7 ideas to stimulate creativity – Hammock thoughts
What do you do when it’s time to write and there is nothing to write about?
It’s not often that I need to ask my brain for a thought or a topic. It is close to never that my brain has nothing to say in response to this request.
I’m picturing my brain now as a chagrined little boy shrugging his shoulders with hand palms up and empty pockets turned out and an expression of “Sorry, I got nuthin…”
My whole life my brain has pushed on me unbidden a stream of good topics. I’ve always, had queued up a line of things, whether to talk about, think about or write about. The fact is that one of the reasons I began writing was that the thoughts crammed up in my brain threatened to overwhelm me if I didn’t find a safety valve.
I don’t get writer’s block, because I know the tricks to tease my creative engine to sputtering, smoky life. I will share these with you.
What I have found is that the creative act is like weaving a tapestry of ideas and sometimes the most important thread is the first one. Constructing the tapestry can be a mechanical action or a flight of fancy, but if you don’t lay down that first thread, you can’t start.
Number one: Start without direction. Get the creative engine jump started.
Many of us won’t start creating until we have a fully formed vision of what it is we want to build. If we can’t visualize the entire piece or at least a cohesive outline, we won’t start working.
If you have an idea or the spark of an idea you can start by writing a list or an outline and then mechanically craft a cohesive piece from this. Even if you have only a couple bullet points, I’ve found that as you begin to expand and describe those bullet points related and co-located ideas will begin to flow to fill out the structure of the piece.
Many times as you flesh out the outline fragments the reason you were stuck will become obvious. You will realize that you were missing something or coming at it with bad assumptions, form the wrong angle and a new, better approach will emerge.
In order for any of this creative act to happen you have to start. Even if you don’t know where you are going it’s always better to start and find your way.
Another unstructured approach that I use is to just start writing words and prose fragments that really have no meaning, but they have some sort of music. Instead of trying to direct the flow of words towards a theme or structure I’ll just let them flow out as a freeform poetry of sorts.
No one will ever read this poetry but my creative safety valve has been opened and the creative act has begun. A few hundred pretty words and phrases of nonsense can get your process jump started.
Again, the point here is to start. Once you start the momentum of creativity takes over and you relax into the process. Remember folks, it’s not necessary that everything you create is prize-winning material. Your job is to get it out and form it into a reasonable shape. Let your readers figure out if it is worthwhile.
I am continuously surprised at my inability to determine what people will find value in. Stuff I think is throw-away crap will resonate and stuff that I love will fall flat. You learn to be the pilot and the guide, not the judge.
Number two – Get some stimulus.
Different people have different brain chemistry. I can tell you what effects my brain chemistry and impacts the balance of creativity. I’m not talking about drugs and alcohol although these obviously work for many creative types. I’m not recommending paying that price even if it means a ‘Naked Lunch’ or ‘Tropic of Cancer’ for you.
That being said I do find a strong cup of good coffee to be a wonderful stimulus for my own creativity. I also love to put some good music on my ear buds, partly to block out the annoyances of the public but also to draw energy from the music’s tone and cadence. For me, some good Ska and Punk Rock causes me to type like a dervish-Kerouac.
Many, if not most, writers get inspiration from reading. I get many ideas from listening to podcasts these days. If I have a flash I’ll try to capture it in a holding area so I can use it later when I’m in need of a topic.
Don’t be dependent on stimulus. Don’t use stimulus as a excuse to procrastinate. But, do find out what stimuli work for you and help you to get into the ‘zone’ of creativity.
Number three – Find a grain of sand.
Like an Oyster creating a pearl, you may need to find that grain of sand to wrap your creativity around. You can look for these anywhere. Just look around. The art on the walls, the magazine in front of you, the people around you, pop-culture artifacts…any small thing in the flotsam and jetsam of modern life that floats around us could provide that kernel of an idea for you to wrap 800 words around.
Marketing and advertising are always fertile ground for absurdities to comment on. Look for conflicts and take a side. Look for the ridiculous and scatological – we are surrounded by it. Just start describing how it makes you feel and what it reminds you of and you are off and running on your next masterpiece.
Number Four – Think descriptive.
Once you find some grain of sand that interests you, describe it in detail. Like your 5th grade English teacher taught you, use your senses and describe it in such a way that your audience feels the way you feel, sees what you see, hears what you hear and smells what you smell. That’s 500 words right h there!
Number Five – Think conversation.
Look around you and watch the people. Who are they? What are they thinking and what kind of conversation would they have with you? With each other? Begin to describe and construct that conversation.
People are interesting. Wrap a narrative around it.
Number six – Think small.
There is a story from “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” where Phaedrus is trying to teach a writing course to college students. He gives them an assignment to write a thousand words on the college town.
One young woman just can’t do it. She can’t get started and she can’t do it.
He then tells her to just write about the main street of the town.
She still can’t do it.
He tells her to write about one building.
She still can’t do it.
Finally he tells her to just describe one brick in that building.
She begins to describe the brick and her writing blooms from there. She can’t stop at a thousand words because she has too much to say.
If you are having trouble wrapping your head around a topic, write about, describe the brick.
Number seven – Break your rules.
Don’t fall into the trap of making up self-rules that keep you from creating.
“I’m only creative in the morning.”
“I can’t write unless I have a warm cup of peppermint tea and Beethoven.”
Apologies to Ludvig Van, but you’re creating excuses and being lazy. The only thing stopping you from being creative is your inability to get started. How do I know? Because an hour ago I was staring at a blank piece of paper and now I have provided you with 1300 cohesive words that will help you change your life for the better.
There’s life and then there’s meta-life!
Great post and great ideas Chris. When I am really stuck for an idea I go take a shower and talk to myself. It works every time.
You’re never stuck for an idea!