New article from ManuscriptRX
Jan. 22nd, 2009 05:06 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ostarellaFrom "Write Through It," the monthly newsletter brought to you by www.ManuscriptRx.com
I've had a magazine article on creativity I've wanted to share with you for a while now, but I've been saving it for just the right moment. I thought the first newsletter of the New Year would be the best time, the few weeks since many of us have made resolutions involving our craft--writing more, or writing better, or even being more creative.
The thing is, research shows that often the behavior modification that resolutions require only lasts a couple of weeks. A good many of us don't take on those desired habits long enough to really make a lasting change in our behavior. So, in case your motivation has taken a nose-dive since you enthusiastically proclaimed 2009's set of life-changing goals, the information in this newsletter might provide a much-needed boost in momentum. Because, after all, in the endeavor of stringing words together, 'creativity' is truly Word One.
What does creativity mean to you?
Despite agreed-upon definitions, the word often conjures different things for different people. But before we look at how your idea of creativity might vary from mine, let's think about how a dictionary explains it (beyond the most obvious definition springing from its root, 'creative,' the act of creating something):
the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.; originality, progressiveness, or imagination.
I ask you, dear writer, is the ability to transcend traditional ideas and to create new ones exactly the skill you need when you reach for your pen? Isn't imagination the very thing that fuels your stories?
"But wait," you interrupt, "Creativity's not the type of thing I can just call upon when I need it. I can take a class to learn Windows Excel, but I can't take a class and suddenly be more creative. It's a mysterious, elusive trait, a gift that only some of us have."
And I say "Pshaw!" to that. If you've got the will to write, if you are ready to work hard at it, if you're willing to make changes in your life and your ways of thinking and seeing the world, then you will ultimately be creative.
Let's turn to the June/July 2008 issue of Scientific American Mind (www.SciAmMind.com), "The Creative Mind: How to release your inner genius," and more specifically, the article "Let Your Creativity Soar."
Three highly creative (and productive) people answer questions about what it means to be creative and how everyone can unlock creativity in their lives (even people who don't think they possess creativity or would label themselves uncreative). Most notable for our purposes: Julia Cameron, author of The Artist's Way and a thoughtful, respected writer in her own right.
The article dispels the myth that creativity is a magical thing, a fixed characteristic that you're either born with or you're not, like your height or eye color. Keep in mind that young children all exhibit creativity at some point or another (and it seems effortless on their part), especially before first grade. Ironically, socialization stresses conformity and uniformity to some degree, which might be why the most strikingly creative people beyond early grade school are sometimes perceived as 'misfits.' But these are human-made labels based on perceptions, not reality.
So the first thing to tweak is your mindset: if you've been laboring under the assumption that creativity is a finite resource randomly doled out to a lucky few, you need to disabuse yourself of that notion. It's true that some of the steps below will come easier to some than others, but a richer, more creative writing habit is readily within all our reaches.
Cameron comments on the accessibility of creativity and how it can positively impact your life away from your desk, too: "I have found the creative process to be teachable and trackable. I teach people three simple tools, and anyone using those tools has what might be called an awakening. They become much more alert; they become much more friendly in interacting with people--much less threatened by change."
Because her "three simple tools" for writers are slightly different from the four "core competencies" discussed in the bulk of the article (though they do overlap and share truths/advice), I'll mention them before we go any further:
Julia Cameron's tools for getting the most out of your creative writing:
1) Write "morning pages," every morning.
In her own words: "What drew me to working on my creativity was running into a couple of bumps. I had had a blessed decade in my 20s, and then when I got to my 30s I felt thwarted. I was writing movies and selling them to studios, but they weren't getting made. I needed to find a way to maintain equilibrium and optimism in the face of creative despair. I fought my despair with what I call 'morning pages'--three pages of longhand writing about anything: 'I don't like the way Fred talked to me at the office'; 'I need to get the car checked'; 'I forgot to buy kitty litter.' They don't look like they have anything to do with creativity, but in fact, as we put these worries, which are sort of a daily soundtrack for most of us, down on the page, we are suddenly much more alert, aware, focused and available to the moment. And we begin to see that we have many creative choices. As I wrote those pages, new ideas began to walk in." [Emphasis added.]
