Naming the reasons why you are presently not creating will not help you change, any more than naming the safety features of an airplane will help a phobic person fly. The solution isn't in naming the excuses but in doing what cognitive therapists call "desensitization through successive approximations." This translates as "growing less fearful by taking baby steps."
The author recommends minuscule exercises. For artists, he says to just squeeze a dab of paint and study it. Don't paint a picture...yet.
Novelists just need to write one sentence.
Screenwriter: Do not start your screenplay. Just picture one scene. Picture it for a few seconds, then let it go. That's all. End of exercise.
I can do that. Even when stuck, or blocked, I can take a small baby step.
I started my creative writing class last week. One of the exercises is to write just for 10 minutes every day in a journal. I woke up late but plan to get my 10 minutes in very soon before this day is over. I'm amazed at just the little bit of imagination that has been awakened just from doing that particular exercise. There are other assignments too and I'm excited to be 'waking up' from this writer's block I've been experiencing. I hope you have a good experience too!
ReplyDeleteIt does feel good to get the 'ol creative juices flowing again, huh? I am excited to hear more about your class!
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