Creativity is a process

Before I start any creative exercise, be it a slew of headlines or a pre-brainstorm batch of starter ideas, it takes me a while to get the juices flowing. I rarely dive right in. To start, I read and re-read the creative brief until I can bulletize the entire thing into a few key nuggets of information. I jot these down in my large, ruled, moleskin notebook with its busted binding and crispy, coffee-stained pages. After I've chewed up the brief, organized a few piles on my desk and checked my twitter feed, I usually go get a refill. The walk to Starbucks clears my head, lets me soak in the now-briefer brief (and get the caffeine flowing through my veins.) When I get back to my desk, these are the sites I run through for some quick inspiration:

http://www.streetsy.com/
A collection of street art from around the world.

http://www.woostercollective.com/
Another street art site. A bit more polished than Streetsy.

http://www.houseind.com/
Essentially, a collection of fonts. If you've never been inspired by a lower-case j's descender, give this one a click.

http://eighthourday.com/
A husband and wife team based right here in Minneapolis, focused on exploratory, educational and inspirational design.

http://www.eatmedaily.com/
Not just a food blog.

http://search.twitter.com/
You know about Twitter. But do you know about Twitter search? All you need is a topic. Just type it in and hit enter. See what everyone else is tweeting about it.

http://improveverywhere.com/
You've probably seen "Frozen Grand Central" but have you seen "No Pants 2k7"? Didn't think so.

http://mashable.com/
Pete Cashmore. Need I say more?

http://motionographer.com/
A collection of amazing motion pieces by students, studios and filmmakers.

Do you have any favorites? Enlighten me. Click "add a comment" below and reply with your best bookmarks.