Sometimes I try to write like I am following a recipe. And why not? It works very well for food. But, as I have discovered, not so much for writing. My point being, with writing, the more you realize there is no right way to do it, the better off you are. Following a recipe is not creative or playful. Creation is about play, about discovering who you are. How can another person tell you anything about that?
Okay. I should say that all of these deep thoughts are inspired by The Artist’s Way, which I just got through reading. I have so many new insights as a result, that if I could, I would share them with the world.
On a side note, which is probably a topic for another blog, sometimes I am afraid because, in the process of self-discovery, I realize that my imagination is often sparked by things of a dark nature. Why is that? I don’t want to pretend, so instead, I discover that I just might be bad. But that’s what writing is all about, right? Tell the truth, Stephen King always said.
To play is to discover and you can’t discover without exploring. Creative energy is God’s energy, and sometimes He lets us tap into a bit of it. I believe that’s what play is.
There are no rules, and we must make mistakes as part of the process. All work, all writing, no matter how bad, comes to good because it equals growth. Growth of you, of your inner child who would like very much to come out and play, thank you, and of discovery.
I use my imagination more after reading that book, even when I’m not writing. It’s like my senses have been turned up a notch and the world is mine. The warm pavement under my bare feet, and the way it contrasts with the cool, wet grass. The warm spring breeze. Even cooking has become a process of creation and discovery. Everything has been made to be a little more like play. Sometimes I feel too full of all of these senses and all I can do to release them is to write.
“Man is asked to make of himself what he is supposed to become to fulfill his destiny.”
-Paul Tillich
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