Harnessing the Kinetic Energy of Writing, and What Happens if You Don’t
By Heather Webb | January 25, 2018 |
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Everyone here at Writer Unboxed thinks of themselves as a writer; someone who loves words, appreciates beautiful craft, and spends many dedicated hours on their storytelling. But at the core, we’re more than just wordsmiths. We are creators. This is a hugely important distinction.
The word creator is far more accurate a depiction of what we do because creator gives all of that wordsmithing power and energy. Merriam-Webster’s definition of create is to bring into existence, or to produce through imaginative skill. Creators bring people, places, and events into existence. Creators evoke emotions. Creators produce worlds through our imaginative skills. As writers–creators–this is precisely what we do.
And just think of the energy that entails.
We’ve all seen the stereotypes of artists pacing and staying up all hours of the night, their houses and studios in disarray as they create that next perfect portrait, sculpture, etc. There’s so much movement happening within their studio space–the pacing and hair-pulling, sure, but there’s another kind of movement happening. The movement happens as an idea is sparked. The same thing is true for writers–there is so much movement happening inside us, even while sitting at our desks. As we create and bring something/someone into existence, there is a load of dynamic, kinetic energy being expelled.
Say you’re working on your protagonist’s motivations. Despite sitting still, you’re digging deeply into someone’s psyche, like excavating a mine, chipping away black rock to find diamonds. Those diamonds are nodes of emotion we need to tap into, in order to understand our characters hearts and souls, in order to understand what they want and what they need. This mining takes an intense and dynamic sort of energy that needs to be both focused and steady, and also extremely active. In other words, kinetic.
Which leads to my point today.
Creative energy, while often wonderful, powerful, and SO FULL OF MOVEMENT, can also be destructive, if left unharnessed. Just look at what writer’s do to their own bodies; letting our health slip as we spend endless hours at the computer gaining carpal tunnel, strained eyes, migraines, and spare tires around our middles. We snack to calm the nerves and to break up the day. We feel this restlessness as if we are unsatisfied and not centered, lost among the daily activities of our lives. Somehow, we must find a way to harness this kinetic energy in a way that helps us maintain our health and sanity, and in a way that helps us be more productive.
Here are some techniques I’m trying to develop into habits:
- Create a routine that involves movement: When I feel the anxiety coming on, or that sense of restlessness, I get up and move. I live on a circle drive in my neighborhood so when this sensation takes over, I make myself walk laps around the loop until I’m either exhausted or the feeling subsides. While walking, I often talk through a scene out loud. What is the goal of the scene? Why does my character have to face this obstacle? How can I show the way she struggles? WHY IS THIS MAKING ME ANXIOUS–WHAT ISN’T WORKING?
- Get a standing desk: Lucky for me, my husband is a tech ed teacher (and used to be a carpenter), so he built one for me. If you can afford it, I would highly recommend purchasing a standing desk. Alternate between the two desks, taking turns to give your legs a break when you get tired. But you’ll quickly find you like standing. Oddly enough, it helps me focus better, and it’s a great way to combat the ants-in-your-pants feeling.
- Avoid the kitchen at all costs: I’ve been struggling with this the last couple of years. For one thing, I’m a foodie. Cooking and baking are one of the ways I express myself creatively. This means working from home is something of a challenge for me because, A.) I will spend time making myself a nice meal, and B.) it’s one of my favorite pleasures. When that anxious, kinetic energy is moving through me, I head to the kitchen to satisfy that pseudo-craving. Sometimes, just sitting at the desk all day alone can be a little boring so I think: “Hey, wouldn’t a mocha latte be amazing right now? Or some chips, or a piece of zucchini bread and a cup of tea?” Yeah, bad. Avoid the kitchen at all costs and also, see number one.
- Keep Journals Everywhere: Keeping journals in my car, purse, night stand, and laptop bag help me be more present in my daily life outside of work. I’m prepared, you see, to immediately write down these moments of inspiration that invade my brain. If I didn’t write them down, I’d be ruminating on them, obsessing, getting that anxiety again because I’d be thinking: “If I could only be writing right now…” But that’s not the kind of mother I want to be, or partner, or friend, so I’ve learned to take a quick note here and there to capture the inspiration and rejoin the world around me.
