Nobody Panic - How to Be Creative

Episode Date: February 18, 2020

Can’t find your muse? Feeling uninspired? Stevie and Tessa have bags of tips to be your best creative self, whether that’s finally settling on a colour to paint your bedroom or starting that novel. Because everyone could benefit from a bit more creativity in their lives – whether you’re an artist, a lawyer or, I don’t know, a farmer. Shout out to all the farmers listening.Recorded and edited by Naomi Parnell for Plosive Productions.Photos by Marco Vittur, jingle by David Dobson.Follow Nobody Panic on Twitter @NobodyPanicPodSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/nobodypanic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello, I'm Carriad. I'm Sarah. And we are the Weirdo's Book Club podcast. We are doing a very special live show as part of the London Podcast Festival. The date is Thursday, 11th of September. The time is 7pm and our special guest is the brilliant Alan Davies. Tickets from kingsplace.com. Single ladies, it's coming to London.

True on Saturday, the 13th of September. At the London Podcast Festival. The rumours are true. Saturday the 13th of September. At King's Place. Oh, that sounds like a date to me, Harriet. Hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi, hi. I'm Stevie. I'm Tessa. And this is Nobody Panic, where we help you do things that you've asked us to do.

Today we're doing how to be creative, because that was one of the suggestions. From Caroline, from Surbiton. It's a strong topic. When I'm feeling uncreative, I often Google, like, creative tips, how to get more, because I think it's, like, an ongoing process. Like, you're not, you're not, like, born a creative person. You might have a tendency to be more creative, but you're, have, it's something that you can't just be like, oh, I'm creative, so why isn't my book a pit?

Or, you know. Yes, yes, yes. And if you think, oh, I'm not creative, which is something that so many people say, you, you are. I think you just have to look at an average collection of children to see that we learn to be, to think that about ourselves. Like, when you give kids, like, some paper and some colours, they're just like, off I go. Yeah, no child is ever like, oh, I'm sorry, I won't actually. I'm not good enough, so I don't think I can.

I actually work. Oh, I'm not very good at shading. I can't draw hands. I can't draw hands. They just draw. They just, they just, a child just like gives you the thing they've done today. And children just like make, relentlessly make stuff and play as well. Like kids, remember when you were at school and you played in the Wendy House when you were like five and anyone was allowed to play and someone was just like, I'm the dog and everyone was like fantastic.

That's great. And then they were like, I'm the mom, you're the dad and then off we go. And no one was like, oh, I don't know if I feel. I'm actually not very good. Like masculine today. Yeah, I'm not very good at play. So I'll just like sit out. and everyone's like, yeah, I'm in, I want to, I'm in.

Even people who have jobs that you would say are not creative in quotation marks, there's always like an element of creativity. But like, when you look back at what people were supposed to be like in the old days of like big villages and big communities and everyone would tell each of the stories and paint and it's less like, well, but how is this going to get me a big social following and financial stability? As a society, we have to have more fun in our lunch hours, It's not necessarily our lunchouts, but we have to aim for that. Absolutely.

It's that classic thing of millennial burnout about how we've learnt to monetise every single aspect of our lives. Like chatting to your friend. Like literally chatting to your friend. I don't speak or look at Stevie unless someone's recording it. What's the point? We're in separate rooms for most parties. And this, and this podcast. We don't like to look at each other.

We monetise everything. How can we? Someone says, oh, you're very good at making cakes. You should sell them. I'll do a company. Yeah. And so you're like, okay. okay

yeah I mean no one's ever said that to me but I can imagine it well look you've not made me a cake but if you hadn't it was nice I'd say the same thank you thank you so much we have a friend who's a very successful

theatre actor and called Ben Salter and he when he's like in between jobs or he's like auditioning for things he bakes the most incredible cakes like we're talking

like what looks like shards of coloured glass but it's sugar and he was saying yeah he really helps him because when he's not acting sometimes it can be hard even if it's just like a couple of months

they can be really really hard to be out of work so it's like really a good thing for him to like be creative with and take his mind off but at the same time I think he's now mentioned that he's going to turn it into a business and I remember when I said I was like oh my God obviously absolutely do because he makes everyone wants him to make cakes for their birthday

or for literally any occasion but in my head and my heart I was like but what if the joy will go because then suddenly he's getting like commissions I've got to make these cakes I've got to make three cakes before Monday and then like a job comes up and he's like oh I don't know I'm trying to make cakes

