Welcome to Pairings

Looking for some unique new traditions? Here are seven ways to celebrate Christmas Texas-Style, like they do in Austin, Texas.

Don’t fight it. Creativity is a choice. Once you make it, the ups, and the downs, are the fun part.

In 2006 I wrote this ode to my creative spirit, "Artist's Poem," and found renewed inspiration.

Hitting the road is part of my creative process. And I never pass by a historical marker without braking.

Inspiration strikes in strange and unexpected ways. But when it doesn’t strike, there are three tricks to juice it along.

When you let go, you create space for something else to move in to your life, as Holiday Mathis told me in my horoscope.

Embrace your dual gifts: you can inhabit two worlds, and you can slide between them with ease. It’s just what writers do.

In one short paragraph author Flannery O'Connor nails down her work ethic — one that will motivate your creative soul.

Inspiration comes from many places. No use pretending it all comes out of our heads with no other stimulation. We rely on influences.

If you believe, as I do, that life is lived in the details, your camera must always be ready to take in what you can’t. Melk Abbey...

When You Can’t Change The View Water Over The Dam by Jann Alexander ©2016 Change Your Perspective Another Perspective: Water Over The Dam...

You’ve finished your epic novel and you’re querying agents. (You haven’t written an epic novel? No matter. Applying for a job? Same...

For every action, there is a reaction. Which makes choosing the right actions pretty important, even when the actions are pretty...

You voted with your eyeballs for your favorite Pairings this year ( Thank You! ), and your eyes revealed that my posts about the creative...

Inspiration shows up anywhere and everywhere. But motivation isn’t as reliable.

“You never know what doors are going to open up and why they are going to open up. You’ve got to be ready to walk through them.” —Lester...

Mondrian in Mexico by Jann Alexander ©2015 Show me a little symmetry , a vivid color or two, some kind of pattern, bright light and hard...

The Passing Train at Sunset by Jann Alexander ©2015 “It’s the journey, stupid.” —Variation on a 1992 campaign phrase attributed to James...

What I like best about photography is that there’s always another photo. Since I can shoot with the camera that's always in my pocket.

Glowing Orange Corduroy by Jann Alexander ©2015 Here’s a Few Ski Tips. Why should the visible surface of skis have all the fun? With...