- Create a concrete writing routine: This is pretty effective, actually. You really should live and die by your writing schedule—okay, maybe that’s extreme, but you get my drift. Maintaining a routine helps combat the jitters that come from not knowing when you will write next. It helps you to, once again, be present with those around you since you know you’ve set aside that protected time.
Ultimately, this kinetic energy is a good thing because of what I mentioned above–it comes with being creators. This energy/anxiety just needs to be recognized for what it is, as well as channeled appropriately. So this all comes while you’re actively creating. Let’s look at it from the other angle. What happens when you haven’t been writing because you never seem to have time, or you’re doubting yourself, or the rejections have kept you from returning to the page? That kinetic energy is STILL THERE, but it has nowhere to go and festers. What happens then? I’ll share a quote from a book I love dearly called Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. She says:
“An abiding stereotype of creativity is that it turns people crazy. I disagree: Not expressing creativity turns people crazy. (‘If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you don’t bring forth what is within you, what you don’t bring forth will destroy you.’) Bring forth what is within you, then, whether it succeeds or fails. Do it whether the critics love you or hate you–or whether the critics have never heard of you and perhaps never will hear of you. Do it whether people get it or don’t get it.
It doesn’t have to be perfect, and you don’t have to be Plato. It’s all just an instinct and an experiment and a mystery, so begin. Begin anywhere. Preferably right now. And if greatness should ever accidentally stumble upon you, let it catch you hard at work. Hard at work, and sane.”
As creators, we have kinetic energy while writing, and kinetic energy while we aren’t, but it’s what you do with that energy that helps you be the best (and healthiest!) writer you can be. If you ignore the impetus to bring a story living inside of you into existence, it will eat you alive.
Please tell me I’m not alone! Do you have this sense of movement and anxiousness swarming your brain and your body while writing–or while not writing? How do you deal with them?
Heather Webb is the USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of historical fiction. As a freelance editor and an adjunct in a MFA in Creative Writing program, Heather has helped many writers sign with agents and go on to sell at market. When not writing, she feeds her cookbook addiction, geeks out on history and pop culture, and looks for excuses to head to the other side of the world. To date, her books have been translated to seventeen languages.
Heather-
The laws of physics tell us that bodies in motion tend to stay in motion. Bodies at rest tend to stay at rest.
Creative minds don’t rest. Thomas Edison didn’t invent just one thing. Stephen King hasn’t written just one book.
Novelists have idea folders full of clippings and cocktail napkins, but often feel as if the magical words will leave them and not return. The success of one book is singular. A fluke. The creative gift is frail.
Baloney. Having worked with authors for forty years, I have seen again and again that creative energy is kinetic. It doesn’t rest. Even when sales plunge and option boooks are dropped, authors bounce back.
There is no end to stories and no end to the drive to tell them. The only thing in the ways is authors’ own clinging to the false romantic notions that creating means sufferening and skill is conferred by fickle muses. None of that is true.
Everyone reading your post today has the kinetic energy. Not just today, or this year, but everyday and always. Stop the hand wringing. Own your power, the power of story and the force of a creative mind.
Thanks for an energetic post.
Thank you, both. This comes at a perfect time for me. How perfect? I was literally wringing my hands when I got to the part about hand wringing.
Becky, wishing you luck as you find a routine that helps you manage it! Thanks for stopping by today.
Thanks for your comments today, Don. I agree–the creative mind never rests, but to be healthy within that space, we must learn how to channel that energy as effectively as possible so that it doesn’t break us down. No hand-wringing here, but loads of bouncing. You can call me Tigger. Ha! I do, however, disagree that the creative gift is a frail thing. I’d say it’s robust, which is what makes it so dynamic and at times, difficult to manage. But we love that about it, don’t we?