[Note that Cameron specifies three pages of longhand writing. Most of us are pretty much tethered to the convenience of our computers these days, but research has shown that we stimulate a different part of the brain when we write with pen and paper, versus typing at the keyboard. So, for the richest, most creative writing habit, it's best to set aside time for both.]
2) The artist "date" or "outing."
Cameron tells us to "take an adventure once a week."
I'm sure picking up the dry cleaning or paying your bills doesn't fall under the category of "adventure" in Cameron's definition, so get out there each week and do something novel/stimulating.
And remember Eleanor Roosevelt's related words: "Do one thing every day that scares you."
3) Walk (even for a bit).
Of Cameron's third tool, she explains, "Walk out of the door for 20 minutes or so and see what happens to your thinking. When people walk, they often begin to integrate the insights and intuitions that they have had through morning pages and outings."
Joyce Carol Oates, one of our generation's most prolific writers, says that she spends an hour on a treadmill every morning before she writes. I'm not claiming that regimen will get you to Oates's level of productivity, but there does seem to be a link to getting up and moving our bodies and then being more effective when we sit back down to write. And although Cameron urges us to leave the house to ramble, we don't all live in climates where that's possible year-round. So it's good to know that a writer as successful as Joyce Carol Oates relies on a walking machine.
So there you have it: Julia Cameron's three tools for bringing creativity into your life. Whether or not you're willing to try them, it would be tough to deny how commonsensical and straightforward and simple they are.
Now let's move on to the four "core competencies" for boosting creativity that the article discusses, ways that every one of us can become more creative.
Remember, if you start thinking of creativity as something you need to work for, rather than something akin to a fickle, temperamental muse that you have to wait for, you'll already be taking a huge leap in the right (write!) direction.
Ways to boost your creativity...four core competencies:
1) CAPTURE
In other words, have a means of trapping your ideas when they strike. The best ideas have a tendency of sneaking up on you when you least expect it, when you're not focusing on the problem any longer, like when you're driving or in the shower, automatic activities that don't require full mental/intellectual engagement.
You've been having the worst time figuring out the ending to your mystery novel. Hair-pulling and hand-wringing don't seem to be working, nor does telling yourself to sit down at your desk and pull all the pieces together now.
So you take a breather (please don't call it "giving up"--it's a necessary break), and, while walking the dog, it hits you: The nun did it with a weapon she smuggled in under her habit, and you've even figured out how to keep your red herrings intact! You'd better have a way to make a note of that, because there's no telling who you might run into at the park and what might make you forget this ah-ha! moment. Carry a small pad and pen or a mini-recorder with you wherever you go (even your cell phone can do the trick, since you can leave yourself a voicemail noting all the details you need to remember).
You need periods of intense concentration, but you also need to free yourself from those periods so that what's in your head can marinate and so that your subconscious can work things out for you. Never leave your desk without some way to trap the ideas that your subconscious is ready to hurl your way.
2) SURROUND
It makes logical sense that if your mind isn't taking in interesting, new stimuli, it will have no raw ingredients with which to produce something new and interesting. Surround yourself with interesting people and places and things. This doesn't mean you have to spend your retirement fund on a world tour. But it does mean seeking out stimulating places, thought-provoking events, things that challenge you and offer you glimpses of the world you can't get at your desk. For example: museums, theater, out-of-the-ordinary locations. As Robert Epstein, the author of The Big Book of Creativity Games, says, "The more interesting and diverse the things and the people around you, the more interesting your own ideas become."
3) CHALLENGE
In order to unlock your creativity, you have to exercise your brain, which, after all, is a muscle and requires work to grow and strengthen. The best mental exercise is regular challenge, undertaking tasks that we perceive as difficult. Routinely taking the path of least resistance does nothing to sharpen our minds.
