I am always looking for new creative techniques to help come up with ideas for graphic design and I have read several books on creativity. The only downside to some of these books is that they don’t always easily lend themselves to graphic design and are far better for coming up with product or business [...]

The stage is set. The iTunes playlist of twelve amazing British pop tunes has been synchronised with a portable media playing device. The invited judges are choosing what to wear and, more importantly, how to get to the venue if the tubes are still in a state of being tits up by the time this evening comes around. Whatever mode of transport is chosen by 11pm tonight the best British pop single of the last twelve months will have been decided and a crisp twenty pound note will be on its way to the winner.Those nominations in full:‘Bad Boys’ by Alexandra Burke‘One Touch’ by Mini Viva‘Left My Heart In Tokyo’ by Mini Viva‘Bittersweet’ by Sophie Ellis-Bextor‘I Won’t Kneel’ by Groove Armada‘Kickstarts’ by Example‘Wonderful Life’ by Hurts‘Real Late Starter’ by Nerina Pallot‘Never Leave You’ by Tinchy feat Amelle‘I Wish’ by Mini Viva‘Once’ by Diana Vickers‘I Am Not A Robot’ by Marina & The DiamondsAlso tonight, judges will choose the winner of the 2010 Popjustice Twenty Quid Invoice Prize (for the worst British pop single of the last twelve months - the winner of that one has to cough up a twenty).With tragic inevitability Twitter WILL be involved - @Popjustice's followers will be consulted during the evening and their votes may end up settling any arguments in the room. Keep watching the #twentyquid hashtag.More info over at the Twenty Quid Music Prize minisite at http://twentyquid.popjustice.com (#mce_temp_url#).

For the 2004 Twenty Quid Music Prize we produced a programme featuring, quite amazingly, interviews with each of the shortlisted acts.The interviews included Cheryl Cole, Brian Higgins, Rachel Stevens, Richard X, Keane, Will Young and Emma Bunton. (And Javine Hylton.)It was a lot of hard work for not much in the way of reward in that we only ended up printing about 150 of them, so we thought that with the 2010 Prize being held tonight it might be nice to make the 2004 programme downloadable. A few years on some of the interviews make for really interesting reading. We've done it as a PDF so you can print it out and read it at lunchtime if you fancy.Right click here to download the programme as a PDF.Amazing.

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"I asked several people in Paris, What can you say about New Zealand? 'It's small, it's clean, it's green.' These are the 3 things that most people know," says Catherine McMahon, owner of Kōkō, a boutique that will open in...