I like this comment you made: “Own your power.” I think any successful author who continues to produce does. Speaking of which, I have words to get in before the lights go out tonight… :)
Great article, Heather!
My computer has been in the shop for two weeks now and it’s been driving me crazy. I was right in the middle of creating something when it quit recognizing my network, then conked out altogether.
I continued creating — compiling notes and writing by hand until I could transcribe them later — until unexpected company (family) arrived over the latter part of the holidays and my notebook disappeared off the coffee table.
The kinetic energy that followed was not pretty.
The notebook has been located (my niece borrowed it and stuck it away) and my computer will be ready for pickup today. There’s a blue sky on the horizon, and now I can finish what I started.
But yes, during the chaos, I still needed an outlet for my creative energy before it went nuclear, so we had some delicious meals in the meantime.
I’m a foodie, too.
YIKES, Mike! That would have made me all kinds of cranky and nutty, too. Nuclear. I like that. I’m glad you have your new laptop arriving shortly, here, so you can jump back in full force!
I’m lucky (and grateful) to have a creative day job that’s quite kinetic. I’m a florist. Walking to the front of the shop to greet customers, choosing a flower from this bucket or that vase or from the fridge in the back. From putting together dainty bouquets to huge arrangements, my hands and arms and legs get to move and work all day. But on my writing days, I get all flittery-jittery, picking at my cuticles, chewing on my lower lip, twisting and twirling my hair. I feel all this energy, this maelstrom inside, blocked by the ultimate “rule of writing”. Butt in Chair.
But this morning, you made me realize that my physical inertia might be the cause for my creative stagnation, at least writing-wise. I’ve gotten back into daily yoga and I’ll *try* to go out more to walk (it’s a cozy -25C here in Quebec. That’s what, like -15ish in Fahrenheit?). I’ll definitely try pacing around the house while delving into my character’s psyche. Going up and down the stairs while developing plot points. And I might feel a little less like a caged animal at the end of the day.
Thank you very much, so grateful to be part of this community!
Veronic,
This is a brilliant observation that you made:
“But this morning, you made me realize that my physical inertia might be the cause for my creative stagnation, at least writing-wise.”
I struck upon a similar realization myself by accident. When I first started work at my standing desk, I had trouble adjusting but as I got used to it, I realized I was pacing, just as you said, when something wasn’t working, whereas while sitting, I would stew and pick and eat, etc, etc, and get “stuck” for much longer periods of time. Who knew?
Wishing you all the luck to keep the word count rolling. I, too, am grateful for such a wonderful community. Write on!
First, I’ve gotta say, I love the image of you pacing laps around your circle drive, ranting at your characters aloud. I’m picturing big, dramatic hand gesturing, too. Maybe an occasional squeal and running back to the house when a brilliant epiphany strikes. God, I wish we were neighbors even more than ever before, lol.
Second, I’m reading Big Magic right now. I like the premise very much. I’ve always done my best to focus on the work and to let go of the outcome, and Gilbert lays out an excellent means to mentally manifest that goal. I’m parsing it out, a few sections or maybe a full chapter at a time, so the inspiration lasts.
Lastly, I think one of the reasons having an athletic dog is important to me (I mean besides my crazy love of dogs, and the whole “they’re part of the family” thing) is that they necessitate my twice (or thrice) daily walks. I’ve managed to get my ass up and out there during our few dogless days these past few decades, but if it’s less imperative, it’s just naturally less frequent. There’s no skipping a walk with an intense retriever standing next to your desk chair 10 minutes before each one in the routine.
I always love your posts, and not just because I hear them in your voice as I read. Thanks for another vital reminder!
Vaughn, you have me pegged! Ha! Plenty of hands waving and acting weird, scaring the little old ladies walking their dogs. I think it would be great fun to be neighbors. Maybe I could help you walk your dog on occasion and we could rant out loud together about characters and whatever else!
As for Big Magic, you’re reading it exactly how I am. I started it about six months ago and when I’m having a low day for whatever reason, I’ll pick it up and read one chapter or section, and highlight little gems that stand out to me. So much of what she says feels like an echo of thoughts I’ve had or feelings I’ve experienced, but she puts it so eloquently.
