Spacious Creative Time
Sharing my experiments in dedicating Thursday mornings to creativity
This fall I’ve been trying a new time experiment: devoting Thursday mornings to what I call Spacious Creative Time™ on Thursday mornings), and I’m sharing about how it’s been going so far.
It often feels like creativity needs more spacious time to unfold. I’m all about doing bite-size creative actions, to make them fit in even when it seems like they can’t, but it’s not as satisfying to do all bite-size all the time.
As this fall has been incredibly busy, it’s been challenging to find the time, energy, and personal permission(!) to devote to creating just for fun / just for me.
I like to at least *try* to take my own advice, so I’m going to heed what I’ve told many coaching clients:
Even when you feel like something is important, if you don’t actually make time for it (like specific time set aside on your actual calendar), it probably won’t happen!
As my own boss, organizing/scheduling my time and actually doing the things are different tasks, so it’s really helpful to have already pre-arranged the time for creativity - “the boss” told me to!
What are the rules for Spacious Creative Time?
I have to work on a personal project (practicing music for a gig with one of my bands does not count, but writing music does)
It has to feel fun or satisfying, according to how I feel in that moment
It can’t be something that feels obligatory or already has a deadline - that stuff will get done anyway
The number of hours can vary, but the goal is 1.5-3 hours
If absolutely necessary, it can be rescheduled, but not cancelled
Rituals that help me get in the right frame of mind are encouraged
Phone on do not disturb!
No goals or requirements on the output - showing up and being present is the main goal
I chose Thursday mornings for a few reasons:
Mornings are when I have the best, most clear-headed energy
My Thursday mornings are almost always unscheduled
I usually have busy Mondays and Tuesdays, then free Wednesday nights, so there’s more energy for it on Thursdays
I have some gaps in my Thursday afternoon teaching schedule, so I still feel like there’s time in the day to do other lingering tasks
I try to set an intention for what I’ll do, but spontaneity is also good. I also try to schedule other obligatory work for other days, so that it doesn’t cloud my sense of creative freedom.
So far, Spacious Creative Time has been a mixed bag - sometimes underwhelming, sometimes very joyful, sometimes more devoted to rest than play, but even when I have less time for it than I’d like, it’s still been fun and valuable!
I’ll share how the first session went, since I documented it properly and it was fun.
I must admit, taking this time to do whatever I wanted felt uncomfortable at first - I found myself avoiding sitting down at the piano. So, I started by putting on a silly owl shirt to help the playful vibes thrive.
Then I pulled some tarot and oracle cards to help me slow down, set an intention, and connect with the intuitive part of my brain.
King of Cups (The Tarot of Curious Creatures)
Dog Spirit (The Spirit Animal* Oracle)
Realization (The Earth Spirit Oracle)
I am willing and excited to grow and learn (The Little Frog’s Guide to Self Care)
Sun / Solis (Wild Unknown Alchemy)
Make a mission statement for your soul (The Sacred Creators Oracle)
* I don’t love the co-opting of the Native American term “spirit animal” in the title, but I do like the deck.
Starting with this ritual really helped me connect to not only my intuition, but my sense of wonder and possibility, which is exactly how I wanted to feel when I started composing!
I had been craving some dedicated composing time, and events in the U.S. made me want to channel my frustration into writing a sax trio called The Decade of Disbelief.
It started (on the piano) during my 2nd 100 Days of Writing Music project in 2017, and I picked it back up earlier in 2025, realizing that it needed an in-your-face vibe with alto, tenor, and bari sax.
I didn’t make a ton of progress (not the goal - see the rules above!), but the real victory that day was feeling reconnected to this piece and composing in general.
I ended my composing session with the feeling of being excited to know what the next step was, and wanting to return to it!
We all deserve to feel the elation that comes from feeling truly connected to our creativity, and to have the space to play!
In the next Creative Joy Beams letter, I’ll share some more tangible advice on how to encourage the feeling of spaciousness in your creative time, and how to make time for it in your busy life, even when you don’t have much time!
Wishing you some spacious creative time soon!
Are you trying this experiment, too? Let me know how it goes!
🤩 Share your creative joys! 🤩
From now on, each email will feature a section celebrating my creative joys, and YOURS, too!
Hit reply to share any kind of creative joy you’re causing or experiencing, and I’ll share it next time! 🤗
Examples of creative joys:
celebrating a small action you took on a project
something inspiring you read / heard / saw
someone else’s work of art
an item that makes your creative workspace a better place to be
My current joys:
Eye of the Tiger, played with gusto on recorder, need I say more?!
My friend Jeremy Parker’s inspiring painting (“The best revolutions are drippin with paint, not blood”):
I fully quit Spotify! As a listener, I quit over a year ago, and at the end of September, I took my music down as well. 💪 See this Instagram post for more on my reasoning and how easy it was to do - it felt great!
Next time this section will be full of more joys, beaming out to you from me and anyone who wants to contribute!
🕸️ Staying on the good side of the internet 🕸️
Mychal Threets as the new Reading Rainbow host is beyond perfect, and the first episode was filmed at my local library, the West Berkeley branch! https://www.berkeleyside.org/2025/10/09/reading-rainbow-west-berkeley-library
Thelonious Monk’s birthday was on 10/10, and to celebrate, I listened to a bunch of his music, which reminded me of how he liked to stand up and shuffle around during others’ solos. 😂
A ritual footstep: Kristen Drozdowski writes about reconnecting to her art practice through (very) small steps.
