It has been too long. Having kept (or attempted to keep) a journal for as long as I have, I will admit that I have written this opening line many times. It used to be that if it had been long enough between entries, I would give up on that journal all together and start a new one. There is something clean about continuity. But this is about life and even the most disciplined life is still messy.
As someone who is building a career with writing, it is worth reflecting on this process of not writing and why this happens. What has kept me from writing? The first observation I can make when I pose this question to myself is all of the “not enoughs” that emerge: there is not enough to write about, there is not enough time, not the right topic for this format, etc. So now that I can identify these walls, I can determine how to scale them. The truth is that I am responsible for making time and being inspired by my daily life to know that the only shortage occurs when I reach a wall and I walk away.
Whenever I have taught a writing workshop, I have always begun at the same place. Natalie Goldberg talks about this idea of “First Thoughts” in her book Writing Down the Bones. She gives 6 guidelines for a writing practice. These need not to apply only to aspiring writers; I believe these guidelines are useful for anyone who desires to be in touch with their inner selves. You may write about a certain topic or just submit to the utter randomness that will escape your pen. In fact, that’s really the point. When we write without a sense of attachment or judgement, we are surprised or even startled when we get to the end. Try it.
1. Keep your hand moving. (Don’t pause to reread the line you have just written.)
2. Don’t cross out. (Even if you write something you didn’t mean to write, leave it.)
3. Don’t worry about spelling, punctuation, grammar. (Don’t even care above staying within the margins and lines of the page.)
4. Lose control.
5. Don’t think. Don’t get logical.
6. Go for the jugular. (If something comes up in your writing that is scary or naked, dive right into it.)
The idea is to just get the thoughts out before we even have a chance to stop it. This is the basis for a writing practice. I will say that when I am actively engaging in a first thoughts exercise, even just a few times a week, I am writing more in general. I think of this exercise as draining our brains of unwanted clutter. This may not be the intention with the last guideline, “Go for the jugular,” but I like to think of it as so. the jugular brings used deoxygenated blood (old ideas) from the brain to the heart. Our arms, and hands by association, are extensions of the heart so when we write it is as if we are bringing those ideas out into the world via our pen. And just like when any blood is released from our body it is red, those ideas, once in the light, always seem brighter than when they did just collecting dust in our head.
So, it is Spring. I think this mind of mine needs some good cleaning.
As someone who is building a career with writing, it is worth reflecting on this process of not writing and why this happens. What has kept me from writing? The first observation I can make when I pose this question to myself is all of the “not enoughs” that emerge: there is not enough to write about, there is not enough time, not the right topic for this format, etc. So now that I can identify these walls, I can determine how to scale them. The truth is that I am responsible for making time and being inspired by my daily life to know that the only shortage occurs when I reach a wall and I walk away.
Whenever I have taught a writing workshop, I have always begun at the same place. Natalie Goldberg talks about this idea of “First Thoughts” in her book Writing Down the Bones. She gives 6 guidelines for a writing practice. These need not to apply only to aspiring writers; I believe these guidelines are useful for anyone who desires to be in touch with their inner selves. You may write about a certain topic or just submit to the utter randomness that will escape your pen. In fact, that’s really the point. When we write without a sense of attachment or judgement, we are surprised or even startled when we get to the end. Try it.
1. Keep your hand moving. (Don’t pause to reread the line you have just written.)
2. Don’t cross out. (Even if you write something you didn’t mean to write, leave it.)
3. Don’t worry about spelling, punctuation, grammar. (Don’t even care above staying within the margins and lines of the page.)
4. Lose control.
5. Don’t think. Don’t get logical.
6. Go for the jugular. (If something comes up in your writing that is scary or naked, dive right into it.)
The idea is to just get the thoughts out before we even have a chance to stop it. This is the basis for a writing practice. I will say that when I am actively engaging in a first thoughts exercise, even just a few times a week, I am writing more in general. I think of this exercise as draining our brains of unwanted clutter. This may not be the intention with the last guideline, “Go for the jugular,” but I like to think of it as so. the jugular brings used deoxygenated blood (old ideas) from the brain to the heart. Our arms, and hands by association, are extensions of the heart so when we write it is as if we are bringing those ideas out into the world via our pen. And just like when any blood is released from our body it is red, those ideas, once in the light, always seem brighter than when they did just collecting dust in our head.
So, it is Spring. I think this mind of mine needs some good cleaning.
