Hide the Ride

The Creative Process is Hard, but That Shouldn’t Come Through in the Creative Product.

Creativity is hard. The process is a rocky ride, with its ups and downs. There are many forks in the road, and many decisions to make. There’s lots of floundering. Is this the right thing, or is that? Should I place this element here, or over there? We often come up with many ideas but no confidence in any of them—but we should limit the client’s exposure to the creative process, because our job is to lead the process, and to come in with strong, sure-footed recommendations. While there are stages of the creative process that are more collaborative, where it comes to making our art, we should never defer to our client for decisions that are yours alone to make.

I am very hermit-like in my process. I like to create in a quiet, private place, and give my ideas a chance to form, on their own. It is only once I have some fully-formed ideas that I feel ready to present something to my clients. It’s not that I think my ideas are bullet-proof, but they are fully-thought-through. I can confidently bring them to the table and talk about them. I know my reasons. I have understood the brief and this is how it has played out. If a client then wants to pick apart my ideas, frustrating as it might seem in the moment, I can accept their critique. What I haven’t done…