Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Solitude and Creativity for the Writer

Writing is a solitary occupation. Putting words on paper--or the computer screen--involves a lot of concentration. As an author, I record my daydreams and then offer them to others for their entertainment. If readers enjoy my story, they might buy another one of my creations. If not, I have to come up with a better flight of fancy.

Ideas are everywhere, but a book must be specific--it cannot wander around as real life does. There must be a point to the story and it needs a beginning, a middle, and an end. That process takes a great deal of thought. Sometimes I hit a dead end when I'm writing. Sometimes I'm not sure I'm leading my characters along the right road.

I've found the creative process can often be nurtured with solitude. When I was younger and raising three small children, sometimes the only solitude I could find was in a trip to the supermarket or a session of folding laundry in my bedroom. Now that I'm older, I find a quiet walk conducive in stimulating my mind.

I found several interesting articles on solitude and creativity but this one, The Lost Art of Solitude, by Leo Babauta, offers a good guide to finding some quiet space to allow your imagination to flourish.

Give solitude a try.

6 comments:

Rose Anderson said...

That about sums me up too, Penelope. Sometimes I find it hard to socialize because there's a story simmering on the back burner of my imagination.

Rose

Penelope Marzec said...

Rose,

Yes, sometimes I want to be a hermit, too. :^) Seeing new places and experiencing new things can also spark imagination. But if I'm working on a story I get rather caught up in it and like to keep at it until it's finished.

Doree L Anderson said...

Your picture, the quiet of the world around her is my solitude. Those pictures become my salvation. I close my eyes and allow them to put me there so the world around me falls away. There are times that I think a 'hold' button on reality should be invented. Great article, Penelope, Thanks.

Chicki Brown said...

My creative process differs from day to day. I've discovered that I do my best writing by the ocean, but considering that I live four hours from the coast, it only happens when I'm on vacation. When the weather's good, sometimes I go to a local lake to write.

Other times, which are more frequent, I like the buzz of people around me, and I work at a coffeehouse with my earbuds in while I listen to smooth jazz.

Penelope Marzec said...

I do my best writing on rainy, gloomy days. :^) I've tried writing outdoors a few times, but I get distracted by birds, chipmunks, and squirrels.

Leann said...

I think I've decided that fiction writing is not my 'thing'. I feel I would do better with either true life writing or procedural writing, something like that.