If you’re learning to code, or would like to, you probably already embrace the idea that coding and creativity aren’t polar opposites. But if you’re coming at coding from a different perspective—say you enjoy music and visual art more than math or science—writing code may sound more formulaic than fun to you. Either way, it’s worth taking some time to explore creative coding.
As cofounder of the Barbarian Group digital advertising agency, Keith Butters has played a significant part in the growth of Cinder library of code, described on the Cinder website as a library for things like “graphics, audio, [and] video.” In Butters’ take in PBS’s The Art of Creative Coding, Cinder “allows creative people to not have to do the boring stuff and focus actually on creativity and making the art side of things.”
“You know, some people write, some people paint,” he said. “There are some people who can basically think in visual code and do some of the most beautiful things you’ve ever seen.”
Could that be you in the future? Start finding out by building your own game or website with the resources we’ve found, or others that you discover on your own. Then send your work to us through our submission page, so we can feature it in Navigator!
Coding resources
Code Studio—courses from code.org
Scratch—an MIT project that allows users to create and share stories, games, and animations
Computer Science Education Week—a link for “Hour of Code” activities for Computer Science Education Week is December 4–10, but you can access the activities now!
CNET list of best coding articles—the tech site recommends these four resources
Make a Website Hub—links to twenty-two free resources
Tracie Fellers is a writer, editor, and educator who started her career writing for daily newspapers in North Carolina and Virginia. She has published fiction and nonfiction in anthologies and literary journals, including Long Story Short: Flash Fiction by Sixty-Five of North Carolina’s Finest Writers, 27 Views of Raleigh, and Obsidian. She lives and works in Durham, North Carolina.