If creativity is a manifestation of regular intellectual challenges, then those of us who discover originality and imagination in our work are the ones who don't shy away from the really tough aspects of creation. Rather than immediately skipping to the easiest, most obvious tasks on your list, grapple with the most difficult. Whether or not you tackle them, the attempts will do wonders for boosting your creativity.
How many of us have abandoned a plotline because we didn't know anything about it? (I see a lot of hands out there, and, just so you know, mine is up, too.) Instead, let's accept the challenge and research those topics. You may want to start with the age-old advice "Write what you know," but that should only be a starting point. Try this instead: "Write what you can learn."
If you want creativity to be a regular guest at your mental gathering, you need to tackle challenging things instead of figuring a way to escape them or hand them off to someone else.
4) BROADEN
Expand your knowledge. The act of researching unfamiliar topics fits here, too. Our knee-jerk reaction is to ferret out the things that feel most comfortable and then stay in that well-worn comfort zone. If 'so-so' is your goal, that's all well and good. But if 'spectacular' is what you're after, you'll need to broaden your knowledge and use that miracle organ between your ears to keep learning.
You don't need to enroll in school to do this (although that's certainly one way to go). Watch documentaries about things you'd never dream of picking up for pleasure. Read a great deal, and read outside your genre. If you hear an unusual or thought-provoking fact, don't leave it at the cocktail party where you picked it up: look it up and learn everything you can about it.
If rejuvenated creativity is your goal, you must look outside your usual places to acquire knowledge. This win-win habit will do wonders for your writing (and will make you an even more interesting person to boot!).
What do all of these elements have in common? They're all within your control. Contrary to popular belief, "being creative" isn't a fixed quota threaded into your DNA. Each of us can cultivate it, every day.
I've had a magazine article on creativity I've wanted to share with you for a while now, but I've been saving it for just the right moment. I thought the first newsletter of the New Year would be the best time, the few weeks since many of us have made resolutions involving our craft--writing more, or writing better, or even being more creative.
The thing is, research shows that often the behavior modification that resolutions require only lasts a couple of weeks. A good many of us don't take on those desired habits long enough to really make a lasting change in our behavior. So, in case your motivation has taken a nose-dive since you enthusiastically proclaimed 2009's set of life-changing goals, the information in this newsletter might provide a much-needed boost in momentum. Because, after all, in the endeavor of stringing words together, 'creativity' is truly Word One.
What does creativity mean to you?
Despite agreed-upon definitions, the word often conjures different things for different people. But before we look at how your idea of creativity might vary from mine, let's think about how a dictionary explains it (beyond the most obvious definition springing from its root, 'creative,' the act of creating something):
the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.; originality, progressiveness, or imagination.
I ask you, dear writer, is the ability to transcend traditional ideas and to create new ones exactly the skill you need when you reach for your pen? Isn't imagination the very thing that fuels your stories?
"But wait," you interrupt, "Creativity's not the type of thing I can just call upon when I need it. I can take a class to learn Windows Excel, but I can't take a class and suddenly be more creative. It's a mysterious, elusive trait, a gift that only some of us have."
And I say "Pshaw!" to that. If you've got the will to write, if you are ready to work hard at it, if you're willing to make changes in your life and your ways of thinking and seeing the world, then you will ultimately be creative.
Let's turn to the June/July 2008 issue of Scientific American Mind (www.SciAmMind.com), "The Creative Mind: How to release your inner genius," and more specifically, the article "Let Your Creativity Soar."
Three highly creative (and productive) people answer questions about what it means to be creative and how everyone can unlock creativity in their lives (even people who don't think they possess creativity or would label themselves uncreative). Most notable for our purposes: Julia Cameron, author of The Artist's Way and a thoughtful, respected writer in her own right.
The article dispels the myth that creativity is a magical thing, a fixed characteristic that you're either born with or you're not, like your height or eye color. Keep in mind that young children all exhibit creativity at some point or another (and it seems effortless on their part), especially before first grade. Ironically, socialization stresses conformity and uniformity to some degree, which might be why the most strikingly creative people beyond early grade school are sometimes perceived as 'misfits.' But these are human-made labels based on perceptions, not reality.
