Author Archives: Maria

Maria's avatar

About Maria

A writer, indexer, and creativity mentor.
by | April 21, 2025 · 7:13 pm

Cut loose

Exploring a tactile approach to poetry

April was declared National Poetry Month in the United States in 1996 by the Academy of American Poets. Likewise in Canada, in 1998, the League of Canadian Poets established April as National Poetry Month to bring together “schools, publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, communities and poets from across the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in Canada’s culture.”

Here in Ontario, things feel less than celebratory at the moment. Winter is overstaying its welcome, the goings-on of our neighbours to the south are having an impact on us and around the world, a federal election is surfacing domestic challenges and fault lines, and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is estimated to cover an area of about 1.6 million square kilometres. Yikes, to say the least.

Reading can feel like a wonderful escape right now. Poetry can, too. How lovely to dive into a Mary Oliver poem and feel at peace with the quiet majesty of geese, or trees, or grasshoppers. How tantalising to experience e.e. cummings’ thoughts on the body. How cerebral to spend a few hours (or a lifetime) investigating what William Carlos Williams meant by the red wheelbarrow in the rain.

Poetry is also political–a tool of resistance and protest. As the Editors of the Poetry Foundation have said, “Speaking truth to power remains a crucial role of the poet in the face of political and media rhetoric designed to obscure, manipulate, or worse.”

I have been exploring poetry myself recently, as both a reader and a writer. The world of poetry is vast and varied, and what I’ve read at school or in literary journals is a teensy fraction of all the poetic expression there is to enjoy.

And I want more.

As I continue my poetic education, I’ve decided to forget learning about the “important” poems. Forget about the canon, forget about the Norton anthologies. Instead, I’m reading poems published in The Walrus (like “Honey Crisp” by Molly Peacock). I’m reading poems tagged with #blueskypoets. I’m reading poems submitted to Poetry Week at CommuterLit where I’m a volunteer reader. I’m reading haikus, pantoums, sonnets, and so much more.

In my own poetic scribblings, I’ve been playing with words, imagery, and forms. I’ve written a poem about a spider crawling across my ceiling, a poem about a night out with my best friend, a poem about grapes. I’ve played around with book spine poems–and gotten the other Restless Writers trying it too (here’s Beckie’s, Andrea’s, and Sharon’s).

Something fun I did recently was cut words out of a magazine to create a collection of six-word poems, which I then consolidated into a single poem. I love how this activity is so accessible and exciting. It was tactile. Having my vocabulary limited to the words I had cut out forced me to find powerful and surprising creative combinations.

If you’re looking for a way to make poetry yourself, this exercise has a low barrier to entry. You can use any magazine–I chose the LCBO’s Food&Drink (natch). If you’re creating a book-spine poem, all you need is your own bookcase or a visit to the library. Play, celebrate! You don’t have to worry about being timeless, or cathartic, or insightful, or political. Those are all important aspects to poetry, and I will continue to strive to give my own poems that deeper dimension. But don’t let it stop you from the joyful act of playing with words to describe or illuminate your own experience of the world.

That’s how I’m celebrating this National Poetry Month. Will you join me?

Here’s the result of my experiment:

Armchair Adventurer
 
What flavour is beyond the world?
Meet the soul available for a game
A story about olives and wines
Pour your heart over the star flowers
 
Swap tomorrow to savour new time
Hop down the hour for escape
Drinking seconds by the loved road
Playing with plans for better madness
 
The blues feast at high showtime
Impressed by delights of happy sights
Scoop today – plan a great move
The active solution, a spirit choice
 
Travel to the layers of winter
Two views of the next west
Bench planning and start making sense
Explore the road under buzzing island
 
What has brought in your world?
We sip cocktails and taste culture
Our best pursuits are in adventures
Born yours with the unforgettable infinite

Maria Hypponen

Wishing you an inspiring National Poetry Month!

Maria

Leave a comment

Filed under Inspiration, poetry, Writing ideas

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | January 26, 2025 · 11:20 am

A meditation in three words

I have some big creative plans for 2025.