Yeah, I think because we were always told, you know, if you make your passion, your work, then you'll love your work. You'll never work a day, but also you'll love your work. You'll be erotically passionate about your work. Yeah, you'll be completely right. You'll love your work, but the phrase is you'll never work again. I understand now. As in, you'll never feel like a job.

And that is completely wrong. All that happens is you don't know where your hobbies begin and end. Absolutely. What it means, it shouldn't, you'll never work again. And it's you'll never relax again. Yes. Our generation sold a disservice. Told that we could do anything,

that now the options are so open and do something that you love. Follow your heart, follow your dreams. Of course you should. But you also need a healthy dose of like, well, reality. And like, let's keep. And also like we don't have,

you know, in French class when you had to say like, Bonjour. Look how bad it is. Je present. Sure. Moi hobby a passion. Look, I didn't understand that.

What is it? I present my hobbies. Hobbies. A passionate. I just abandon ship on grammar very hard. Oh, yes. I don't care for it. But I stuck to the belief that if you just know a lot of nouns,

you'll get by much harder than knowing the correct verb construction. Much easier. Oh, yeah, because if you point at a ticket and a train, you'd be like, ticket train me. Yeah. Like, ah, you would like a ticket for that train. The point is we spent so much time in French class learning about our hobbies

and presenting them and saying the things that you were interested in. Jefe de cheval. I go horse riding. Tre bien. Tré bien. Oui. I'm le poisson. I love fish.

That's it. Okay. We're so obsessed these days with being like, if you're good at a thing, being like, well, you should sell it, you should do it. You should always do this thing. It's like, no.

I would have no answer in my French oral these days. Like, what do you like to do? I drink with my friends. Exactly. Yeah. I drink heavily. I drink very heavily to numb the pain of my hobbies all being a job.

Yeah. Tre bien, a star. I'm going to say this now. I've ever seen Tessa interact with in a foreign country. Are you somebody that really goes hard on the accent, but says the English words? I feel very seen. Well, I just passionately go like,

excuse me, Ue, le butcher, like this. And the thing is, you go to France. Immediately, you want to know where they make the meat. I got to buy them. I got to buy them meat, maybe. But people always do know what it is I'm saying.

Oh, no one disputes that. You know what you're saying. Also, I went to Moscow in our GCSE year because we learnt Russian. I don't Russian for GCSE. And all the way to A level, despite the horror of all my teachers. I was the worst in the class by an absolute country mile. Like I was really very bad. And then we got to Russia and they said to,

the Russians, who's the best speaker in the class. And to a man, they pointed at me. Oh, my gosh. And everyone was horrified. And then they kept being like, no, no, I'm saying best. Who's the best speaker? And they were like, yeah, Tessa. And it was because I was a speaker with this extremely passionate Russian accent.

Well, because, yeah, but the accent meant that they would completely, they would understand your nouns. That's what I'm saying. I love that. I understand. Anyway, firstly, before we get into how to be creative and we do have some hot points. What's the most adult thing you've done this week? Pay my council tax.

Oh, that is good. do you do that not regularly? Yes. Okay, cool. Okay. This is, yeah. You lump summed it. Yeah, because I had a series of letters with a red letter on it.

So, yeah. But I also rang up and the guy was like, I actually thought he was flirting with me. He was like, you're single. And I was like, yeah, it's definitely. Yeah. Yes. And then he was like, well, let's get you that single discount then, girl. And I was like, cool.

