The GYMSICAL Guide to a Creative Life: Train your creative muscles for more focus, relaxation, joy and resilience - Softcover

Van Slingelandt, Nicoline

Softcover

ISBN 10: 9083479730 ISBN 13: 9789083479736

Publisher: Storyhouse Works, 2025

Synopsis

A practical guide for busy adults who feel disconnected from their creativity and want to regain curiosity, focus and permission to play.

Did creativity used to play a bigger role in your life? Do you want to make more space for imagination, play and curiosity, but find yourself distracted, overwhelmed or stuck in perfectionism?

The GYMSICAL Guide to a Creative Life is a practical and playful guide to training your creative muscles, restoring your attention and making room for more focus, relaxation, joy and resilience.

Remember when your curiosity ran wild and the question you asked yourself most was What if? instead of Where did I put my phone?

Burnout is the new black. Attention spans are shrinking. We're all so busy "optimizing" that we've forgotten how to wonder, experiment and make a glorious mess.

GYMSICAL is a rescue mission for your attention. Drawing on her experience as a creative writer, Nicoline van Slingelandt invites you to:

• Pause and pay attention to the world, art, your senses and your intuition.
• Train your brain with exercises for divergent and convergent thinking.
• Create without pressure and give yourself permission to play.
• Embrace mistakes and loosen the grip of perfectionism.
• Carve out time for creativity, even on your busiest days.

Inside, you'll find:

• Personal stories.
• Creative prompts.
• Inspiring wisdom.
• Accessible science.

This is not a book that's meant to sit pretty on your shelf. It's a book to return to when you need fresh inspiration, a new perspective or a gentle push to start creating again.

Whether you're a writer, artist, coach, creative professional or simply someone who wishes to feel more curious and alive, The GYMSICAL Guide to a Creative Life will help you reconnect with your imagination and make creativity part of everyday life.

Reclaim your attention. It's yours.

About this title

About the Author

Nicoline van Slingelandt is a writer and entrepreneur specializing in creativity, art, and educational storytelling. After earning her law degree, she spent six years at an international development bank, where she highlighted the stories of entrepreneurs in emerging markets. Since 2011, Nicoline has led her own creative projects, including the publication of several acclaimed books and games that inspire children and families to explore art and creativity. Her work has been published by an award-winning Dutch indie publisher and has reached thousands of readers. Nicoline also brings extensive experience in project management and content strategy within the education sector. She is dedicated to helping others unlock their creative potential and continues to develop innovative resources for lifelong learning. Her motto is that creativity is easy to try and even easier to enjoy. This is one of the reasons she founded GYMSICAL, a space where people can (re)learn to pause, pay attention, percolate, and play. Another reason is that she believes we humans need to reclaim our attention in order to flourish in this one life we have.

Edition details

• Publisher: Storyhouse Works
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 9083479730
• ISBN 13: 9789083479736
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224
• Editor: Anderson Kristin