Always enjoy your comments, friend. Happy writing!
No, you are so not alone, Heather! And now I don’t feel so nuts. Energy is a force, and creative energy is like a tsunami. I love Liz Gilbert’s quote because it reminds me that the impulse to create is a Gift. But with the gift comes the mandate to use it. Otherwise, the restlessness, the despair. Because the Gift doesn’t care if we’re terrified of rejection or of looking dumb or of failing. It just wants to be manifested! I’ve been practicing yoga for fourteen years now because it nourishes the two sides of me; the one that needs physically demanding movement and the one that need silence and stillness. And yes, walking! I’m surrounded by woods, and the trees here are used to hearing me talk to myself. It’s how I unravel plot-snarls, too. Thank you for talking about this today!!
A beautiful sentiment, Susan, and so true:
“But with the gift comes the mandate to use it. Otherwise, the restlessness, the despair. Because the Gift doesn’t care if we’re terrified of rejection or of looking dumb or of failing. It just wants to be manifested!”
Thanks for your comments, as always! Happy plotting.
I love this post so much! I’m not a fan of standing desks, but can relate to so many other parts of this. I, too, am a foodie who will find myself in the kitchen cooking. It can solve plot problems, but at the cost of my waist. Walking is my favorite tool.
Also can get a jumpy, irritable feeling in my hands and shoulders and have found a tai chi warm up that will really help shake it out. I just stand up and go through the movements and it gets better.
Thanks for this post!
Barbara, we’re soul sisters, you and I. Just about everything you post or write about, I nod in agreement and think, she and I need to have a glass of wine together again soon…
Thanks for your comments, friend!
Ha! I too have been in one of those jumpy, rattled spaces — those are pretty much the first words in my journal entry this morning! It eased somewhat when I realized that I could change my approach to the WIP — I can actually stop and finish my outline, now that I’m 75 pp in and it feels too vague, or at least create a running outline, even if it means I won’t meet my self-imposed deadline of finishing the first draft before our vacation next month. I made up this approach, I can change it — kinda like realizing that the mid-day appointment you gave your character which is now messing up the timeline can be changed!
Like you and Barbara, I’m a foodie, too — and my books include tons of food! So that’s a challenge, as is the weather here in NW Montana, but I can put that creative energy into creating new routines and methods for channeling it where it needs to go. Thanks for the boost!
Leslie, I hear Montana is breath-taking. I wonder if you weave in loads of nature scenes/references, too, into your writing? Maybe you can snowshoe when the jitters get too bad. I’ve bought myself a pair of waterproof thick-souled walking boots so I can do long walks in the snow here in New England. I get the feeling your cold and snow makes mine look paltry, however…
Thanks for your comments today and happy writing!
Heather, I’m concerned that one of your neighbors might try to capture you in a net while you forcefully stride about, vocalizing your characters. Perhaps you should wear a sign, “Warning: Writer Writerizing” while you prowl about?
Good stuff in the post: I always break at mid-day to go for a walk at the beach or on the local slough trails or in the scrubby hills around my house—it is both calmative and energizing for whatever writing tasks precede it and proceed from it. I’m good with writing routines—even if they sometimes don’t produce any writing—and with avoiding the kitchen.
But I should journal more. I just came back from a press trip to Vegas, and my continual scribbling of notes reminded me of how useful recording info on the go is—when I returned to the notes later, I’d already forgotten some of the stuff I wrote, which will be used for the articles. But man, my handwriting—cruel.
Thanks for the post aerobics!
HA! Well, luckily several of my neighbors are professors at the local university so they’re just as batty as I am.
It’s great that you set that time at midday. I’ve recently instituted a break after lunch, myself, so that I don’t get sluggish in the afternoon. Get some brisk walking and then a cup of tea and back to it!
Thanks for your comments today!
Great post, Heather. I walk almost every day, come home to write down notes. Reading the paper I am underlining an idea. Creativity is brain movement. I crave it.