I see, I see. So if you live alone, you get a. single discount. I know, right? Let's get some perks. Yeah, and then he was basically like, basically that. He was like, I mean, if you're boring enough to live alone, like, let's get you some discounts.

Less flirting more. Yeah, yeah, which isn't true, but we were so deep into the flirt, I couldn't go back. I paid my council tax and I've got a discount on it, so I'm feeling absolutely jammy. Well, I've got a similar, sort of a money thing. There's a Chinese takeaway around the corner from my house. Gosh. The adult thing is that I took my, like, we get Tupper where when we get like a, like, a takeaway and then we use it for like lunchbox and things like that and I was like I'm gonna go and bring

my own tupperware and be like well when I get the meal can you put it in this tubaware I've brought thinking I'll get a 30 pee off or something this would be quite good and then I took it and they're like thank you and then I didn't get any money off and I was like what the fuck is the point of that and then I forgot that the point is the world well done thank you and I've continued to do it twice more yes I have a lot to takeaway even though I don't get a monetary reward I just do it when you go to collect it you have it plopped into your own box. Well, I give them the box. She takes it away to the back room and then when they make it, they just put it into the box.

Well, that's wonderful. It is good. Right. Let's get into... Let's get creative in here. Let's get creative. Let's do it. There are a lot of tips when you go online about how to be creative, aren't? And sometimes you read them and you're like, really?

So, like, number one, on so many of the list was like, simply begin. You're like, lovely. would like to, can't, because I don't feel creative. Do you know what I mean? If you're in that kind of block, it's being told to start, it's unhelpful, but on all the accounts. So, and I struggle sometimes to start things. And so coming in hard with a tip immediately,

what feels very non-creative, but have a deadline that's not, I'm not saying like, turn into a job, no, no. I just mean like being like, by March, I will have got a couple of pages in that bullet journal that I want to create or maybe I will have painted that mural in the sitting room. I don't know. I don't know what your sort of thing is. Write it down, I have it on like a calendar and in your diary,

just so you're aware and then work backwards from that deadline. So like two weeks before the deadline, be like, it's in two weeks. If you haven't done anything, off you go. So you're like consistently reminding yourself. And also when you are reminding yourself, it's not supposed to be like a, oh God, I haven't done that thing. It's like a, remember that this will make you happy.

Happiness. It's a happiness goal. That was just my first tip. It's a very good one. Only because it could help you begin. If you don't have any problem in this beginning, oh my God, my sister's really good at painting. She's so good at painting.

She's always been amazing at art. I'm like, I am good, I can draw, but I'm a surprise to nobody who's listened to the podcast before, quite highly strong and worried that it's wrong all the time. So my remembrance of GCSE art is me crying at home being like, but the topic is holes. I don't know what to do. How can I?

And my mum being like, look, you could do, look, we could make like a tree. And then you can like, you know, make cool little like enclaves into the tree out of cardboard. And me being like, I guess, but just tell me how to do it. And then Gina, I'm just being like, I don't know, like, I think I've filled too many sketchbooks with my hopes and dreams and my thoughts and feelings. And my, my sketchbook was like two pages of perfectly drawn, perfectly painted. And I was saved because my mum was like at the last minute. She was like, just fill up your sketchbook with any old shit and the panic of it made me just do more

that I thought was crap. But actually, it turns out when you just do, and that's why there are loads of writing prompts are like, write for 15 minutes about this and don't edit it and don't think about it. Or just like get it out first. Everyone always says when they write books and stuff. I just like knock off a first draft.

And then I go back and then I do the editing. That's very, very hard to have the confidence when you're somebody like me to just bash off. for first draft because I can't help but self-edit. So that's what I mean about simply starting. Sounds very simple, isn't. Yes. But actually is a good thing.

If you say, for this afternoon, I'm literally just going to paint. It doesn't matter what it is, it will be shit. I will start the shit, get the shit out the way. And then I will, you know, do my magnum opus at another point. Because then sneak like your magnum opus will actually arrive. And the point is it doesn't have to be a magnum opus. It can just be like a lovely, look, you've done a thing. That's my monologue for being.

pieces of your sketchbook. Skitchbook ripped out. Oh, so much. Yeah. And then my art teacher would be like, again, why if you rip that out? Yeah. Can you put that back in? I'd be like, it's in the bin.