So the first thing to tweak is your mindset: if you've been laboring under the assumption that creativity is a finite resource randomly doled out to a lucky few, you need to disabuse yourself of that notion. It's true that some of the steps below will come easier to some than others, but a richer, more creative writing habit is readily within all our reaches.
Cameron comments on the accessibility of creativity and how it can positively impact your life away from your desk, too: "I have found the creative process to be teachable and trackable. I teach people three simple tools, and anyone using those tools has what might be called an awakening. They become much more alert; they become much more friendly in interacting with people--much less threatened by change."
Because her "three simple tools" for writers are slightly different from the four "core competencies" discussed in the bulk of the article (though they do overlap and share truths/advice), I'll mention them before we go any further:
Julia Cameron's tools for getting the most out of your creative writing:
1) Write "morning pages," every morning.
In her own words: "What drew me to working on my creativity was running into a couple of bumps. I had had a blessed decade in my 20s, and then when I got to my 30s I felt thwarted. I was writing movies and selling them to studios, but they weren't getting made. I needed to find a way to maintain equilibrium and optimism in the face of creative despair. I fought my despair with what I call 'morning pages'--three pages of longhand writing about anything: 'I don't like the way Fred talked to me at the office'; 'I need to get the car checked'; 'I forgot to buy kitty litter.' They don't look like they have anything to do with creativity, but in fact, as we put these worries, which are sort of a daily soundtrack for most of us, down on the page, we are suddenly much more alert, aware, focused and available to the moment. And we begin to see that we have many creative choices. As I wrote those pages, new ideas began to walk in." [Emphasis added.]
[Note that Cameron specifies three pages of longhand writing. Most of us are pretty much tethered to the convenience of our computers these days, but research has shown that we stimulate a different part of the brain when we write with pen and paper, versus typing at the keyboard. So, for the richest, most creative writing habit, it's best to set aside time for both.]
2) The artist "date" or "outing."
Cameron tells us to "take an adventure once a week."
I'm sure picking up the dry cleaning or paying your bills doesn't fall under the category of "adventure" in Cameron's definition, so get out there each week and do something novel/stimulating.
And remember Eleanor Roosevelt's related words: "Do one thing every day that scares you."
3) Walk (even for a bit).
Of Cameron's third tool, she explains, "Walk out of the door for 20 minutes or so and see what happens to your thinking. When people walk, they often begin to integrate the insights and intuitions that they have had through morning pages and outings."
Joyce Carol Oates, one of our generation's most prolific writers, says that she spends an hour on a treadmill every morning before she writes. I'm not claiming that regimen will get you to Oates's level of productivity, but there does seem to be a link to getting up and moving our bodies and then being more effective when we sit back down to write. And although Cameron urges us to leave the house to ramble, we don't all live in climates where that's possible year-round. So it's good to know that a writer as successful as Joyce Carol Oates relies on a walking machine.
So there you have it: Julia Cameron's three tools for bringing creativity into your life. Whether or not you're willing to try them, it would be tough to deny how commonsensical and straightforward and simple they are.
Now let's move on to the four "core competencies" for boosting creativity that the article discusses, ways that every one of us can become more creative.
Remember, if you start thinking of creativity as something you need to work for, rather than something akin to a fickle, temperamental muse that you have to wait for, you'll already be taking a huge leap in the right (write!) direction.
Ways to boost your creativity...four core competencies:
1) CAPTURE
In other words, have a means of trapping your ideas when they strike. The best ideas have a tendency of sneaking up on you when you least expect it, when you're not focusing on the problem any longer, like when you're driving or in the shower, automatic activities that don't require full mental/intellectual engagement.
You've been having the worst time figuring out the ending to your mystery novel. Hair-pulling and hand-wringing don't seem to be working, nor does telling yourself to sit down at your desk and pull all the pieces together now.
