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Ordinary Creativity: How to Survive with Joy
Creativity isn’t the birthright of rare geniuses—it’s an essential, accessible toolkit for every person trying to survive.
In Ordinary How to Survive with Joy, Heather Caliri unpacks how eugenicists, misogynists and racists skewed our understanding of “creativity,” reframes human ingenuity to include experiences like caregiving, disability, and suffering, and guides you to craft your own way of being creative, with fierce, unapologetic delight.
ENDORSEMENTS
"Ordinary Creativity demystifies the creative life, reframing it into something accessible and achievable every day. In the familiar voice of a dear friend, Heather Caliri inspires her reader not to the heights of creative genius as the world would typically define it, but to the deep, inherent value of making, with an expansive, inclusive definition that will ignite long dormant sparks of creativity."
—Joy McCullough, New York Times bestselling author of Blood Water Paint
"In Ordinary Creativity, Heather Caliri debunks the overly lofty ideals we often have about creativity and provides a beautifully expansive, inclusive perspective that fits with the messiness and grittiness of everyday life. She offers compassionate, informative, encouraging, and balanced guidance to the creative spirit within each of us that longs to be freely expressed. This is a gem of a book that has wonderful nuggets of wisdom on every page."
—Dorcas Cheng-Tozun, author of Social Justice for the Sensitive How to Change the World in Quiet Ways
“Ordinary Creativity is a powerful and gentle invitation to those who wish to make something but have felt hindered—perhaps by time, perceptions of talent, cultural pressures, ideas about genius, or simply feeling like it doesn’t matter.
It does.
Don’t wait any longer. Journey with a wise guide whose encouragements, among them “Let’s be common, together” and “Start with delight,” steer us toward wholeness in a landscape where the new and flashy so often eclipse the good, slow, healing—and creative—work of a lifetime.”
—Daniel Bowman Jr., author of On the Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity and A Plum Tree in Leatherstocking Poems"There's no better resource for shaking off limiting beliefs around creativity and reconnecting to your inner spark than Heather Caliri's book, Ordinary Creativity. Reading it will gently challenge you, make you laugh, and open up a world of possibility within you."
—Jen Willhoite, Creator of Cobbleworks
ABOUT THE AUTHORHeather Caliri is a writer, artist and editor whose work has appeared in Christianity Today, The Other Journal, Fathom Magazine, Image Journal, In Touch Magazine, and Geez Magazine. As a child, she was scouted for Broadway, called Kenny Rogers a liar to his face, and performed with the San Francisco Ballet. For twenty years, she’s closely observed the ups and downs of creative lives, given that her immediate family and closest friends include an Emmy winner, a Grammy winner, a New York Times bestselling author, a painter, several textile artists, a woodworker, and a creative software entrepreneur. She lives in San Diego with her husband and two daughters.
In Ordinary How to Survive with Joy, Heather Caliri unpacks how eugenicists, misogynists and racists skewed our understanding of “creativity,” reframes human ingenuity to include experiences like caregiving, disability, and suffering, and guides you to craft your own way of being creative, with fierce, unapologetic delight.
ENDORSEMENTS
"Ordinary Creativity demystifies the creative life, reframing it into something accessible and achievable every day. In the familiar voice of a dear friend, Heather Caliri inspires her reader not to the heights of creative genius as the world would typically define it, but to the deep, inherent value of making, with an expansive, inclusive definition that will ignite long dormant sparks of creativity."
—Joy McCullough, New York Times bestselling author of Blood Water Paint
"In Ordinary Creativity, Heather Caliri debunks the overly lofty ideals we often have about creativity and provides a beautifully expansive, inclusive perspective that fits with the messiness and grittiness of everyday life. She offers compassionate, informative, encouraging, and balanced guidance to the creative spirit within each of us that longs to be freely expressed. This is a gem of a book that has wonderful nuggets of wisdom on every page."
—Dorcas Cheng-Tozun, author of Social Justice for the Sensitive How to Change the World in Quiet Ways
“Ordinary Creativity is a powerful and gentle invitation to those who wish to make something but have felt hindered—perhaps by time, perceptions of talent, cultural pressures, ideas about genius, or simply feeling like it doesn’t matter.
It does.
Don’t wait any longer. Journey with a wise guide whose encouragements, among them “Let’s be common, together” and “Start with delight,” steer us toward wholeness in a landscape where the new and flashy so often eclipse the good, slow, healing—and creative—work of a lifetime.”
—Daniel Bowman Jr., author of On the Autism, Faith, and the Gifts of Neurodiversity and A Plum Tree in Leatherstocking Poems"There's no better resource for shaking off limiting beliefs around creativity and reconnecting to your inner spark than Heather Caliri's book, Ordinary Creativity. Reading it will gently challenge you, make you laugh, and open up a world of possibility within you."
—Jen Willhoite, Creator of Cobbleworks
ABOUT THE AUTHORHeather Caliri is a writer, artist and editor whose work has appeared in Christianity Today, The Other Journal, Fathom Magazine, Image Journal, In Touch Magazine, and Geez Magazine. As a child, she was scouted for Broadway, called Kenny Rogers a liar to his face, and performed with the San Francisco Ballet. For twenty years, she’s closely observed the ups and downs of creative lives, given that her immediate family and closest friends include an Emmy winner, a Grammy winner, a New York Times bestselling author, a painter, several textile artists, a woodworker, and a creative software entrepreneur. She lives in San Diego with her husband and two daughters.