You'd be like, can you get out of the bin? I've ripped up into my own pieces and burnt it while crying. Okay, let's just narrow down on that. Why did you rip them out? Oh, because they weren't good enough or I'd made a mistake. And that's the thing, that there's no mistake in being creative. And this is something that I've only learned as I've got older and I've got more confident and I've been able to try different creative things and see,

that when I am very precious about whether it's good or not, I'm not very good. And when I'm not precious, I'm a lot better. And it allows me to, like, be more me in the creative process and create something that is very me rather than what I think of the people will want to see or look at or do. But it's really, really hard to unpack that. And I think it's often because of...

If you're really creative and you really want to be creative and you're really struggling to be creative, there's very often other things going on that maybe you need to deal with so like I found that once I started to deal with my like perfectionism separately and in other areas of my life then I was able to recognise it in what I was making and be like need to let go

need to let go don't have to show anybody this and if I don't have to show anyone this why am I so tense I have to show the mean man in my head who's like just get rid of the mean man you know, post me too, get rid of the mean man in your head. Yeah.

And then now it's like a nice woman being like, come on, you can do it. Look, men, there can be a nice man as well. They can be, but we don't know, I don't care for it. So now it's like a very soothing woman being like, that's okay, don't worry, that's cool, well done for doing it. And that's the other thing of like, if you've done anything, if you've created anything, if no one ever sees it, if it's the biggest piece of shit in the world, you've created something.

So you've automatically won one. You've won because you've made it. If you are obviously like, you know, doing it on commission or it's a job, then that becomes a different thing. But we're talking about just being creative. If you've been, if you've managed to be creative, you've sat down, you've carved out some time, you've got out, I don't know, a notebook and you've drafted some notes or you've done a sketch or you've gone like, oh, I'm trying to think of something that's creative that isn't art or writings are the only two things that I've said now. Oh, you've like made some clothes. I don't know. Is that a thing?

Yes, you made it put any word after the word made. You've made anything. A cake? A table? A cake, a table, you've made a table. That's great. One of those Red Bull wagons. What's that?

You know, the Red Bull soapbox race. Oh! It's my highlight of the year. Oh my God, will they make the thing? Yeah. And they have to go as far as they can without, and it always falls apart. It's so great. Oh, I like that.

Yes. If you're looking at anything you've done, you've won. I'll be getting out that rhyme, so I'm going to tag out. Once again, the poet strikes. Look, when I'm really relaxed, I'm a bit of a poet. Yeah. Because you stopped worrying and you let go. There's so much to unpack in being creative.

And, you know, we can say like, you know, go for a walk and, you know, unlock those juices like till the cows come home, which is true. Like, do go for a walk. But really it comes back to this like, who is this for that you're making this thing? And how intense is the internal monologue that's like, you're not very good. And, you know, we remember when we're like, oh, this isn't a good. This isn't my thing isn't good. Everyone else.

I don't know. I don't know when, I think it's really fascinating this thing in children. because I wonder when it happened that you transitioned from just being like, well, I've drawn this, you know, unicorn or whatever, and it's literally the best thing in the world and I think it should go on the fridge. Like, there was no question in your mind that like your work should always go on the fridge. Yeah, or scan it, send it to grandparents. Scan that. Can you scan that and send that to Christ? Fax it over to Antichrist, please. Exactly.

Or that like people would not only enjoy your word, but like, but revel in it. Like deeply be moved by it. Deeply be moved by your word. And then suddenly, overnight, you switch to being like, no one wants to see this, it's bad, everyone else is good, I'm the worst, everyone else is good. I think it was like, I think it's when you get to, like, upper school level or university level and you start to see, because I remember being at university and being like, finding out, like, other people had been, like, published in, like, anthologies for poetry or something. Really? I don't know what an anthology means. Look it up on my laptop because there was no smartphones.

