Welcome to Pairings

"The work never never matches the dream of perfection the artist has to start with" — William Faulkner

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.

To ignore a creative funk is to imperil your creative stamina. Here's out to take a time out to tend to your creative soul.

There’s a saying in real estate, that it’s all about location. Location. Location. Location. It’s just as true in writing historical novels.

How many times have you  been set to make a photo, but there’s something in the way? Think of it not as a barrier, but as an opportunity...

Take the annual Weird Austin Homes Tour and see for yourself. Weird Homes Welcome | iPhoneography by Jann Alexander ©2016 Welcome. Let’s...

The Narrow View | iPhoneography by Jann Alexander © 2016 Behind the camera lens, you’ve got a choice. Your view can be narrow, focused...

Life is lived in the details, so your camera must always be ready to be your eyes. But it helps to be ready at the right time. Here’s...

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

Now’s the time to gather the shiny ornaments . . . iDecorations iPhoneography by Jann Alexander © 2014 To gather the sugar and butter...

Where you focus, in photography as in life , can make your vision clear to others. As the unfurling sago palm leaves, above, show,...

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

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...

All Lit Up: The ever-vivid Frost Tower is a Texas banking icon and a nighttime beacon, standing tall over Austin's Warehouse District.

Warning: The Magic Formula you’re about to use will instantly improve your WordPress Reader experience! But first, a word on why. Then, a...