So you take a breather (please don't call it "giving up"--it's a necessary break), and, while walking the dog, it hits you: The nun did it with a weapon she smuggled in under her habit, and you've even figured out how to keep your red herrings intact! You'd better have a way to make a note of that, because there's no telling who you might run into at the park and what might make you forget this ah-ha! moment. Carry a small pad and pen or a mini-recorder with you wherever you go (even your cell phone can do the trick, since you can leave yourself a voicemail noting all the details you need to remember).
You need periods of intense concentration, but you also need to free yourself from those periods so that what's in your head can marinate and so that your subconscious can work things out for you. Never leave your desk without some way to trap the ideas that your subconscious is ready to hurl your way.
2) SURROUND
It makes logical sense that if your mind isn't taking in interesting, new stimuli, it will have no raw ingredients with which to produce something new and interesting. Surround yourself with interesting people and places and things. This doesn't mean you have to spend your retirement fund on a world tour. But it does mean seeking out stimulating places, thought-provoking events, things that challenge you and offer you glimpses of the world you can't get at your desk. For example: museums, theater, out-of-the-ordinary locations. As Robert Epstein, the author of The Big Book of Creativity Games, says, "The more interesting and diverse the things and the people around you, the more interesting your own ideas become."
3) CHALLENGE
In order to unlock your creativity, you have to exercise your brain, which, after all, is a muscle and requires work to grow and strengthen. The best mental exercise is regular challenge, undertaking tasks that we perceive as difficult. Routinely taking the path of least resistance does nothing to sharpen our minds.
If creativity is a manifestation of regular intellectual challenges, then those of us who discover originality and imagination in our work are the ones who don't shy away from the really tough aspects of creation. Rather than immediately skipping to the easiest, most obvious tasks on your list, grapple with the most difficult. Whether or not you tackle them, the attempts will do wonders for boosting your creativity.
How many of us have abandoned a plotline because we didn't know anything about it? (I see a lot of hands out there, and, just so you know, mine is up, too.) Instead, let's accept the challenge and research those topics. You may want to start with the age-old advice "Write what you know," but that should only be a starting point. Try this instead: "Write what you can learn."
If you want creativity to be a regular guest at your mental gathering, you need to tackle challenging things instead of figuring a way to escape them or hand them off to someone else.
4) BROADEN
Expand your knowledge. The act of researching unfamiliar topics fits here, too. Our knee-jerk reaction is to ferret out the things that feel most comfortable and then stay in that well-worn comfort zone. If 'so-so' is your goal, that's all well and good. But if 'spectacular' is what you're after, you'll need to broaden your knowledge and use that miracle organ between your ears to keep learning.
You don't need to enroll in school to do this (although that's certainly one way to go). Watch documentaries about things you'd never dream of picking up for pleasure. Read a great deal, and read outside your genre. If you hear an unusual or thought-provoking fact, don't leave it at the cocktail party where you picked it up: look it up and learn everything you can about it.
If rejuvenated creativity is your goal, you must look outside your usual places to acquire knowledge. This win-win habit will do wonders for your writing (and will make you an even more interesting person to boot!).
What do all of these elements have in common? They're all within your control. Contrary to popular belief, "being creative" isn't a fixed quota threaded into your DNA. Each of us can cultivate it, every day.
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no subject
Date: 2009-01-22 02:49 pm (UTC)And it's good to know about the creativity thing... and sooo true - until I really started getting into writing Fanfiction I never thought I'd get bunnies... but I do :D I'm so glad JFM made me take that step :D
no subject
Date: 2009-01-22 02:52 pm (UTC)Lots of bunnies waiting out there... ;-)
no subject
Date: 2009-01-22 02:57 pm (UTC)It's the research... I do little bits, but I should do more and step out of that comfort zone... although I haven't had many bunnies to make me really do that. But I suppose for a original bunny, I would definitely need to do some research... like how long it takes bricks/buildings to decay? lol! ..maybe one day I will start working on an original story :D