I’m working on a short story collection, with a goal of drafting one story every month. The Restless Writers are working on a collaborative project – which Beckie mentioned a few months ago – that will have a lot of moving parts and ambitious deadlines. I have a new non-fiction project waiting in the wings, as well as some non-writing related plans too.

I’m excited to work towards my goals, and they’re important to me. But like a lot of the world, I feel like I’m teetering on the edge of chaos. How can I intentionally create space for pursuing my writing when it feels like I’m losing control? How can I keep moving forward when the work feels like I’m swimming through molasses? How can I support my creative and mental health in an already full and hectic life?

What helps me is a three-word mantra: Discipline. Patience. Joy.

Here’s what these words mean to me.

Discipline

I’ve come to accept that, for me, a daily writing habit isn’t realistic. I have a full-time job and do freelance work on the side, so it’s not feasible to find an hour to write every single day. What I can do is plan writing blocks in my weekly schedule when it makes sense for me. Sunday mornings, for example, work very well. Mini-DIY writing retreats are another tool I use. The discipline part kicks in when I commit to those writing blocks or retreats and use my writing time effectively.

(Not a write-every-day person? Feel better about it with the idea of “binge writing,” which I learned from Allison K Williams in this blog post.)

Showing up for other people is another part of my creative discipline. The monthly(ish) Restless Writers meetings are a big part of that. I also offer support to a small circle of people who are working towards creative goals and need the help of an accountability partner. When I show up to co-work with them, I’m also showing up for myself.

Most days, I struggle with focus. And there’s nothing like the fidgets to disrupt one’s creative efforts. So, this year, I’m banning the disruptors – those things that pull me out of creative flow. I’ve deleted TikTok (which I should have done eons ago, honestly). I’ve muted social media notifications. I’ve silenced the siren call of books to be read and jigsaw puzzles to be completed by moving them to a different room. Out of sight, out of temptation, right?

I’ve also taken steps to make it as easy as possible to transition into writing mode. Check out my previous posts about creative readiness (part 1 and part 2) if you want to hear how I’m setting myself up for creative success.

Patience

Where the word discipline feels somewhat sterile and harsh, patience feels like grace.

Creative work takes time, especially if you’re pursuing bigger goals, like a novel. With generative AI all around us, promising instant creative gratification, it can be hard to pull on the reins and settle into a rhythm of doing the time-consuming work. I have to remind myself that my writing goals won’t be achieved in one day – or heck, even in one week – and that’s okay. My slow and bumbling human brain is creating worlds, inventing people, and imagining love and disaster. Isn’t that beautiful?

Patience is also about knowing that my creative work will be there even if I have to step away from it. Life happens, and you might experience things that throw you off your creative game. I’ve had some setbacks already this year. Work got busy early. I had a monster freelance project that never seemed to end. The US election results gave me creeping, swirling, can’t-sleep-at-night anxiety. And last week, I said goodbye to my darling tortoiseshell cat, Mary Piper, who had been my companion for the last 14 years. Today was the first day I’ve felt like getting back to my writing. And you know what? The creative spark and the drive were still there. The story still called to me. So, I poured a coffee, put on some focus music, and got back to it.

This is Mary Piper, and one of her gazillion toys.

Joy

The third facet of my mantra is a gift to my creative self, a way of refilling my well and helping me feel connected to people and beauty around me. Frankly, joy has been hard to come by recently. There’s a lot going on – in my life, in the world – that makes joy seem elusive, like a shy fox in winter, or a sunrise hiding behind the morning fog. It can also be hard to recognize joy when you crash into it.

For me, joy feels like the hum of creative connection, the quiet of being immersed in nature, the exhilaration of moving my body, and the pleasure of interacting with art.

This year, I’m making the experience of joy a proactive exercise.

I’m seeking out and attending events, like an author reading at the library or an Alice in Wonderful exhibit at the Royal Botanical Gardens. I’m waking up early and walking to the frozen and glorious lake. Those books and puzzles I relegated to another room for the sake of discipline? I’m savouring them when I’ve finished my writing for the day. These moments are me welcoming and pursuing joy in my everyday life.

