Underrated Writing Tips…
Welcome back to Written Mirror’s Underrated Writing Tips. Articles that help you maximise your creative potential. Once again, these are written from the point of view of a storyteller. However, you can apply this to other forms of creativity if you’re really clever, which, I know you are ;-).
Here are a few underrated writing tips to help you squeeze some extra juice from your creativity.
- Meditation is key!
- Mindfulness is not a swear word!
- Diet is King!
- Rest IS allowed…
- Asking for help is BRAVE not COWARDLY…
- Surface reading does NOT count…
- Binge watching is research in bulk!
- You ARE allowed a guilty pleasure
Taken by Radu Emanuel
Meditation Is Key!
Before you dismiss this point as mumbo jumbo, kindly answer this question. Do your thoughts/words/Ideas ALWAYS come out exactly how you plan? If they do, you my dear clever clogs would not be reading this! So how about you sit back and listen to Uncle Jay for a second. Get it? Got it? Good!
Meditation in its purest form is about relieving the body of negative energy. Removing this energy/aura leaves you a lot more room for clever/creative energy. Addition by subtraction as they say…
I will meditate then levitate to get the job done. – Mullings, J (2015) The Thought Book. London: Written Mirror
Taken by Leslie Jay
Mindfulness Is Not A Swear Word!
It might have become a popular buzzword, but that shouldn’t put you off. Mindfulness is about anchoring your thoughts, actions and feelings in the present. Think about how much more effective you can be with less negative energy and a focus on the present alone. Now think about unleashing this new potential on your creative endeavours. Oh the possibilities…
Taken by Ja-Ma
Diet Is King!
The body is a temple. You are solely responsible for its upkeep. While some of us introduce unorthodox substances (I’m not here to judge) into our bodies for inspiration, we all tend to overlook the importance of the food we use to fuel us. Better nutrition, better thoughts, better work. You can literally get the creative juices flowing…
Taken by Nomao Saeki
Rest Is Allowed…
Whosoever subscribes to the notion that EVERY writer does so daily is misguided to say the least. Only FEW of us are blessed enough to be daily writers. Therefore, the vast majority DON’T. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. You can become a more consistent writer even if you’re not the daily variety. You shouldn’t allow yourself to feel guilty for resting or taking breaks. Think of it like overtraining. You might see/feel some benefit psychologically, however, you’re also likely to plateau just as easily.
Take your rest when you need it and come back with a full tank. Notice I said; “When you need it…” do not make it a WANT situation. If overall your desire to rest is greater than your desire to write; you’re going to struggle in your career. UNLESS of course, you do what all writers have silently hoped for and invent technology to have your thoughts automatically transcribed coherently. Lord help us all when we find out that is how ‘Skynet’ eventually becomes autonomous and gets us! Is it worth the risk? Wrong question, is it worth the extinction of humanity?
Taken by Elijah Hiett
Asking For Help Is Brave Not Cowardly
Do the right thing when you’re genuinely stuck, ask for help. Or better yet, offer your help to someone in exchange for theirs. We only tolerate isolated heroes in action films. In real life, you call in the cavalry GODDAMMIT! I’m really sorry, I love a good goddammit, couldn’t resist. Seriously, getting help is okay. If you don’t have a mentor get one! If you have a mentor, get help!
Surface Reading Does Not Count
We know you can skim with the best of them. However, if you’re serious about your research, you owe it to yourself to really soak in the content. Read with humility, avoid stubborn pride (I’ll only read every page once, EVEN, if I don’t get it!). In addition, make notes, record things you disagree with and delve even deeper by finding opposing arguments that support your well reasoned point of view. Armed with a deeper understanding and further research, you’ll glide through pages like a hot knife through butter…
Taken by Mr Chen
Binge Watching Is Research In Bulk
Yes I said it! You can binge watch to your hearts content! Pump the breaks a second; what I mean to say is, provided you do the work, grouping things into one sitting is absolutely fine. Just clearing the air before you blame me for missed deadlines J…
Taken by Erol Hamed
You Are Allowed A Guilty Pleasure
You’re allowed a cheat day (Eat what you like) when you train. Similarly, when you write, you’re allowed a guilty pleasure or two. You’re absolutely allowed to have things you like doing which take you away from writing. For example, I like tennis marathons, travel, movies and cooking. It’s good for morale and has the ability to let your idea/writing marinate in the background. You may not have time for a long rest/detox, and this is exactly where your guilty pleasure comes in.
Share Your Underrated Writing Tips
Thank you for reading my underrated writing tips. Share examples of your underrated methods in the comments below. If you’ve found this article helpful, please check out the others in the series by clicking the links below. We also welcome you sharing them with your peers. Finally, thank you again for reading another Written Mirror Writing Tips article.
https://writtenmirror.com/category/blog/writing-tips/
https://writtenmirror.com/2017/09/silence-blank-page-anxiety
