My Creative Mojo

Writing a press release may not sound like the most exciting thing to write. But amped up on creativity it can be loads of fun for the writer and entertaining enough to keep the reader engaged.

Here is the press release I wrote for Dougtionary.com:

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PRESS RELEASE

Dougtionary one year anniversary!

It began on October 18, 2007, when the creative gods challenged Doug “Sideshow” Allen to create and post a new word in his blog every day for the next year. And if the thought of 365 entries made him queasy, 2008 is a leap year, so he needed 366. But never one to back away from a good challenge, Doug launched the “Fake Word Of the Day” blog on Dougtionary.com.

From Abstainus to Zitgeist, Dougtionary takes us on a neological journey coining terms such as the Middle Eastern Bugs Bunny fave, ”Afghanvil,” the amazing drinking stunt, “Heinekenesis,” and the sibling rivalry gem, the fine art of the “hambush”.

Some words come from personal experience. For example, on a recent trip to Ikea, Doug was extremely unprepared. He got lost inside the store, couldn’t find his way out and needed to be rescued from his “retail safari.” Lesson learned, always pack food and a good map.

Not only is it fun to have these words delivered to your email in-box every morning, they also reflect the state of the times: from the recent economic “net worthquake,” to tense and polarizing national politics, where one well known politician used a Dougtionary word in a televised debate (the video is posted in the blog as proof!).

Doug “Sideshow” Allen is a comedy writer with a background in improvisation. He writes and performs sketch comedy, punches jokes for screenwriters and teaches comedy techniques. He has also earned a “green living black-belt” by driving his converted Mercedes powered by vegetable oil.

Doug is available for commentary, speaking, workshop engagements and most happy hours.

Get the Fake Word Of the Day at:

http://dougtionary.com/blog

So this is normally the place where I’d write about my personal creative process, but I found a post by a friend from film school at Montana State.

Adam writes comics & recently spoke at the Portland Creative Conference about his creative process.

http://adamgallardo.blogspot.com/2008/09/creative-conference-talk.html

Enjoy!

About a year ago I realized I had the knack for making up fake words, often by changing a single letter or combining portions of words that have a similar sound. At times I’ll hear someone mispronounce a word — and while most nice people let it slide because they know the intended word, I either give them a hard time about it, or I quietly write it down so I can use it later.

While driving home from Pasadena one afternoon, I turn on the radio. It’s the Griffith Observatory Sky Report. The guy speaking is very articulate, but when he says “astronomy,” I hear “pastronomy“. I know that’s not what he said, but “pastronomy” is what my brain chose to hear.

My brain has a quick habit of bastardizing words — call it a disease or a skill, it’s your pick.

When I get home, I flip through several notebooks to see what other words I had jotted down recently. Anything that sounds funny, intriguing, or even sick gets written down, and often lost in a stack of notebooks scribbled full of ideas, thoughts and words. Here and there I find more fake words. Crackupuncture. Gerildo. Hummiside. Phlegmonade. Manchovy. Deceastiality. (Yeah, they’re not all pretty, but they create a lasting image.)

Then comes the challenge — Could I create a new word every day for the next year? I don’t know. Initially I resist the idea and have an out loud conversation with myself about it, then I take the challenge. Let’s see if I can intentionally bastardize more words, rather than just wait for the word ideas to happen on their own. That’s how my “Fake Word Of the Day” blog began on Dougtionary.com. That’s right, I even bastardized the term “Dictionary” and satisfied my inner narcissist at the same time.

As of today I’m at post #350, and the one year mark will be on Oct 17.

Feel free to peruse my “wordorific” blog, post comments and rate the words.

Using existing speech is just lazy. Why should we restrict ourselves to words that already exist when we can create our own?

www.dougtionary.com

Our microwave has been making some weird sounds lately and although it still seems to cook okay, I wonder if it’s leaking some type of brain altering waves that will turn me into a mutant. And since it takes forever to cook a frozen entree, it’s time to get a new microwave. One with more power and all the cool modern features that I’ll probably never use because out of habit, I only press the one-minute-button repeatedly and ignore everything else, including the owner’s manual.

I probably have time if I leave now. A quick trip to Target and I browse the models on display. I want the most powerful model. It gets so hot in the summer time that I can’t use the oven and have to cook entire meals in the microwave. Fast is good, faster is even bettter. Oh, here we go! A Panasonic family size 1.2 cu. ft. microwave oven with inverter technology. I have no idea what inverter technology is, but it sounds cool. 1300 watts, boo-yah! That should dry out a dinner roll in two seconds flat. Sold!

I race home, excited to set it up, which turns out to be a bigger ordeal than I imagined. Our old microwave sits on a heavy cabinet and the plug is buried far behind it. Unload the cabinet, remove the wine, glasses, all the miscellaneous crap that we stuffed into the drawers, and still it’s difficult to move. Unplug the old microwave, set it aside, unbox the new microwave, plug it in, move the cabinet back, put all the wine back. Done.

Time to heat up some food and enjoy the new appliance.
I open the door to put the glass carousel tray inside.
Heeeeey. What’s this?
Little bits of food all over the sides and top of the microwave. Did they do their Q&A testing without a dish cover over the food?

It sets in. Eww. That’s someone else’s food.
It’s not brand new. Someone used my microwave, exploded some food in it and returned it. And if that’s not bad enough, Target accepted the return without inspection and put it back on the shelf.

Damnit! I don’t want to clean what should be a brand new microwave. This is an injustice! How could they do this to me?

I reason with myself. It’s just some food. I can clean it off and then it will be as good as new…
And then I counter my reasoning. But I shouldn’t have to clean it. I deserve a new microwave. One that is actually new.

That settles it. I’d rather drive back to the store and return it rather than wash it.
I call Target to ensure they have another one in stock. They don’t, but they refer me to a different store across town. Way across town. This is going to take awhile.

Melissa might get home before me and want something to eat, so I go through the whole routine of moving the cabinet again and swapping the old microwave back.

Race across town, return microwave, swap for a new one, yada-yada. Jump ahead to getting home with the new microwave. This time it better be 100% new. I open the box. The plastic wrapped around it is pristine. The power cord is wrapped perfectly in a tight coil and held together with twist ties. I untie it and swing it around like a lasso, celebrating the fact that it’s new and hasn’t been unboxed by anyone else before me. I remove the tissue paper from the inside of the door — it’s crisp. I check the inside for bits of food — none!

I take a deep breath and smell the inside of the microwave. It has a wonderful new microwave smell, that chemical plastic-ey industrial type smell that tells me this is indeed brand new. And then it makes me think, “I should probably wash this thing before using it.” Maaaaaan, that’s exactly what I didn’t want to do.

I like browsing at a book store from time to time, so today I go to Borders. I wander down a random aisle and a Julie Cameron book catches my eye. She’s the author of “The Artist’s Way”, but this is a different book that I don’t recognize. “Walking In This World, The Practical Art of Creativity”.

Hmm, what have we here?
(I actually said that out loud, a few other people give me an odd look and go back to the books they were perusing.)

I open this book somewhere in the middle and see the following:

1. I do have good ideas.

2. I have many good ideas.

3. Slowly and gently, one at a time, I can execute them.

Interesting. Without looking at anything else on the page, without any other reference or context, it speaks directly to me.

I smile at point #3 realizing that it has two very different meanings. I choose to take point #3 “execute” as “create/write/complete” as opposed to “shoot it dead and bury it.”

I wander farther down the aisle and another book catches my eye. Eckhart Tolle’s “The Power of Now”. I was at Jeff’s house last night for happy hour and one of his friends went off for 15 minutes about this book. He spoke very passionately about it, so I think maybe I should check this book out. (Or maybe not — I could always read it later… err, I couldn’t help myself… Now & Later. Isn’t that a candy? Hey, <snap-snap> come back to the present moment!)

Ooh, what’s this…

Right next to “The Power of Now” is “Bucklands Complete Book of Witchcraft” — Revised AND expanded. Now this is what I love about a bookstore. It’s overstimulation / A.D.D. on steroids. All these books competing for attention with bright colors — the marketing departments at the publishing houses really know their shit when designing book covers. It’s not just aesthetics, it’s attention grabbing.

Anyway, I pull “Bucklands Complete Book of Witchcraft” off the shelf and randomly open it somewhere in the middle. I blow on the page as if I’m blowing off centuries of old dust. (There isn’t any.) I get a few more strange looks from other customers nearby. I read the header on the page in front of me, “The Power Of the Written Word.”

It’s one of those days when the universe is speaking to me. I grab the Julie Cameron book as well as “The Power of Now” (to read later) and head to the checkout line.

Ooh, all sorts of discounted crap by the checkout counter! What have we here? Little trinkets, book lights…

Cashier: “I can help the next customer…”

And a and a mini Zen garden in a box. Coolio!

Cashier: ‘Hello, I can help the next customer.”

The person behind me gives me a nudge.

“Oh, that’s me.”

That’s right, the contract was approved by 93.6% of the vote. It’s officially done.

And now back to our sedentary lives…

I’m in a wrestling ring. I’ve never wrestled before, yet I am being challenged. One person approaches and I am forced to wrestle them. I don’t know what to do, so I try it and manage to pin them. It’s not as difficult as I thought. One by one, people approach me and try to wrestle me to the ground, but I pin every one of them. Occasionally I get a difficult opponent, but I manage to pin them too. I am undefeated.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I’m seated at a card table along with three Indians in traditional Native American clothing and headdresses. We’re playing Indian poker. The dealer deals us each one card and we all slap them on our foreheads, face out. I look around to see what card the other players have, and we’re all stumped, looking around at each other wondering what to do. Instead of cards on our forehead, we’re all holding slices of cheese — the individually wrapped slices.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I’m somewhere in public, maybe a coffee house. A girl comes out of the bathroom, she did a pretty serious number in it and the smell is wafting by me and my friends. One of my friends didn’t like it, so he does a dramatic dive out of an open window to make a big obvious point that he didn’t want to be there anymore instead of discreetly leaving.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I was playing some improv games with friends, no audience. In the middle of the scene, Eddie Murphy enters. We’re all doing really funny stuff and trying not to break character and laugh. Eddie starts frisking people like he is a cop, then takes their wallet, playing a Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood type cop.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I’m growing herbs in a home garden. The cilantro grew a foot overnight. It was huge, so like elephant garlic, I call this elephant cilantro.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I’m at the base of a gigantic mountain, looking up. There’s no clear trail, yet I am ready to charge up it. I am told it’s too late in the day and I need to wait until morning to have enough daylight to reach the top.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I’m at the Montana State University campus when it is attacked by aliens. The officials don’t have the skills or weapons to fight the aliens. Me and my college buddies sneak around campus trying not to get caught and use “prank technology” on the aliens. We tied their spaceships to the ground and then jump in front of their headlights, scare the shit out of them and get them to chase us. As the ships start flying after us, the ropes catch and cause the ships to crash into the ground. It created a big crater in the middle of campus and killed all the aliens, but we saved the student body.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

Five new entries today, the trend was a bit of a throwback, aside from the first one.

“The Music Playing In My Head” Playlist:

1. Beverly Hills — Wheezer
2. Mickey
3. Beverly Hillbillies Theme Song
4. A drum track that bridges two songs on a DMC album.
5. The Shim Sham Song — Bill Elliot Swing Orchestra

What’s playing in your head? Post a comment with your playlist and maybe I’ll call in to your station!

I’m skiing with a few friends. It’s the end of the day and we try to figure out where to go. We decide to go to a coffee house. The cappuccino came with a salad and an entree.

(What’s your interpretation? Post a comment.)

I just started remembering some strange dreams the last few days. Maybe it’s because the picketing is over and I get a full night’s rest instead of waking up early for the 6am shift.

Rather than pay a professional for analysis, I’ll post them here for your interpretation.

A new playlist entry. The Vegan Freak podcast theme music. I did listen to their podcast earlier today, but the song didn’t creep back into my head until late this evening. My Creative Mojo is really working on overdrive keeping my playlist going.

“The Music Playing In My Head” Playlist:
1. The Vegan Freak theme music from Bob & Jenna’s podcast: www.veganfreak.com
2. Steve Polycronopolous
3. The Rodeo Song
4. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
5. Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer

A new playlist entry. Steve Polycronopolous, from one of Adam Sandler’s CD’s. Today I’ve gone from Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy to Rodeo Song and Polycronopolis. Maybe I just have a need to curse today. Here’s a link to the song in iTunes:

“The Music Playing In My Head” Playlist:
1. Steve Polycronopolous
2. The Rodeo Song
3. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
4. Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer

A new playlist entry. The Rodeo Song. I never liked country music, but this song was alright. The cursing in the lyrics makes up for the fact that it’s country. I know I didn’t hear this one on the radio. It’s not “radio safe” and would need to be bleeped out.

“The Music Playing In My Head” Playlist:
1. The Rodeo Song
2. Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy
3. Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer