,000. AO3 has about half that, but only due to the age of the website.

One of the best things about fandoms is no matter what the author's do, there's always plotholes it is just a thing that happens. The fans of those worlds will take those plot holes and run with them. In Harry Potter, there is a (honestly very solid) theory that Severus Snape was actually Draco's godfather. Another thing fic writers do is we get what we call "plot bunnies" which are crazy ideas that sometimes work! For example, over summer I wrote what we call a crossover. I had a plot bunny wriggle into my mind of what would happen if Rumplestiltskin from the TV Show Once Upon A Time got bored and began realm hopping; he happened to pop up in Hogwarts and had a lovely adventure with Mr. Flich the Caretaker. Another type of crossover comes from plot bunnies like author JessalynMichelle (formerly known as Severitus813) where she took the cast of Harry Potter but dropped them into Panem; Neville and Harry are District 12 Tributes, and Sirius their mentor.

FanFiction is great for the creative minds that enjoy writing, but don't quite have the wish to write an entire book. Warning to the wise when it comes to FanFiction, it is a lot easier on sites like AO3 where tags are normal and endless but FFN they don't have them; however, always read tags. On the flip side of that, though, also expect tags to not exist where you would expect them to. I have had people comment and tell me that I should add a specific tag due to they didn't like how I portrayed a character. Some authors don't care about tags like that and will tell you they don't care. However, more serious tags suchs as things that can trigger people and cause a PTSD episode or are just triggery to people in general (such as Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, or a very graphic death) most authors are very good about warning you about. It also helps to join fic communites on places like Discord or Facebook, because there is a chance someone has read the fic you are looking at and they can guide you through some of the themes. This has helped me a lot, and prevented me from reading some things that might not be the best thing for me to read.

Drawing/Painting Art in general is a great outlet as well. You can draw, paint, sketch... For some people art is a practice makes perfect thing, and others just have natural talent. Just like the adult colouring books, you don't always have to put in a lot of money to do it. Some good pencils, and a $5 sketch book can go a long way.

Also keep an eye out around this time of year for great art set deals, too! You can get some really nice ones for as low as $15-20 depending on where you are shopping. Canvases this time of year are generally cheaper too, and if you go to Amazon or Michael's you can normally get a small bulk group for a good price too!

I also know from experience that if you want to use this as an outlet but don't feel confident enough, there are plenty of "How To" books out there that will help you learn to draw. I used to draw Gir from Invader Zim a lot, and I actually learned just by watching someone online do it!

Gaming The last one I'm going to talk about is gaming. Now, even I questioned this as a "creative outlet" but when you get thinking about it, there are some games out there that really fall under this. The Sims is a very big one! How? You can literally tear apart and create buildings from scratch. This may seem more like for someone who is big into acrhitecture, but it can be so much more than that. I have built the building that I have dreamed of to be a nightclub/bakery/cafe from the ground up and it looked beautiful. Recently I saw someone build the Malfoy Manor on there as well.

Life simulator games can be a great creative outlet because of everything you can create, but heed the warning to not take them too seriously. Sometimes, it can feel nice to say "I wish I could have a life like this" but that can also be very dangerous and cause a disconnect from reality. Therefore, play those types of games with enjoyable caution.

As you can see, there are plenty of ways to let out your creativity when you have time and ability. You just have to find your niche, and it doesn't have to be for business.

Until next time friends; stay safe, and stay hydrated! Happy Holidays!