Creative Drought
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Drought
What do you do when what once seemed a lush, thriving oasis of creativity has been transformed into a barren wasteland of drudgery and dry, listless dust?
You approach your creative wellspring which once gushed forth with bright, lively juices at your slightest touch. Now, a few halfhearted pumps of the rusted handle yield nothing but the pained scream of dry metal on metal.
Your creativity has dried up. You are in a creative drought.
What do you do?
The way I see it, you have three options.
Option 1: Despair
Throw up your hands, declare that you’re never going to write again, lock yourself in a dark room, and commence with the rending of your garments.
Clearly, this is not an option that I recommend, but let’s face it – we are ALL tempted by this option. All of the creative types I know well enough to discuss it with are the same way – tiny prickles of self-doubt spiral out of proportion at the speed of light.
Stare at your barren fields and beat your fists upon the dusty plains, screaming your misery to the cloudless skies, if you like.
When the drought ends (as it always does) you will rediscover the joys of writing and you’ll most likely be writing again.
This is the most painful choice you can make; constantly fluctuating between the highest heights and the lowest lows, at the mercy of a fickle and malicious muse. It’s exhausting and it’s out of control. Worst of all, it’s hell not only on YOU but also on your loved ones.
Option 2: Patience
You looked at Option 1 and decided you’re too cool for that show. You scorn the low road of despair and opt for the more patient path. You’re a hunter, sleek and effective. You’ll wait for your muse to return, and when she does, you’ll be ready for her.
Returning to our drought analogy, you set up a lawn chair, grab a beer, and wait for rain.
This is the deceptive path. Option 1 is clearly a bad idea (which makes it not one whit easier to recognize and deny). Option 2 SEEMS like a much better choice. Sure, it”s BETTER than Option 1 (certainly easier on your health) but it’s still pretty useless.
I have never liked the “sit back and wait for life to happen to you” mentality.
I do not advocate waiting for a job, romance, a car, a house, happier times, more money, good health, or weight loss to “happen” to you. I’m certainly not about to advocate you sit back and wait for inspiration to descend from the heavens amidst strawberry-scented rainbows.
Option 3: Spit on it
Survey your barren landscape with a keen and narrowed eye, square up your stance, and SPIT ON IT.
Spit into your hands, grab that rusty pump handle and WORK AT IT.
While your neighbor to the left wails in misery and your neighbor to the right falls asleep with his chin to his chest, set up an irrigation system.
WRITE.
I’ve said it a dozen times and I’ll no doubt say it a million more.
WRITE.
You know what keeps that pump oiled and that lush landscape flourishing?
WRITING.
Writing begets writing begets writing.
Inspiration and creativity aren’t fuels to be carefully rationed, drop by drop. They’re like laughter or smiles or yawns or bunnies. They’re infectious and self-perpetuating.
What Have You Got To Lose?
What have you got to lose? What could you POSSIBLY lose by writing? Let’s say you write the worst, most incredibly awful prose ever to see the light of day. When you added the exclamation point on the end did your computer spontaneously combust? Did swarms of locusts beat themselves against your window panes, tiny mandibles parted in a silent screams of agony?
NO. (And, um, if the answer was yes? Disregard all I’m saying here and stop writing.)
FEAR is what dries up the well of creativity. Fear of failure, fear of sucking, fear of wasting your time. Fear of DARING to hope. Fear of having the audacity to believe, even for a moment, that you might try something and not succeed.
If you are standing on the edge of this now-barren landscape, wondering what happened to your creativity – ask yourself what you’re afraid of.
Stand toe to toe, nose to nose with that fear and stare it down. Refuse to let it leech the life and joy out of your writing. Pump away at that well even when it seems to do no good, even when the fear presses back against the handle and makes it harder. Even when it’s laughing at you, mocking you for even trying.
You look that fear in the eye and you SPIT ON IT.
*eyes Tami* Have you been talking to Iris?
.-= Steve Hall´s last blog ..Clearing Up the Confusion =-.
@Steve
Not as often as I’d like. =]
Oi, woman, you know how to smack around my muse! Drought mixed with excuses is a writer’s worst enemy. “I can’t think of anything to write” plus “I have to do this and this and this and that and get this done” adds up to months of no writing. All of that just perpetuates the cycle and makes it worse.
Can you tell I’m stuck in that right now?
=)
@Tristina
Sometimes it’s hard to even realize you’re not writing, if your excuses are good enough. You have to actually sit back and look at what you’ve done in order to realize – hey, it’s been SIX MONTHS since I’ve even sat down and thought about writing. Whups.
=]
SPIT ON IT, madam! <3
Hah! Well, Steve, if one of us is harping on you in chat, and the other is posting articles that are exactly on the mark… the answer is apparent! Get writing, man!
A very good article, Tami. And yes, sometimes the prose you write in those moments is murderous. But even murder is better than drought, right? At least it is faster! *chuckles*
.-= Iris´s last blog ..Feather Path: Chapter X =-.
[...] but all writers suffer, to one degree or another, from writer’s block. The cure is universal: Spit on your muse, and just [...]
I’ve just run into a bit of this recently (like, in the last couple days). I looked over Part 1 of Draft 2 and nearly split my head from yawning. In the immortal words of Chandler Bing, “Could this story be any more boring?” But, being master of my story’s own destiny, I decided to add some interesting bits. Maybe even some plot, if I was feeling a little sassy. So I stepped up the creative well, lowered my bucket, and pulled up dust. Dang.
What shall I do?
Follow my own advice, of course, which is strikingly similar to something I just oh so very recently read on tami’s blog.
http://www.backtothefridge.com/just-keep-swimming/
.-= Charlie Hills´s last blog ..FitBloggin Recap =-.
@Charlie
Had to chuckle when you comment hit my e-mail: I read it just as I put another 1,600 words to bed on a Friday night when I was bored and not at all inspired.
Honest, there are 1,600 new words in my opus. However, any plot advancement or character development, not to mention conflict, appear only by coincidence. But I’ll just keep on swimming…(loved that article in your blog–would love to see you blog more about writing!).
.-= Steve Hall´s last blog ..Weekly Wrap-Up: April 9 =-.
I began the second draft on March 21, and a week later, the following Sunday had racked up 27,098 words. I thought that was pretty good for starters. “Heck, I could be done in a month at this rate,” I foolishly thought to myself. Unfortunately, today I only stand at 28,713 words. Which, though more realistic, is also a frightfully more depressing pace. (First draft stopped at 123k words. Second draft should come in closer to 100k, just to give the numbers context.)
Glad you liked my post. There are more writing-related ramblings. Just go to this page http://www.backtothefridge.com/all-posts/ and look at the second category.
.-= Charlie Hills´s last blog ..FitBloggin Recap =-.