Linda Jo Martin

Writer, Artist, YouTuber

  • About
  • Journal
  • Fiction
  • Art
  • Home
  • The Art of Writing
  • Book Reviews
  • Lists & Challenges

Focused Practice Creates Success – Mixed Media Art and Writing

January 11, 2012 By Linda Jo Martin Leave a Comment

Didn’t blog yesterday! A lost opportunity! However I did some watercolor and pen sketching. Good start… on getting back into it. And I studied mixed media a bit – got inspired by YouTube videos and Pinterest Mixed Media. Fun!! I love mixed media, and will focus on that as I go forward with my artistic adventure. I’ve just moved my easel across the room and hope that will help me start making progress again. I have a lot of poster boards that I want to use… little ones… and I’ll use them all for mixed media practice. It is practice that makes art real.

Keys to Mastery

Same with writing! Daily writing practice creates a sense of comfort with the skills involved. When doing a first draft, it is important to abandon the internal editor. “Aunt Mandy, go away! I’m writing!” Expel that editor and suddenly you can go wild with your writing and create something truly unique and daring.

Today is another opportunity to practice being that creative explorer personality… and let me tell you, friend, that’s all there is. We’re not about perfection and reaching the stars. We’re only about practicing the arts that rock our souls. A great resource that teaches that principal… and if you haven’t seen it – I very much recommend you get a copy while they’re still available: The 5 Keys to Mastery – one of my favorite inspirational and motivational DVDs, put together by David Lent and George Leonard, who also wrote a book by the same name. You will see great artists, scientists, athletes, and others explain how they focused their practice in order to achieve something great.

It is all about the focus, and the practice, and the love of your chosen art.

I had a friend who refused to practice writing. He believed that someday he would wake up 100% motivated to write a novel in a hot flash. I hope it happens for him, but all the novelists I know spend a lot of time practicing and learning what makes writing great. We don’t suddenly become great novelists. Most of us work hard for many years practicing and developing our writing techniques… just as with other arts.

After all, you don’t suddenly wake up one day to discover you can play the trombone like a virtuoso. At least, most of us don’t. I won’t say it can’t be done…

My intention this year is to focus my creative practice and I’m choosing to do that with mixed media, watercolor, and writing for children and teens. The art will be used to illustrate my books. I already have two books in progress needing these illustrations: Ciara and the Fairies and Oja. So for my work as a writer of children’s literature, I need to develop my artistic skills as well.

Updated 2/17/19

Similar Posts:

  • Rejection: It’s Not Personal
  • Practice Writing Daily for Creative Development
  • My Top Ten Uses For Writing Time
  • Seven Steps for Developing an Effective Creative Process
  • Blogging and Creative Writing



Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

A recent video on my Booktube channel, at YouTube

To receive blog update notifications via email, enter your email address:

About Me

Hi, I'm Linda, the Book Lady, and I'm excited about reading. A book is a gift you give yourself. It is so much fun to open that cover and discover what was hidden within. Books share the wisdom of the ages with us. Who wouldn't want that? So I read frequently and encourage reading. If you're a reader, let me know by becoming my friend on GoodReads.


My novel, River Girl, is about a girl living in the Klamath River Valley.

Here's a link to my prayer website:
Prayer Power.

My childhood memoirs: ljm memoirs.

Professional Reader
I use Amazon affiliate links on this site and appreciate it very much when you purchase from my links.

California Reading

California Reading

California Reading
5 members

This group is for anyone wanting to read California based fiction or nonfiction.

Our recommended shelf

The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience
The World Rushed In: The California Gold Rush Experience
by J.S. Holliday


Hillinger's California: Stories from All 58 Counties
Hillinger’s California: Stories from All 58 Counties
by Charles Hillinger





View this group on Goodreads »


My Art

Bird Art by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com
Acrylic
Wild and Precious - art by Linda Jo Martin
Watercolor / pen
Summer Afternoon - art by Linda Jo Martin
Pen / Watercolor

If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” ? Cicero - Art by Linda Jo Martin http://lindajomartin.com
Acrylic
Acrylic
Angel art by Linda Jo Martin
Sketchbook

Psalm 91:9-11 - Angel art by Linda Jo Martin http://lindajomartin.com
Sketchbook
Art: Idaho Hills, by Linda Jo Martin
Junk journal, acrylic
March Mystery Madness 2020, art by Linda Jo Martin
Gouache journal

Plan A to Z - lettering by Linda Jo Martin
Lettering class project
A daring adventure - art by Linda Jo Martin
Fountain pen ink journal
Small Joys
Watercolor sketchbook

Watercolor sketchbook
Valley of decision.
Bible journaling
Mount Glittery by Linda Jo Martin - mountain climbing quote by John Muir
Acrylic painting

Watercolor sketchbook
“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.” ? Ralph Waldo Emerson ... watercolor painting by Linda Jo Martin
Watercolor sketchbook
Imagination Soars, by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com
Watercolor sketchbook

Plant Seeds
Watercolor sketchbook
The Prayer by Linda Jo Martin
Acrylic painting
A basket of flowers, by Linda Jo Martin - http://lindajomartin.com/writing/art
Fountain pen ink journal

RSS My Most Recent Book Reviews

  • The Gabriel Hounds
  • Madame Bovary
  • The Sign of the Beaver
  • The Painted Veil
  • The Challengers
  • Braving the Thin Places: Celtic Wisdom to Create a Space for Grace
  • The Tea Chest
  • How to Write Like a Writer: A Sharp and Subversive Guide to Ignoring Inhibitions, Inviting Inspiration, and Finding Your True Voice
  • Airs Above the Ground
  • Camp Far West: A Memoir of Early California

RSS Goodreads Status Updates

  • Linda Martin is on page 81 of 651 of Ireland
  • Linda Martin is on page 172 of Life Along the Applegate
  • Linda Martin is 67% done with The Confession of St. Pat
  • Linda Martin is on page 110 of 494 of Lifting the Veil on the L

You can find me on Pinterest

Visit Linda Jo Martin, Book Lady's profile on Pinterest.

My art is at Zazzle.com

Dating Palms
Linda Jo Martin Art and Photography
Buy Scrivener for Windows (Regular Licence)
I love Scrivener, and use it for all my writing. It is a fantastic writing software that organizes a novel, ebook, or screenplay efficiently while I write and revise.

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

© 2023 - LJ Martin Web - Legal Notices
Linda Jo Martin is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program,
an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for
sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.Com.