Dancing Through Life: The Unfolding of Claire Waite Brown’s Creativity

Nikki chats to fellow podcaster and host of Creativity found, Claire Waite Brown. Her on entrepreneurial spirit has brought her from a degree in dance to a career as a nonfiction editor to podcasting. But what are the origins of her love for performance? And how did she end up becoming an accidental champion of creativity after a tough period in her life?

Claire Bio

Claire Waite Brown is host of the Creativity Found podcast and founder of creativityfound.co.uk, and she is all about helping adults to tap into their creativity. She is also a book editor, dance lover, wife and mother.

In 2016, while suffering with anxiety, and as a way of focusing her attentions, Claire founded Open Stage Arts, fun drama and singing classes for adults who don’t want to commit to putting on an actual show. No experience necessary. Lots of the adults who came to the workshops were looking for a creativity that had been put to one side during their sensible, grown-up years.

Claire found this to be a common experience among other creatives too, and was inspired to start the Creativity Found podcast, in which she chats with painters, crafters, photographers, writers, printmakers, actors, musicians, and more, who have found, or re-found, their creativity as adults.

Making the podcast helped Claire tap into her own creativity and was the inspiration behind creativityfound.co.uk. Claire wants her listeners, and others, to know that they can try something new and creative at any stage in their lives – and not to worry that they might make a mess of it! If you are in search of a creative outlet for yourself, visit creativityfound.co.uk to find workshops, courses and online events or access kits, books and materials to help you to get creative at home. 

The creative facilitators featured on the website are members of a promotional and networking collective for artists and crafters, as well as for business-support enterprises who use their expertise to help those artists and crafters to grow their businesses.

● [02:09] – The Edge – up to date creative news and views

● [04:37] – Claire introduces herself, her podcast and her business

● [06:29] – Creativity as problem solving, ideation and adaptability.

● [10.29] – The ‘rolling switch’ of Claire’s creative journey.

● [16:51] – How Creativity Found grew out of Open Stage Arts during lockdown

● [18:58] – Claire explains how the membership supports creative businesses and creative individuals

● [24:35] – How empathy and giving to others plays a big role in Claire’s work

● [16:33] – Nikki and Claire get to the heart of why Claire loves podcasting

● [30:13] – The ups and downs of not knowing who our listeners are.

● [32:12] – Creative control within podcasting and why it matters to Claire

● [35:21] – What’s next for Claire as podcasting develops

● [38:52] – Creative Adventures and advice on finding your creative direction.

Four Creative Nuggets

“What your aim was doesn't have to be what the result is, if the result is still fabulous for you.”

“The piece of pie that is something for yourself, just doing something for fun for yourself. Nothing. I couldn't put anything in there.”

“You can do what you want.”

“With editing text and audio, it's what you take out that nobody knows that makes what's left in sparkle and be wonderful.”

Links

Claire