I crave it, too, Beth. It’s like once you’ve awakened that creative part of your brain, there’s no going back!
Great post, Heather! I am exactly the same as far as the dissatisfaction and the pacing and, in my case, the laps around the block. Usually the problem is that I haven’t fully envisioned a setting, scene or character motivation enough, so there’s an inertia, a creative fatigue, that brings me to a halt. The sentences just won’t “go” in that moment. The fix? It does help me to move around, or sometimes I just need to dream some more before facing that blank page.
Great minds think alike! :) Thanks for your comments today, SK. Happy writing.
Hi Heather! I have recently gotten a new little dog with a lot of energy, which gets me off my butt and outside several times a day. Also, when I move my office to a different room in our house, the plan is to custom build the whole room up with shelves and two work surfaces, one for standing and one for sitting. That move will also put me a floor away from the kitchen! I’ve also heard good things about an under-the-desk elliptical I’ll be putting on my Christmas list this year. :)
I’m hopeful that all of these things will aid my concentration and start erasing some of the evidence that years of slothful slumping at the computer have left around my mid-section. XD
Sounds like you’re making a lot of great changes, Erin. I’m fighting that mid-section issue myself, and as a life-long runner, it’s a little hard to believe I let it get to this point. It tells me how poorly I was managing the kinetic creative energy the last three years. Time to get to it, though, and help this career of mine be a healthy one, too!
Heather, you are not alone! Loved that quote from Big Magic. I get cranky if I cannot write–company, kid emergencies, or my own procrastination–and the solution is to go to a quiet place and write. Like so many others here, I find walks with my dog very helpful and reading aloud to the cats :) And we’re foodies too, so yeah, the kitchen is a huge distraction…
I, too, become cranky, Vijaya! There must be something in the water… :D Happy writing!
Just the post I needed today. In the past week I have retreated from my standing desk to slumping in my chair. Ouch! you got me back on my feet.
I also appreciated your reminder to walk and think, instead of staring gloomily at the screen when stuck.
This was the perfect post for my day. Thanks Heather!
I’m so glad it was useful, Neroli. Wishing you luck to become unstuck tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by today.
I dance. I dance in my chair and I get up and dance 5-30 minutes in the living room to whatever music I deem is best for that time. I move until I feel cleared and opened, until I’m ready to sit down work more. I walk, hike. And I write, write, write. Three days a week, sometimes 4 or 5 but my “sacred three” is utilized even if jotting ideas, a paragraph or a page or one poetic line. Physical movement opens the internal thoroughfare so more creative inspiration is shaken free and delivered. But the work begets more work, until it doesn’t. And then I do other creative or plain fun activities. There is not a moment in life that is not full of creative power in some manner, awaiting our awareness. Good post!
Cynthia, I LOVE that you dance. I need to take a page out of your book. I think I will tomorrow!
Thanks for stopping by today.
Yes, moving definitely helps! I used to study for my university exams by walking through nature, mumbling dates and explaining historical events to an imaginary listener. Now, when I am stuck in my story, very often the solution comes while I empty the dishwasher (so the kitchen is not always bad !). Apparently doing simple chores with my hands frees my brain ;-) Gardening is good too! So … happy moving and happy writing!
I generally write, starting around 4 or 5am. After a few hours, I’ll go get some exercise for a couple hours more. This, when I am loyal to the muse who writes me. Since arriving back from California, where I was with all the kids and hubby in abiding, familial celebration, I thought, “When I get back home…”
It is the concert of divinity as I write that compels. I love you have claimed the creating and named us all creators. I do not move as I write at dawn. I soar. Thank you for being a bold creator who lives generously, a writers satsang. Someday, our family will land us in the same room together, and the satsang will grow me.
Yes! This spoke to me today. For too long, I’ve felt that the well was dry. I’m starting to feel that zing of creative energy again, and it has me very antsy. It’s akin to feeling spring fever well before spring.
And it feels really, really good to know that energy is returning.