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.
Imagine that the rush of inspiration flooding through you, and you are so close to your characters, desperately wondering what will happen to them, how they will be saved. All you see is your story unfolding before the mind's eye and you race to record all that is happening. This is the time when you are not focused on which word to choose, or the keystrokes your fingers must make. Imagine if your writing could be like that.
This is the writer's paradise, this is the Flow.
The Flow is also the difference writing 500 words an hour and writing 2,500 words, which is a very big difference. When you are in the flow, you write faster, more coherently and easily. Isn't that a joy? You will have better books, with less pain.
The strategy in achieving this flow has a prerequisite. You might be wondering how to do this. Where can you find this magical land? Does it involve drugs? No, no drugs. Nothing illegal, or immoral, or anything that might make you fat. Instead, you must be able to understand the key elements that make up the Flow.
The Flow requires a combination of elements; 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.
YOUR BODY'S REQUIREMENTS
Your aim is to still all the body's normal shouting in order to focus in on the world inside your mind. Think of your body like a faithful dog. If you want to get anything done, you should 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, and it then has no more right to complain, as long as your writing space is comfortable.
YOUR ENVIRONMENT
You cannot control all that is in your environment, such as the screaming child next door. You can minimize these things, but you can also learn to ignore them. Noise-cancelling earphones are very helpful if you live somewhere particularly noisy.
In your home however, there are aspects which you can control. Find a spot in your house where you can write comfortably. Make sure that you can sit up without hurting your back and you can type effectively. 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
Creating a sense of anticipation is the most important aspect about the writing session. There are ways to make this easy for you. Firstly, lay out exactly 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.
If you work these elements of feeding your body, preparing your environment, training yourself through ritual and building anticipation, you can expect the Flow to find you every time you write.
Imagine that the rush of inspiration flooding through you, and you are so close to your characters, desperately wondering what will happen to them, how they will be saved. All you see is your story unfolding before the mind's eye and you race to record all that is happening. This is the time when you are not focused on which word to choose, or the keystrokes your fingers must make. Imagine if your writing could be like that.
This is the writer's paradise, this is the Flow.
The Flow is also the difference writing 500 words an hour and writing 2,500 words, which is a very big difference. When you are in the flow, you write faster, more coherently and easily. Isn't that a joy? You will have better books, with less pain.
The strategy in achieving this flow has a prerequisite. You might be wondering how to do this. Where can you find this magical land? Does it involve drugs? No, no drugs. Nothing illegal, or immoral, or anything that might make you fat. Instead, you must be able to understand the key elements that make up the Flow.
The Flow requires a combination of elements; 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.
YOUR BODY'S REQUIREMENTS
Your aim is to still all the body's normal shouting in order to focus in on the world inside your mind. Think of your body like a faithful dog. If you want to get anything done, you should 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, and it then has no more right to complain, as long as your writing space is comfortable.
YOUR ENVIRONMENT
You cannot control all that is in your environment, such as the screaming child next door. You can minimize these things, but you can also learn to ignore them. Noise-cancelling earphones are very helpful if you live somewhere particularly noisy.
In your home however, there are aspects which you can control. Find a spot in your house where you can write comfortably. Make sure that you can sit up without hurting your back and you can type effectively. 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
Creating a sense of anticipation is the most important aspect about the writing session. There are ways to make this easy for you. Firstly, lay out exactly 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.
If you work these elements of feeding your body, preparing your environment, training yourself through ritual and building anticipation, you can expect the Flow to find you every time you write.
About the Author:
This is an extract from Elizabeth (Buffy) Greentree's new book The Five Day Writer's Retreat. Get more advice 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.. This article, How To Write Faster By Using The Creative Flow is released under a creative commons attribution license.
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