Holiday wishlists are often full of requests for new games, music, movies, or books. And as we indulge in our entertainment of choice, we learn to appreciate the creator’s mastery of a particular form and how they push the art in new directions. 

Your loved ones may hold strong opinions about what makes a game great or one song being better than another. If you know that they are passionate about a field, how about giving them the tools to create their own? It could be the gift to help set them on the road toward a career or lifelong hobby.

For the Musician

Garageband for Mac users (part of the $49 iLife suite from Apple) or Mixcraft for PC ($74.95) is a great gift that might be just the inspiration a music-lover needs to express themselves musically. If you have a young Mozart or Philip Glass, the excellent music composition software Sibelius has a student edition available for a $99.99 download.

For the Artist

A drawing tablet will allow budding artists to express themselves digitally. For a beginner you can choose an entry level tablet such as a Monoprice tablet for under $60 or the Bamboo Create tablet for $199.

For the Gamer

Indie gamers (either teenagers or experienced IT folks looking for a new hobby) are getting notice and making their mark. Designing games for smartphones or game consoles has been democratized with software tools that have come down in price, and some are even free.

Get started with XNA and you can write games for PCs, WindowsPhone and Xbox. Try Microsoft XNA Game Studio 4.0: Learn Programming Now! ($23.99-$32.99) to teach you how. If you want a more basic introduction to game programming consider Programming Games for the Evil Genius ($24.95).

For the Writer

Here is where we can go high-tech (a new laptop perhaps?), but it is best to go low tech. A handsome notebook and a fine pen always make great gifts. The classic Moleskine notebook line is simply beautiful and has inspired many a writer. As this is a tech column, I have to mention that there is a Moleskine App that brings (part of) the journal’s appeal to your iOS device. And for the writer on the go, maybe a LiveScribe smartpen will let them harness their inner Rita Skeeter by combining the best of both worlds.