I have a personal Tumblr blog, called Alex’s Creative Daydream (it’s where the company name came from!). I don’t post very often, but I do visit the blog every day. You see, I use it as a kind of voyeuristic creative inspiration. At the moment, I’m following about 15 bloggers who post regularly – everything from an American obsessed with ‘olde worlde’ Britain (particularly the Sussex town of Rye) to a Spanish guy who posts pictures of amazing locations and landmarks from around the world. I picked these blogs up from here and there, many recommended by Tumblr itself.
There are three that I really like reading:
Humans of New York – this is a man who goes round New York, taking portraits of people whom he thinks are interesting in some way. He captures a sense of humanity and individuality in a city which can seem huge and overwhelming. There are some wonderful moments of poignancy and joy. He has become quite a celebrity, with the subjects of his photos often really excited that they will appear on HONY. At the moment, he’s on holiday in Iran and taking portraits there too.
www.humansofnewyork.com
Piano Across America – this man plays his piano anywhere and everywhere, in the company of his dog, Brando. When I first started following him, he was travelling across America, but at the moment, he plays in New York. He’s planning to make it down to Panama, starting out with just a tank of petrol and $2, surviving off money earned playing the piano as he heads south. It’s inspiring to see someone follow a dream like this – he gave up a lot to follow his dream of playing his piano.
www.pianoxamerica.tumblr.com
Becca is Learning – Becca Dean is a great blogger. She strives to be real and vulnerable, and her posts are reflections of what she has learnt from her life, both formally (she is doing post-graduate studies in Durham) and informally. She is funny, honest and thought-provoking. And a shameless devotee of Instagram.
www.beccaislearning.com
I think the point of what I’m saying here is be a bit voyeuristic* in your search for creative inspiration – absorb all you can, even if you don’t like what you see or don’t agree with what people say. Reach beyond your comfort zone and hear lots of voices: follow people on Twitter whose political viewpoints you don’t agree with. Read something by an atheist, Muslim or Christian. Switch newspapers/news websites for a day, walk in someone else’s shoes. After all, if you only see and hear things you agree with, then you’re never challenged and you ignore chances to grow. Only listening to voices you approve of can lead to a very narrow world viewpoint. I’m on the look-out for more contrasting voices, so if you know some, let me know.
And if you want to follow my personal blog, it’s www.alexbtaylor.tumblr.com. Who knows, I might start posting there more regularly myself…
*Not illegally, mind. I’m not advocating being a peeping Tom.
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