Some writers go to a secret place of wonder and mystery. This magical place, where you become unconscious of the words or even turning the page, the bed you lie on or the world around you. As a reader, your mind sees only what is happening in the story. You find yourself feeling as if you have devoured the book before you know it.
When your writing is just like that, you will become less focused on which word to choose, or the keystrokes your fingers must make. Your story is unfolding before your mind's eye and you scramble to write what is going on. The rush of inspiration flooding through you will make you feel elated, and you are so close to your characters, desperately wondering what will happen to them, how they will be saved. Imagine if your writing could be like that.
This is the writer's paradise, this is the Flow.
The flow will make you write faster, more coherently and easily. What is not to love about that? You will have better books, more often, with less pain and more joy. The greatest difference can be determined when you are able to write 2,500 words an hour, compared to your previous rate of 500 words.
'But how'? You plead. Where can you find this magical land? Does it involve drugs? No, no drugs. Nothing illegal, immoral, or anything that might make you fat. Instead, to capture it you first need to understand the key elements that make up the Flow.
Stilling all of your body's shouting, training yourself to know when to perform, and giving your genius time to come up with the goods by building anticipation. These are the elements required to be in the flow.
YOUR BODY'S REQUIREMENTS
In order to focus in on the world inside your mind, your aim is to still all the body's normal shouting. Imagine your body is like a faithful dog. It has no right to complain if you take it for a walk and then give it a bone before sitting down, or else it will keep on nagging you. A short walk, a banana or something healthy and filling, along with a good drink. You should do this if you want to get something done, and make sure your writing space is comfortable.
YOUR ENVIRONMENT
Your environment can sometimes be hard to control. You can hear screaming children next door. But what you need to do is to ignore them, if ever you cannot minimize the noise. Noise-cancelling earphones are very appropriate if you live somewhere particularly noisy.
However, there are many aspects that you can control. It is ideal to find that perfect space in your house that allows you to write. Ultimately, the ability to sit up without hurting your back and to type effectively are musts, so all special places need some practical elements.
TRAINING YOUR SELF
Entering the Flow will become more natural and automatic if you train yourself to always expect to write at a set time, in a certain place. Through ritual, you can train yourself the easiest. When you sit in this particular chair, after doing these same things, your subconscious knows that it is time to start coughing up the goods. The more ritual you can create, the easier it will be to convince your youth to come out and play.
CREATING ANTICIPATION
You should be able to create a sense of anticipation about your writing session. There are a number of ways to do this. Firstly, think of how much you plan to get done in this session. Let it be a number that excites you but also scares you just a little bit. Secondly, spend time before your session, such as on your way home from work, thinking about your writing and how much fun this session will be. Thirdly, try finishing each session before you have completed the idea, that way next time you sit down, you'll know exactly where to start and already be excited.
When you have done feeding your body, preparing your environment, training yourself through ritual and building anticipation, the Flow will find you every time you write.
When your writing is just like that, you will become less focused on which word to choose, or the keystrokes your fingers must make. Your story is unfolding before your mind's eye and you scramble to write what is going on. The rush of inspiration flooding through you will make you feel elated, and you are so close to your characters, desperately wondering what will happen to them, how they will be saved. Imagine if your writing could be like that.
This is the writer's paradise, this is the Flow.
The flow will make you write faster, more coherently and easily. What is not to love about that? You will have better books, more often, with less pain and more joy. The greatest difference can be determined when you are able to write 2,500 words an hour, compared to your previous rate of 500 words.
'But how'? You plead. Where can you find this magical land? Does it involve drugs? No, no drugs. Nothing illegal, immoral, or anything that might make you fat. Instead, to capture it you first need to understand the key elements that make up the Flow.
Stilling all of your body's shouting, training yourself to know when to perform, and giving your genius time to come up with the goods by building anticipation. These are the elements required to be in the flow.
YOUR BODY'S REQUIREMENTS
In order to focus in on the world inside your mind, your aim is to still all the body's normal shouting. Imagine your body is like a faithful dog. It has no right to complain if you take it for a walk and then give it a bone before sitting down, or else it will keep on nagging you. A short walk, a banana or something healthy and filling, along with a good drink. You should do this if you want to get something done, and make sure your writing space is comfortable.
YOUR ENVIRONMENT
Your environment can sometimes be hard to control. You can hear screaming children next door. But what you need to do is to ignore them, if ever you cannot minimize the noise. Noise-cancelling earphones are very appropriate if you live somewhere particularly noisy.
However, there are many aspects that you can control. It is ideal to find that perfect space in your house that allows you to write. Ultimately, the ability to sit up without hurting your back and to type effectively are musts, so all special places need some practical elements.
TRAINING YOUR SELF
Entering the Flow will become more natural and automatic if you train yourself to always expect to write at a set time, in a certain place. Through ritual, you can train yourself the easiest. When you sit in this particular chair, after doing these same things, your subconscious knows that it is time to start coughing up the goods. The more ritual you can create, the easier it will be to convince your youth to come out and play.
CREATING ANTICIPATION
You should be able to create a sense of anticipation about your writing session. There are a number of ways to do this. Firstly, think of how much you plan to get done in this session. Let it be a number that excites you but also scares you just a little bit. Secondly, spend time before your session, such as on your way home from work, thinking about your writing and how much fun this session will be. Thirdly, try finishing each session before you have completed the idea, that way next time you sit down, you'll know exactly where to start and already be excited.
When you have done feeding your body, preparing your environment, training yourself through ritual and building anticipation, the Flow will find you every time you write.
About the Author:
This is an extract from Elizabeth Greentree's new book The Five Day Writer's Retreat. For more great tips on preparing for a lifestyle of writing, sign up to the The Five Day Writer's newsletter for a free copy of the book, or find it on Amazon.
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