The Problem with Muses: Notes on Everyday Creativity

The creative life used to be the domain of the muses, those astonishing Greek Goddesses responsible for inspiration and creativity. If they showed up, our work in these areas would go well, ideas would flow, and creativity would abound. Lucky us. But what if they didn't?

The Problem with Muses, one of 28 essays on the creative life from which this book gets its name, is that we could wait forever for them to appear (there were only nine of them!), and most of us have work to do. This is only one of the challenges facing anyone longing for a life of everyday creativity. The Problem with Muses is a collection of transcripts from David duChemin's podcast, A Beautiful Anarchy, pulled together for the first time for those who prefer the written word.

Candid, wise, deeply human, and speaking from a lifetime (so far) of wrestling with the muses and a creative life that has taken him from professional comedian to humanitarian photographer to best-selling author and podcaster, duChemin speaks to the prevailing, and all-too-common challenges of the creative life, including doubts and fears, imposter's syndrome, the pursuit of authenticity, the inevitability of distractions, the urge to compare ourselves with others, feelings of directionlessness, the desire for relevance, and more. If you struggle with the creative life as much as you love it, you are not alone.

Praise for the Beautiful Anarchy podcast from which this book comes.

"David's superpower is his ability to tap into the stifled, screaming recesses of our minds, those hidden places where we yearn and ache and thirst for 'something more'. His words are both sage and true, a gentle but necessary reminder, a soothing salve for the chafing of the world against our creatively-starved souls." amelie__t via Apple Podcasts

"I am so happy to see David's words made even more accessible for creators of every walk of life. His words will speak to your soul and free you to embrace our humanity and move proudly towards creation" Passitalong69 via Apple Podcasts

"David is the philosopher poet extending his hand to you to join him in being human; in creating whatever it is you create. Although his medium is photography, his encouragment, insight, and warnings apply to every creator, that is, everyone. His style is so relatable, so real, so lacking in "direction" as in "do this, do that" and so full of "enlightenment" as in "here is where you are, whether you realize it or not, and here is the path to a better you". If you recognize that you, being human, create something every day, and if you want to be more conscious of it and more deliberate in your making, you can find no better guide than David duChemin." Lance3495 via Apple Podcasts

"David drills right into the hard questions and self doubts and gives strong and obtainable suggesting to move pass those road blocks in our creative lives." Razorbolt via Apple Podcasts

"Wow! Inspirational and dead on. David's choice of topics is just what I needed to hear. From The Impost Syndrome to Perfectionism. Suddenly I am not alone in my creative doubts and received sound advice for getting beyond them." MikeyL22 via Apple Podcasts

David duChemin is a best-selling author of 32 books, award-winning photographer, and leading expert in the field of creativity. His podcast and book, A Beautiful Anarchy, help him share his message with tens of thousands: a rich and fulfilling creative life is for everyone-not just artists. David spent the last twelve years travelling the world as a humanitarian photographer and creativity workshop instructor on all seven continents. His adventures have taken him through winters in Russia and Mongolia and a summer on the Amazon, as well as months among nomads in the Indian Himalaya and remote Northern Kenya. Drawing on a previous twelve-year career in comedy, David brings a dynamic and engaging presence as a presenter in workshops, on camera, or on stages for corporations like Apple and Amazon. His expertise has been profiled in magazines and podcasts including Overland Journal, Elephant Journal and The Accidental Creative. You can find David at davidduchemin.com, on Instagram and Facebook as @davidduchemin, and you can listen to his podcast. A Beautiful Anarchy is a heart-felt kick-in-the-pants podcast for everyday creators and anyone who's ever mud-wrestled with their muse. These 15-minute episodes are an honest and sensitive exploration of the joys and struggles of the creative life. Let's talk about it. Listen on iTunes or aBeautifulAnarchy.com.