Charlotte Rains Dixon

Writing Flow: Turning Off the Worry Faucet

A few days ago I wrote a post titled, What About Not Writing? which pondered the question of whether it was ever a good idea to take a break from writing.  As is often the case, the post garnered some interesting responses, because, well, I have fabulously interesting readers (Brief aside: as a general rule, writers are the most fabulously interesting people in the world, except for the occasional odd duck crank).

Some commenters echoed my thought that writing is so much a part of me it is hard to imagine taking a break from it.  And others mentioned the value of taking a break to refill the well (a concept which I heartily endorse, as long as that break doesn't stretch out too long).

But one commenter, Rebecca, lamented the fact that it is so easy to let the demands of daily life get in the way of writing.  She inquired how I cleared away my mind to be able to write and asked that I write a post about this topic.  So here it is.

Clear it Out.  For starters I think its really important to cultivate some way to clear your mind.  Meditate, pray, write in your journal for a few minutes to get your yas-yas out, take a quick walk, whatever helps you to clear your brain.  Even taking a few deep breaths when you sit down to write can really help.

Set an Intention.   You probably have some sort of goals for your writing, such as, finish a novel, write a screenplay whatever.  Take that goal, chunk it down into a doable task, and then set an intention.  For instance, I am going to write 3 pages today.  Or, I will finish the rewrite of chapter 10.  Then, when you sit down to write, remind yourself of this intention by closing your eyes, taking a deep breath, and repeating it several times out loud.

Ask for Help.  And I don't mean from your family.  Ask whatever higher power you might believe in to guide you and help you to stay focused.  If you don't believe in a higher power, ask your higher self.

Use Your Subconscious.  This falls into the Be Prepared category.  Take the time to look at whatever it is you want to write about the day before.  I know, I know, you don't have time.  Listen, everyone has five minutes.  Forget about the first five minutes of American Idol (it's just Ryan blabbering anyway), open your file, scan it quickly, ponder what you need to do next, close the file, go watch TV.  This helps way more than the time it takes to do it.  You'll get your brain engaged and ready to work and be focused, which makes it easier to turn off the worry faucet.

Keep a Notebook Handy.  Keep a small notebook or scratch pad right next to your computer.  If you get one of those distracting worry thoughts, pause for one minute and write it down.  You need bread at the store?  Write it down.  You remembered an appointment?  Write it down.  Then make a habit of checking over these notes at the end of your writing session and dealing with them accordingly.  Note the appointment on your calendar, make your grocery list, whatever.

Keep An Idea Notebook Nearby.  Same theory as above, only for ideas.  Many creative types start working on one project, only to think of 20 others.  I'm taking the  Complete Idealist Blissness Action Camp course from Marney Makridaris, and she talks about Complete Idealists as creative types who sometimes struggle because of how differently we think. She recommends using an idea file as a way to harness all your brilliance without losing your train of thought.  I used to keep an idea journal, but I'm so visual, if I don't see something, its gone from my mind, and all my ideas got buried.  Now I use a cool open-topped wooden file box that came from my Dad's long-defunct printing plant.  Added bonus is that I think of him every time I put in or pull out an idea.

Start With Negativity.  I know, sounds counter-intuitive, no? But the idea is to just give into it.  Rant and rave. Complain about how over-worked you are and how wretched your children are.  Wail about how much you don't want to do everything on your to-do list. Write all your negative thoughts down, or think them, or shout them, whatever you want.  Set a timer and limit it to five minutes.  There.  Now all the bad stuff is out of your brain, freeing you to write.

So there you have them, my best ideas to keep your brain clear while writing. Stay tuned, because coincidentally I have a post on a similar topic drafted.  I will put it up in the next couple days.  And, for those of you who have not subscribed to my ezine, The Creative Equation, please do, as the next issue is all about The 7 Essentials for Creative Flow, which are the bedrocks of my writing process.

What About Not Writing?

A couple weeks ago, I wrote about creativity with a purpose.  As usual, I banged the drum for writing on a regular basis.  (This is a familiar subject matter for me, as attested to by these posts, too: Getting Up at 5 AM, Techniques for Writing Flow, and Ah, But Here's the Rub, to name only a few.  I can't help it, its what I do!)

For me, and many writers I know, it simply works better to find some time to write very day, or as close to it as possible.  The reasons are many, but mostly boil down to one word: momentum.  Like the proverbial rock rolling down a hill and going faster and faster, your writing will gather speed if you attend to it regularly.  If you don't, there's a lot of time wasted on catch-up, such as trying to remember what the last name of your character is, or in what chapter the murder occurred.  Things like that.

