Episode 109: Daily Dose of Creativity with Danny Gregory

Posted on by Victoria

Wynne and I were delighted to sit down with artist and author Danny Gregory. Danny spent thirty years in the advertising industry before dedicating himself to encouraging others to be creative and wowza…talking to him was a restorative boost in my creativity reservoir!

As the author of fifteen books, Danny knows a thing or two about obstacles and inspiration points and the importance of art and artistry in our lives. Talking with him enriched our understanding of the patience required to build – and maintain – a regular practice of creativity.

One of the things that’s most striking about Danny is the number of channels and opportunities that exist to interact with him and learn. In addition to his books, you can learn from Danny in his weekly “Danny’s Essays” and in his coursework, “Sketchbook Skool“.

During our podcast, Danny offered so many gems on the fly. His depth of understanding about creative people and the need to nurture and encourage is amazing. Examples:

***Trusting the process when you’re creating…seek to find the flow and maintain it because, “You can’t accelerate and brake at the same time” if you let your inner critic drive.

***Demystifying: “Creativity is about combining stuff.“

***One of my favorite quotes about creating art, taken from one of his recent “Danny’s Essays”: “Whatever you decide to do, make it fun, suspend judgment, relax and think of it as dirtying some pages.”

Before we talked with Danny, Wynne and I each read one of his books. Wynne chose “Art Before Breakfast” and I picked “Shut Your Monkey“. You’ll need to trust us, but Wynne and I are still comparing notes about all the inspiration points tucked into each book and we’re eager to read the rest of Danny’s offerings. We think you will feel the same!

Join us…you’re gonna love this conversation! And then sign up for Danny’s weekly newsletter for more great inspiration from the amazing Danny Gregory: https://dannysessays.com/

-Vicki and Wynne 😊

Search (and subscribe!) for Sharing the Heart of the Matter on Apple, Amazon, Spotify or Pocket Casts OR Listen to it from your computer on Anchor: Episode 109: Daily Dose of Creativity with Danny Gregory

Episode 109 transcript

AND subscribe to our YouTube channel to see a video clip of each story: @SharingtheHeartoftheMatter.

Links for this episode:

https://www.dannygregory.com/books

https://dannysessays.com/

https://www.dannygregory.com/

https://www.sketchbookskool.com/

https://www.dannygregory.com/monkey

From the hosts:

Vicki’s book about resilience and love: Surviving Sue; Blog: https://victoriaponders.com/

Wynne’s book about her beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith; Blog: https://wynneleon.com/

27 thoughts on “Episode 109: Daily Dose of Creativity with Danny Gregory”

  1. Pingback: Drawing Our Own Lines – Surprised By Joy
  2. Pingback: Episode 109: Daily Dose of Creativity with Danny Gregory – The Story Lady

  6. I’m with you guys, so many great suggestions. Danny’s got a great attitude about creativity. Love his perspective of creating and putting off thoughts on if it’s any good until later. When I put those kinds of questions off, it’s always better for me and my art.

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  7. I love conversations about creative process and to hear Danny describe creativity as a chemical reaction was just so interesting to think about. Our own original life experiences mixed with the things around us forming a new creative output. So fascinating.

    So fun to see a garage conversation. What location will pop up next in your podcast? I had a long day at work and an ice storm is just descending on us now and for the rest of the weekend. I listened to your conversation on the elliptical in the basement and all sweaty and happy now with adrenaline! A great way to kick off the weekend. Thank you both!

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    1. Thank you, Ab! Sorry to hear about the ice storm! Wowza. Stay safe. And yes…Danny had so many cool insights, didn’t he? I loved that part to – creativity as a response, a reaction. Really makes me think! Love that you loved his unique location, too! The show must go on. 🥰🤣🥰

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  8. danny is a great guest and funny that the post I wrote for tomorrow is about something that happened when I worked in advertising. I really liked Danny’s approach to creativity, the blank page, making time for creativity, grabbing it where you can, trying things out of our comfort zone, not being critical of ourselves, using new perspectives. great show!

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    1. I love all of the connections you can make, Beth – related to your advertising experience, too. You are one of my all-time favorite creative souls. Can’t wait to read your post tomorrow!
      🥰❤️🥰

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  11. A tremendous episode! I loved it. I knew just a little about Danny, mostly from reading one of his books that was at my mom’s house. She had borrowed the book from the library, and the book encourage readers to draw every day. Danny is an inspiration! 🌞

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    1. So happy to hear your thoughts! Wynne and I figured you were already acquainted with Danny given so many of your mutual thoughts and inspiration points. Thanks much, Dave! 🥰

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