Well, we have finally hit summer. This week, we have had a series of days ranging from 90 to 103 degrees, with signs of a break down to a measely 85 degrees this weekend.

The heat has proven to be an interesting shift in mode for me. As much as the heat can be overbearing during the day, the combination of sunlight and a climate controlled car make it reasonable to still do my normal daytime activities. However, the warmth carrying into the evening keeps me active and awake until much later at night than I had been, giving me more time for creative pursuits.

Creative pursuits like learning how to draw. I’m certainly not drawing well yet, but I do feel like I’m learning something. I even picked up a sketchbook and some micropens (.1 and .3, Staedtlers), and sat out in Hanover, drawing. It’s a pretty rewarding feeling, even if it looks like it could be better done by a fifth grader at this point.

I’ve also been feeling the desire to write again, lately, but I’m not sure how best to use it. I’ve got some essay work coming up that I could be working on, or I could try my hand at fiction again. Or start layout on some of my ideas (game ideas, comics, movies, et cetera… interesting concepts that need fleshing out). Or work on my latest series of areas for Avatar.

I dunno, honestly I think I would benefit most from going back and reading the books that I find most motivate me to actually start outputting. (In case anyone is wondering, these would be books like A.D. Coleman’s Depth of Field and Critical Focus, and Ray Bradbury’s Zen and the Art of Writing.)

Hopefully I’ll start posting some of that output, while I’m at it.

For those few who actually comment: what books or things do you find most motivating for creative endeavors?