In Pursuit of Creativity
I’ve always found the psychology of the writer, or any artist, fascinating.
I wonder more about how ideas are created than the mechanics of the art itself. My aim is to replicate what great minds do in their writing — generate a unique idea.
Not ideas have to be novel for them to work but I do believe that they have to be genuine, unique to the author.
I also believe that you have to be creative at every stage of the writing process. It’s a great feeling to have a spark of a new idea to pursue, but it’s not necessarily the spark that fades as we keep writing but our ability to see new things. We’re trapped in the ideas we’ve already had, thoughts we’ve already committed on paper.
We resist changes because we’ve already developed a character, built a structure to our story, and made several other decisions about plot, style, and tone.
I don’t want to be inflexible.
I want to be able to change my story even during the rewriting and editing process. I want to continue to create inside my story instead of trudging along the path because I’ve already laid it out. I don’t need to begrudge myself the opportunity because it’s more work or time.
Lately I’ve been meditating. During these meditations, my mind often wanders to my story.
During today’s visualization exercise, I was asked to envision climbing a mountain. When I looked up, it was steep and overwhelming. It gave me pause. But I wasn’t to envision overtaking it and sitting at the top. I was just asked to take the next few steps. A few more.
Then to take in the surrounding sights. To engage my senses and appreciate the trek.
With each step, my confidence grew. Eventually, I my senses were engaged and not even focused on the severity of the climb. A few times my mind wandered, a few times I imagined taking a different approach to the path. I even stopped. But I never doubted I would keep going.
It reminded me of the journey toward the story I’m writing. I know that the top of my mountain is a published story.
But why does it have to be this one? The one that exists right now, in my mind or on the page. Why can’t it be a reformed version or one completely overhauled? Why can’t I stop to enjoy the view along the way?
All of these things are possible.
It made me realize that I don’t want a polished copy of the story I started out with in my head. It’s not the same story anymore and neither I the same person.
A friend once told me that growth can only happen when you’re no longer what you used to be. It seems obvious but we resistant that growth because the change is unfamiliar territory. The end product, story or me, might not be recognizable. But I started this journey because I wanted to be a different person than I was at the beginning.
The next step is letting myself become that writer.
This story was never meant to be finished by me. It was meant to be finished by the person I’m growing into.
That’s how I want to keep pursuing the journey toward creativity. By giving myself the space, the opportunity, and the freedom to find it.