108 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 6, 2023
2 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
About the author
Heather Caliri
5 books28 followersHeather Caliri is a writer, artist and editor whose work has appeared in Christianity Today, The Other Journal,
Fathom Magazine,
Image Journal, In Touch Magazine, and Geez Magazine. As a child, she was scouted for Broadway, called Kenny Rogers a liar to his face, and performed with the San Francisco Ballet. As an adult, she’s closely observed the ups and downs of creative lives, given that her immediate family and closest friends include an Emmy winner, a Grammy winner, a New York Times bestselling author, a painter, several textile artists, a woodworker, and a creative software entrepreneur. Her Creative Personality Test helps everyone see how–not whether–they’re creative. She lives in San Diego with her husband and two daughters.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 25, 2023
I just finished reading the ARC of this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's written in short, accessible chapters which works well for busy people and gives bits of food for thought so the reader can digest and apply the ideas. I liked how Caliri addresses the history of the (often inflated) concept of "creativity" and brings it into down-to-earth dailyness. I also really appreciated how the author offers this book with an open-handed posture, not expecting the reader to respond in a certain way and leaving the reader with plenty of space to explore their own relationship to creativity.
I would recommend this book to anyone who longs to be more "creative" or feels like they're not being creative enough. I'm pretty sure after reading it, you will come away encouraged and realize that you already are enough.
I would recommend this book to anyone who longs to be more "creative" or feels like they're not being creative enough. I'm pretty sure after reading it, you will come away encouraged and realize that you already are enough.
June 5, 2023
There’s so much I like about “Ordinary Creativity: How to Survive with Joy”. Heather explores a generous view of creativity that includes all of us, not just the “exceptional” few. Heather’s framing of creativity is like an expansive feast with seats at the table for everyone (and perhaps some empty seats to welcome the unexpected)—a communal practice embedded in the fabric of our lives. I love that she’s taken creativity down to the ground, out of the hands of gatekeepers, and into the messy imperfection of our daily life, where it adds texture and joy. If you have longed for creativity, and especially if you’ve feared that “creative” isn’t an apt descriptor of you, you will find encouragement to recognize how you are already creative and how to honor and nurture the creativity in your own life.
June 6, 2023
Liberating and refreshing
Heather does an incredible job of releasing creativity from captivity in this book. Dismantling the history of art and creativity, she points to the social and economic factors that hold it captive from us mere mortals. I'm a hardcore creative-or-bust type, and apparently I've been dragging around some heavy expectations I've inherited from a broken society.
I should add that I'm autistic, ADHD, and have a disabling genetic disorder. My own creative practice has been greatly challenged by my disability, and Heather gives some amazing advice and encouragement that helped me see the many ways I'm still being creative even when I can't make art. She's given me permission to see the "both, and" of my situation and drop the angst my brain has been churning up.
Heather does an incredible job of releasing creativity from captivity in this book. Dismantling the history of art and creativity, she points to the social and economic factors that hold it captive from us mere mortals. I'm a hardcore creative-or-bust type, and apparently I've been dragging around some heavy expectations I've inherited from a broken society.
I should add that I'm autistic, ADHD, and have a disabling genetic disorder. My own creative practice has been greatly challenged by my disability, and Heather gives some amazing advice and encouragement that helped me see the many ways I'm still being creative even when I can't make art. She's given me permission to see the "both, and" of my situation and drop the angst my brain has been churning up.
June 7, 2023
If you're looking to expand your understanding of creativity and unleash your creative spirit, Ordinary Creativity is for you. I appreciate the overall approach of this book to show how the idea of "creativity" has developed over time, and how it's expressed both in specific projects and in daily living. The book includes an admittedly "unscientific" survey of different creative types - I don't usually bother with such surveys, but this one was quick, fun, and gave me some good ideas about my own creative life.
June 6, 2023
The author digs in to history and word origins to uncover how creativity and art appreciation has evolved. With this new perspective it becomes possible to open yourself to creating in everyday moments of life. This opening up allows us to flourish! With a good balance of background, personal stories, and guidance, this book will encourage anyone to soften and allow for creativity as the new normal, even for a science person like me. Now back to the painting I have started as a result!
July 17, 2023
This brief, practical guide to reclaiming your creativity (yes, even you!) provides helpful insight, relatable stories, and next steps you can get started on today. Learn more about the history of "creativity" and the (frankly enraging) ways it has been weaponized to separate us from our natural drive to create and find delight. Let go of what you think you know about "success" and "talent" and "art," and embrace the journey to reconnect with your authentic self.
October 28, 2023
I absolutely love this little book. I learned new things, was reminded of things I had forgotten, and was extremely encouraged with this view of creativity. Reading this wonderful book was like balm to my creative soul. I highly recommend it to anyone who doubts now, or doubted their creativity growing up, and struggles with the concept of what it means to be an artist or creative person.
June 19, 2023
Enjoyable read. A fresh perspective at looking at creativity and new ways to find joy.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews