Clear the Clutter to Open Up Creativity

Whether it's the clutter on your desk, the clutter in your fridge or the clutter in your mind, clutter equals stress. And stress and clutter take up valuable creative brain space and creative energy.

A great exercise for transitioning into the new year is to take care of your non-creative business so that you can start the year off with a clean slate.

For me, that meant:

• Reconciling my bank and credit card accounts
• Paying bills
• Returning and exchanging holiday gifts 
• Taking down the holiday decor
• Updating my contact lists
• Outlining a few newsy blog posts
• Reviewing my promotion plans for upcoming book releases
• Putting together my schedule of appearances and school visits

Once that's finished, I'll be ready to open up new Word docs or print off fresh copies of my current works-in-progress and get on with my writing and revising with an uncluttered creative space.

What clutter can you clear out of your creative space?