Oh, right, okay, wow, very intelligent. Or like people, I just immediately felt a little bit like, oh, I'm, oh, people like will judge me if I do a thing. It's like it's that kind of, I don't know, it's the, it's the William Blake, innocence and experience, you know? It switches over when you bloom as a woman. Oh, gosh. Yes.

Christ. You get boobs, then you think everyone hates your work. That's it. And that's how it happens. I went to you in somebody's birthday in like six form was, pottery. Like a pottery birthday? Yeah, I think we...

Wow, you'd be going to some different parties to me. I was like under a bridge being sick. I was there too. But you were doing the pottery. I was throwing a pot. The point of the story is how incredibly stressed everybody was. Yes. Like people were losing their mind at this pot painting class.

There was supposed to be like just a fun, one hour fun part of the like... People were like hid their pots. people were so stressed out I completely believe that one girl Katie did very creative and she was very oh see hello Katie Jones so creative did this bowl

so long ago and I know about it this bowl that was a watermelon with like a green trim and then like it was like red and everyone was like everybody was like the under table was like Katie's done a watermelon you know like what are you going to do a guava and people were like can I get a new pot

Like people are like so upset about what should have been this like just free, just make a thing, you know, but instead we're so, we're so blinkered by like, I'm shit, I've made a shit thing. I can't do anything that we let go of any joy. And so much part of this is like you've just got to, you've got to let go. You've got to do it all. Yeah. With the pot making. Yes. If the pot making had happened again and you'd been able to do like a couple of pot making sessions, by the last time you'd be like, I don't know. care. Like she caught like Katie might have ended up doing a shit once the second week. Exactly. You know? We all just make our pots and you it's because like it's that one hour and it's like I here's my hour. I have one hour to make a part one hour to prove myself. My pot's making. Proliss. Let me forget with no practice. I had the most fascinating and extremely boring podcast last night about buses and how they revolutionized city centers. Ideal to fall asleep too. Yeah. Was I lying awake? Wide-eyed. Yes, fascinating.

The phrase he used was frequency is freedom. Interesting. If your buzz only comes once every hour, you're like, I can't use this bus. This is trapped me. If it comes every five minutes, you're like, woo, whatever, I'll get the bus. Frequency is freedom. The more times that you can do the thing, the more you're like,

whatever, let go. Like, I'll just keep doing it. This pot didn't work today, but next week we're going to smash out the pot park. I can take what I've learned from this pot and I'll try it again tomorrow, you know, because I get to go again and again. It's exactly that. It's like, these are my tiny chances. to you, this is my chart.

This is my tiny pot champ. This is my pot chance. I, Stevie, I have not painted a pot since that party. Babe, go and pay your part. And there is no true knowledge in my heart that I can't, I can't pay a pot. This is a lovely thing that our comedian friend, Annie McGrathia, has a great podcast called The Secret Artist,

which she just definitely listened to. But she did like, she created a gallery of different comedians. Some paint regularly. Some never done it before. Some are quite like arts and craftsy, but not like painting, whatever. you could like basically anyone could submit something and Tessa submitted something

and she showed me beforehand it was great really really great but you were so stressed about you just thought and to the extent where where like Tessa had messaged me that night being like could you buy it? Can you just buy it? Because I think no one's going to buy it and anyway and I had left and I was like oh but I didn't buy it because I didn't want to

you know rob that experience of somebody else actually buying it rather than you'd always know that your friend bought it whereas someone could actually buy it. And then lo and behold, someone bloody bought it. A stranger bought my breathing. And also, it looked so, because I, she was like, go and take a picture and I want to see how it looks next to everyone else is just so I know that I'm not,

like, clearly the worst one. Like, if anything, the classiest one. But the whole point was there was joyful and great. And, you know, Quentin Blake was probably told, can you not draw people like that, please? Because you've gone out of the lines and also the hands look like scarecrow bananas. Yeah. Why are they so long?

Why are they so long? They look like insane. But they are perfect. There's no wrong. I just thought that was a really nice example of how someone who was very, very stressed about something. But it looked wonderful within everyone else's work. Because it was just a lovely celebration of like, oh, everyone's had a go. Everyone's had a go. Yeah. And like, Quentin Blake is such a nice example because ostensibly, like, those paintings are a crazy way to draw. Yeah, I don't know how he got to that stage.

Exactly. Except Frequency is freedom. He obviously kept on going. And if you don't trust yourself, and even your instinct, when I say, like, trust yourself, it's be like, But why? I'm the worst. I can't trust me. I'm shit. Like, that's the biggest barrier you're going to have to break down. Yeah. They could Quentin Blank in his banana hands. Exactly. He has hands off bananas as well. Yeah. He doesn't draw banana hands. As a man, he is hands of bananas. It's incredible that he's managed to overcome this.

Well done, Quentin. Well done. Incredible that he got this far. Yeah. Thank you. And so a huge part is like, I am, I am all right, actually. And even if I'm not, I'm going to keep practicing and I'm going to keep trying this thing. out and like even if the creative thing is merely like just your taste for how you want to decorate your kitchen or how you want to like you want to try out a tile a friend of mine was like I think quite like Moroccan tiles like this and I was like what are you saying she was thinking of thinking of putting a Moroccan tile in the kitchen one what a singular Moroccan tile I was like put a Moroccan tile in the

kitchen mate worst case scenario you go that Moroccan tile does not go take it out take it out that's fine but like trust yourself to put it in and if you do like it don't be like oh i don't end of last year i was writing this script for america and which i know i know i sort of the whole of america literally everyone in america was just clamoring for it no i wrote for an american network and i had not really said this was a good idea they'd said can you write this script and i kept saying what do you what do you want like what do you want because they were they were saying we think we like you and we think you can write this script. And I was like, I don't like me. And I don't think I can write this script. So you tell me what you want. And they kept saying, just trust yourself. And I was like,

that's the worst idea in the world. But also what do you want? What do you want? And so by the time it got handed in, it was just me being like this. Do you like this? You know, and desperately trying to please somebody else. And what I ended up doing was pleasing no one. Because I lost my way so totally by being like, is it this? And what they liked, you couldn't, you didn't do because maybe I didn't trust myself, you know? And so, like, I put, like, one tiny bit in that I was like, oh, I think they won't like it, but I think that's quite funny. And they were like, we love that, we love that bit.

And I was like, oh, okay. Okay. Okay. I got to stop being, like, doing this impression of what I think they want and just do, just do you. Like, we talk about, like, bravery or it's scary to put your painting up or it scares you these things. Like, it's not actually scary to paint. There's no actual fear involved. It's like, it's the fear of like, oh, people will judge me and,

people will see what I think is... I'll judge me as well. I'll see that I'm not as good as I hoped I would be at this. I'm not as good as I hoped I would be at this. Because that's the thing that stops me and I think... But that's the... That's the kind of the key of being creative is to allow yourself to do it without judgment. And you're doing that on your own.

You're not showing anyone else. So you should afford that to yourself as well. You're the worst judge of your own work. That's where like editors exist and gallery curators exist. And if it's bad, It just means that the next thing you'll do will be better because you've learned, you know, like if you are doing something for a, you're writing a book or you're like, my aim is to get a painting into a gallery.

Like you will, the more you do it, like you say, the repetition, you'll learn. Frequency is freedom. Frequency is freedom. I think it's, yeah, I think it's a, that's like the crucial thing to just give yourself a bit of a break. And also as well, it is very important to make it as fun as possible, to kind of create an environment where I'm making something so it feels really low pressure. not always like in my pajamas and I'm always like no I'm not going to go somewhere to write. I'll just be like in my house and then I can make a snack and it's not like a big deal.

It's not like and now we go and sit at our writing bureau. I find that very very stressful and I had like a really crappy little notebook as well because I'm like I can't use my good one and yes I will unpack that at a later day but just helps me at this point. Yeah yeah yeah you're absolutely right I can't use my good one because my thoughts aren't good enough you know I'll just write on the edge of this napkin because that's all I deserve. of my thoughts are bad, I don't have anything good enough for this book. But also if you know that, you can take advantage of that.

So, like, when I was really frightened about writing a show and I didn't think I was good enough, I would write, I was just panic. And then the second year, I was like, ah, I know I panic and I don't feel good enough. So I'm only going to write when I'm like on the boss on my phone notes or on the tube on my phone notes. So because phone notes just feels like you're doing a shopping list or something. And then all my best jokes were written like that because I was just like relaxed. Yeah. Unless it was very busy and I thought people were like looking.

reading what I was doing. What was that woman doing? You were like, I'm just spitting balling. I'm here, I'm riffing. It's not real. It's not real. I don't think I've ever written anything good while I've been like, now it's time for, I'm writing today and then I sit down.

Like things like articles are different, but that's because writing articles for journalism purposes is a, it feels like a job and you can't, you know, you get notes back and you get paid and it's very like, also you have to write in the voice of the magazine or the publication. So it's not, you're not being as creative. It's just like a blank paid. what do I want to do? That's very scary,

but it also doesn't, you just have to like, if you're scared at the blank page, if you're not, brilliant, but if you are, don't think it's like lesser to write on the back of a napkin.

Like that just means that you're very clever at doing tricks, playing tricks on that horrible man going, yeah, because he's there all the time, just booing you. I do all my writing just out loud on the move, so I do it when I'm walking,

but like at home, home, like through the deep, there's a train. station that I have to walk 45 minutes home through a field to my house. And that's where I wrote my whole show over the course of six months. Just like I just said, just talked out loud because there's only me. There's a horse in the middle called George. I say hello to him. Check in. He loves your work. He loves my work. He, I tell him my best gags and he loves it. I feel very inspired, Stevie. There's a painting at home. I tried to paint a picture of my grandparents' house.

Oh, lovely. Somebody said, are you going to, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, my, Dad was like, why don't you paint the grandchildren in? And I was like, are you insane? I can't draw a foot. No, I was like, I'm not trapping us cursed into an image. Oh, sorry, yes, another level above. He had the rolled all the witches. Exactly.

I was like, ain't no way I'm... I've seen rolled all the witches. There's a story where a little girl, she gets trapped in a painting. She moves every day. She ages. She ages. Jesus Christ. It's really harrowing.

It's the most harrowing thing you can imagine. I understand why you wouldn't want to do that. And so the thought trapping all four of us as four grandchildren in this. painting. I was like absolutely no way. Anyway, I started this painting being like, it's honestly four years old. It's gone from house to house to house with me. It's like half finished. It's just a canker of like, it literally sits on the top shelf being like, you're not very good at painting. Oh God. I'm like, I know. And I'm just going to bring him, get him to. I'm going start on you. I'm going to start a new one. Yeah. Quentin Blake it. Fine. I should just be like,

how would I actually like to present this? Like what's my, you know, rather than being like, but I want to do a Turner painting. Like, well, you're not, you're not Turner, the famous painter. And also he went mad and died of syphilis. There we go. Everyone's got their troubles. Oh my God, they have. Last tiny tips are moving and walking is a good thing. If you get yourself stuck in a rut to do things like just to do, just to do it.

Take your mind off. Take your mind off it. And also if you're writing a book, do some clay. If you're trying to do your clay thing, go and paint the shed. Like do something adjacent but different to what it is you're doing. Break yourself out. There is a reason that art therapy is or physical therapy is the thing. that you do for so many different mental and physical problems,

that's like your brain is just totally focused on something and you're moving your hands and you come away and you've made something. So if that's cooking or anything, I've learned to cook this year just by myself. Oh, well, on. Thank you so much. I made ramen the other day. You made ramen from scratch?