But recently I found some notes from an old MFA lecture (I'm doing a massive purge of papers in my office).  The topic of said lecture was when to write and when to not write.  I was shocked at the not writing part.  But then I remembered a conversation I had recently with my friend and fellow novel goddess Katy, and she said that she goes long stretches without writing.  The nature of her job (for the above-mentioned MFA program) is such that it is difficult to commit to writing on a regular basis.  What she does is go off on intensive week-long writing retreats in which she accomplishes huge spurts of writing. 

So I've been wondering about the whole not writing thing.  I am always afraid that if I don't write, maybe one of these days I simply won't return to it, which is not bloody likely considering it is the single most consistent obsession of my life.  But still, these things I fear do stop me.

Anyone care to make a better case for not writing than I have?

The Rule of Threes

I was reading a manuscript the other day and the writer had used a series of two phrases to describe something.  My antenna went up and I made a comment that in the American culture, we like things in threes.  I've conveniently named this The Rule of Threes, though to my knowledge there is really no such things.

Consider with me:

Tall, dark, and handsome.
Red, white and blue.
Stars and stripes forever.
A dark and stormy night.
The three little pigs.
The three wishes fairy godmothers and genies grant us.

And so on....I'm sure you can think of many more.  My point is that we have a cultural predisposition to like things in threes.  And when we write them in twos, it is jarring. Our brains go on alert.  It is as if we have been robbed.  Somebody took the final word, damn them.   And then the brain wanders about, looking for the word and its thief as well.  And guess what?  Said brain is no longer attending to the brilliant words on the page.

Preventing this is simple--write in threes.   There's a very good chance that section of your work always bothered, you, too.  Admit it, you know its true.

Photo courtesy of Terwilliger911, used under creative commons 2.5 license.

Putting Joy Back Into It

I've been slogging through the "final" rewrite of my novel lately.  

Its a funny thing with working on a long extended piece over time, such as a novel or a memoir.  You rearrange one chapter and this rearrangement uncovers other things that need attention.  Thus, more work and more rewriting.

As the days I've allotted for the rewrite stretch into weeks and then months, my will flags.  I want to get this novel published more than anything in the world.  It has been a lifelong goal to be a novelist.  And I think I have a better shot at it with this one than ever before.

But, dear lord, I'm tired of working on it.

The thing is, I also see that this rewrite is making my book into the novel it truly was meant to be.  With every rewrite, the novel's characters become truer and the plot gets stronger.   Civilians (ie, non-writers) tell me that if an agent likes it, he or she will forgive all the problems and take me on. But I know that the publishing world has always been a tough nut to crack, and now even more so now.  While it is tempting to take the civilians' well-meaning advice, throw up my hands and just send it out, as is, I'm holding out to finish this one last rewrite.  I know that agents look for the smallest excuse not to take on a client.  I know we have to send in our absolute best work.  And I'm willing.

But for the last couple of weeks, I've had to flog myself to work on it.  Honestly, it is hard enough to fit in time to work on the novel when I'm excited about it, but when the joy is gone its nearly impossible.    (The great irony in all of this, of course, is that I teach and coach this stuff--how to make time to write, no matter where you are in the process.)

But this morning, I felt it again--that joy.  The energy, the connection, the lift off the page to my heart. So, how did I get it back?  And how can you?  When I stopped to think about why this might have happened, I realized that I did, in fact, have some suggestions.

1.  Show up at the page.  This is far and away the most important thing.  There's a famous quote by Woody Allen, something to the effect that "90% of success is just showing up." So true.  Some days I showed up and sat and stared, but such effort is eventually rewarded with a flow of words.  The universe and the muses look kindly upon consistency.

2.  Take a break.  I know, I know, contradictory advice.  First I tell you to show up, then I tell you to not show up.  What I'm advocating here is taking a planned break.  Allow yourself to get totally and completely away from it without guilt and do something replenishing. (Julia Cameron calls it the artist's date.)  The key here is the planning.   I fall into the bad habit daily of taking an accidental break by checking out the latest news on the internet.  But  this is far less renewing than if I actually stepped away from the computer and took a planned break.  Figure out what relaxes and renews you and then go do it.  You can take a big break--like a whole morning off--or a little break, like a quick walk around the block.

3.  Accept you are in a different place.  If you are in the rewriting phase, like me, It is not the initial place of invention and excitement, but rather an area of discernment and editing.  If you need invention and excitement, take notes for another project.  Being in this different place you are not necessarily going to feel the joy of creation as when you first began it.  For me, just realizing this in a conscious manner paved the way to get back to work.

So those are my suggestions and if anyone has any more, I'd love to hear them.  All of this pondering on getting the joy back has brought up another topic in my mind, namely, when is it time to quit the tinkering and let it go? 

Ah, but that is a subject for another time.