Dreaming It Up
Some stories come to you out of nowhere, demanding to be committed to paper. Some characters just drop in on you like unexpected house guests and take up residence in your skull until you agree to tell their tale. I think that every writer has probably experienced this kind of inspiration. It's what moves many to embrace the calling. Later, at times when the writer sits down to consciously create something, it can be maddeningly frustrating that similar inspiration isn't on the same timetable.
But those flashes of ideas aren't really from nowhere. Although the concepts may seem new to you, they are really the product of your own brain working without your conscious direction. It's a feat of ordinary magic that your mind takes in disparate elements from your life and your environment, mixes them together and presents you with something you didn't even realize you were thinking about. We all do this, writer or not, and call it dreaming. The chief difference is that the writer has trained himself to pay attention to these flashes of "inspiration" and interpret them through his storytelling skills. With a mind familiar with the patterns of story, filled with the tools of vocabulary and metaphor, this natural habit of blending fragments of ideas can produce complex and interesting tales, real, solid and believable stories.
There is another facet to this magic of dreams and inspiration, and it's one that can be accessed on demand with a little practice. A writer needs not sit before a blank page or computer screen wishing they had been struck with the perfect idea. Neither do they have to force a story that may ultimately disappoint their desire to write something even the author finds fresh and exciting. The biggest problem with consciously crafting a story is picking out elements, subjects and plotlines that aren't just the same old thing. Recognizing the natural process your mind uses in inspiration or dreams can help you recreate it when you want to fill that empty page.
Both dreams and inspiration occur when we set our minds free. Relax. Anxiously wondering what you should write will only sabotage your ability to come up with something worthwhile. Let your mind wander to things you've been thinking of, discussions you've had, or things you've seen. Every one of us is taking in hundreds of images and ideas every day. Some may cause an instant reaction, or they may linger in the back of your mind. Take note of these because they may strike a reader the same. Others may be fluff, and they're not worthless either. In the right place, a random bit of colour can enhance a piece of writing. How do those elements fit together? You may think you've gathered images and ideas that are completely unconnected, but if you step aside and let your amazing mind do what it does naturally, connections will start to appear. Drop by drop, the tale will coalesce until you find yourself swept away by the current of it.
Certainly, this takes practice. A writer must write (and read) to develop the skills to set it all down in an engaging style. But, the task of imagining it could not be more natural. It's what humans do; when faced with randomness, we try to make sense of it. Automatically. We're dealt a hand of cards, and we start putting them in an order. We see a painting of spots or streaks, and we find an image in it. We see faces in the fog or animals in the clouds. It's what we were designed to do.
If you make a habit of recording your imaginings this way, you may never face writer's block again. It doesn't even matter if your first attempts aren't your best. Have faith in the process and in the knowledge that we were made to dream things up.
But those flashes of ideas aren't really from nowhere. Although the concepts may seem new to you, they are really the product of your own brain working without your conscious direction. It's a feat of ordinary magic that your mind takes in disparate elements from your life and your environment, mixes them together and presents you with something you didn't even realize you were thinking about. We all do this, writer or not, and call it dreaming. The chief difference is that the writer has trained himself to pay attention to these flashes of "inspiration" and interpret them through his storytelling skills. With a mind familiar with the patterns of story, filled with the tools of vocabulary and metaphor, this natural habit of blending fragments of ideas can produce complex and interesting tales, real, solid and believable stories.
There is another facet to this magic of dreams and inspiration, and it's one that can be accessed on demand with a little practice. A writer needs not sit before a blank page or computer screen wishing they had been struck with the perfect idea. Neither do they have to force a story that may ultimately disappoint their desire to write something even the author finds fresh and exciting. The biggest problem with consciously crafting a story is picking out elements, subjects and plotlines that aren't just the same old thing. Recognizing the natural process your mind uses in inspiration or dreams can help you recreate it when you want to fill that empty page.
Both dreams and inspiration occur when we set our minds free. Relax. Anxiously wondering what you should write will only sabotage your ability to come up with something worthwhile. Let your mind wander to things you've been thinking of, discussions you've had, or things you've seen. Every one of us is taking in hundreds of images and ideas every day. Some may cause an instant reaction, or they may linger in the back of your mind. Take note of these because they may strike a reader the same. Others may be fluff, and they're not worthless either. In the right place, a random bit of colour can enhance a piece of writing. How do those elements fit together? You may think you've gathered images and ideas that are completely unconnected, but if you step aside and let your amazing mind do what it does naturally, connections will start to appear. Drop by drop, the tale will coalesce until you find yourself swept away by the current of it.
Certainly, this takes practice. A writer must write (and read) to develop the skills to set it all down in an engaging style. But, the task of imagining it could not be more natural. It's what humans do; when faced with randomness, we try to make sense of it. Automatically. We're dealt a hand of cards, and we start putting them in an order. We see a painting of spots or streaks, and we find an image in it. We see faces in the fog or animals in the clouds. It's what we were designed to do.
If you make a habit of recording your imaginings this way, you may never face writer's block again. It doesn't even matter if your first attempts aren't your best. Have faith in the process and in the knowledge that we were made to dream things up.
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