Yeah. Amazing. Sorry, only because like all the American, I don't know, I don't eat ramen, but you know, like, Americans on Twitter are always like, ramen, as in like, that's like a convenience meal. Oh, right. Yeah, yeah.

I was like, I can't get a handle on what you're saying. Right. I said, like, I made pot noodle. Essentially, that's what I thought you said. I was like, I don't know what the bar is. So I can't be like, I don't want to be like, no. Well, it's got, I made even half a boiled egg on the top. That's insane. Thank you.

But it's because I have freed myself from the constraint and I started cooking just for me, which is like I'd never done before. I was always like, I only do it. When there's eight people coming to dinner and of course I'm like catatonic with stress. The flatmates as well, you're like, well, if I cook, I can't just cook on my own. I have to cook for everyone. Suddenly your pasta sauce is being judged. And I gave myself the.

freedom of frequency and I just cooked a lot and practiced it. You actually used the oven, yeah? No, I'm still very afraid of the oven. I'm still afraid of the oven. I can't do anything in the oven. I wanted to add a little, my last one, which is that if you're doing something, I'm going to use, like, writing as an example,

just because it's easy for me because that's what I do most of. But if I'm writing something and it's just not going anywhere, I've started recently just writing something else. Sometimes it's the same, like, I know it won't go in the thing I'm writing, but it's about that character or like that character doing some completely different or it's like another character that I haven't even thought of yet

and it's like well why would I do that when I haven't sorted this out but actually anything can spark any ideas and I have found as well with like comedy and writing and sort of anything really if you are stuck to force yourself to just put anything down because the longer you put anything down weirdly something does pop out and trust yourself

you know paint that wall put that tile in do the stuff do a mural do that, that mural, make that cake. Paint that house. Thank you. Finish that painting. Do the painting. Stop judging yourself. Absolutely. Back yourself. Back yourself. Back yourself. Back yourself. I feel very inspired. I do too. I think I'm going to go and write a poem. Yeah. And just because you're not somebody who is like, oh, I don't do arts and crafts. I don't do this. I don't do that. Like everyone's gotten interesting. Oh my God. Somebody the other day told me that they, they were like, oh, I'm not interesting. I don't have a story. And then a few minutes later, it told me this incredible tale

about jail. I mean, I was like, I was like, I can't believe you think you haven't, just because you haven't got stories that look like other people's or, these stories, doesn't mean you haven't got stories. Yeah, yes,

and I think every single person can benefit from some level of creativity. Yeah. Do you don't have to be like writing a book or like doing some sort of canvas. Let some part of yourself out and like be able to say like, this is what I think is.

What is the John Lennon quote? Life is what happens when you're making other plans. So enjoy the life. element enjoy the journey on it. Don't just wait for the end result when you're a Turner Prize winning painter. Absolutely. Yes. I'm a nightmare dress as a daydream. Oh my God. John Lennon's other quotes. Do. Oh my God. If you've made something. Just do. Just do. Firstly, do. Secondly, if you do, then second. Send. Send. If you make something cool, tweet us at Nobody Panic Pod. A picture of it,

we'd like to see it. But if you don't want anyone else to see it, you're just doing it yourself. Oh my God. Keep that. Do not take a picture of it. Email us any suggestions you have. Nobody Panic Podcast at gmail.com. Also, like, follows on like the social medes, I guess. I'm at Steve, the S's a 5 on both Instagram and Twitter. At Tessa Coates. Good content. Somebody for the day said that I really curate a good feed.

I was like, that's all you want. Because honestly, I really do take that seriously. Thank you so much. I'm just all about getting the word out and creating better things. You look to see. And at Weep Pray Love on Instagram where it's more, it's less good there. No, she's just very enigmatic and sort of maybe posts once a month. And it's lovely. A delight.

Yes, and we will see you next week. Hope you had a nice time and enjoyed it. Hope you make something today. Go and make something. Say however small. Even a little doodle. Little doodle. Little doodle.

Go on do it. Bye. Bye-bye.