Discipline. Patience. Joy.

I breathe deeply and hold these words in my consciousness as I get ready in the morning. I contemplate them, written on the whiteboard in my study, throughout the day. I whisper them to myself when I get frustrated or depleted or sad. I re-visit them at night, to remind myself that I’m nurturing my creative self in ways that work best for me.

Do you have a mantra or a special word for 2025? I’d love to hear what it is and what it means to you.

Maria

2 Comments

Filed under Life and stuff, Motivation, Trials and Tribulations

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | September 26, 2024 · 4:45 pm

Building creative readiness – Part 2: Your creative mindset

In my last post, I talked about the concept of creative readiness and what that means in terms of your physical environment: your writing space, your writing tools and technology, and the things you need around you to be your best creative self.

But your physical environment is only one part of the picture. Your mindset plays a huge role when it comes to being focused, productive, and creative.

For many writers, feeling inspired and “in the mood” to write is the challenge. But as Jack London famously said, “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.”

(Actually, he wrote, “Don’t loaf and invite inspiration; light out after it with a club, and if you don’t get it you will nonetheless get something that looks remarkably like it,” which I think is much more poetic.)

This echoes that quote from Ivan Coyote in my previous post, about being “actively engaged in the creative practice.” For them, lighting out after inspiration and creativity involves self-discipline, walks, and hot showers.

As a writer with a day job, I don’t have the luxury of waiting around for my muse to make an appearance. I need her to show up in those 30-minute increments I have cleared out of my day to write. Like, at the snap of my fingers.

Basically, I have to be my own muse, or write without one.

Real picture of me and my Muse collaborating on a story.

Creative readiness, when it comes to mindset, looks like this:

  • maintaining a full creative well that you can draw from;
  • being resilient and able to overcome creative challenges like writer’s block or burnout; and
  • having the skills to step into creative mode when it’s time to write.

I asked the other Restless Writers how they refill their creative wells.

For Beckie, connection nourishes creativity. She builds creative energy by “spending time with other creatives, like my Restless Writers.” In addition to our meetings and retreats, Beckie says that when she needs some help getting creative, she looks up. “The night sky is an inspiration.”

Andrea too finds that connecting with other artists and writers helps. Besides the inspiration she gets from the Restless Writers, she engages with creative works to get her ideas going. She says she will “read a great book. Go to the theatre to see a play or musical. Watch a great actor in a movie.” Andrea has a performance background (plus she’s an amazing trainer and facilitator), so it’s no surprise that theatre, singing, and dance parties with her daughters keep her feeling her creative best.

“Reading a lot of fiction is great,” echoed Sharon. “I get little pieces of inspiration from that—whether it’s from a piece of dialogue or an interesting story choice.”

For me, connecting with the Restless Writers (and other writers and creatives) and pushing myself out of the inertia of routine with challenges makes me feel pumped about writing. Beyond writing, I enjoy making digital art and taking photos of things that strike me as visually interesting. When I’m doing something like building out graphics for social media, I get to engage a different part of my creative brain. There are usually words involved, so the interplay of language and graphic arts intrigues me as well.

Whether or not you believe writer’s block is a thing, the struggle to write well—or even to get started—is something that hits us all at some point. My struggle is usually with writer’s jam. That’s when I have so many projects on the go, I pinball between priorities and can’t make meaningful progress on any of them, so I avoid my writing altogether. It’s brutal. I know focus and monotasking is the way to go, and that’s something I have been working on recently with pomodoros, co-writing sprints, and allowing myself to go as slowly as possible without actually stopping.

Andrea’s approach to tackling writer’s block starts with mindfulness. “I start by just breathing in and releasing tension, and then I free write—what I see/hear/smell, what’s in my head, what’s in my heart, with no judgment. Just words on a page. And I wait for my muse to return. She doesn’t always, and I’m left with captured random thoughts. When she does return, I welcome her in and try to open to the gifts she is offering.”

Sharon addresses writer’s block by switching things up. “In the last few months, I’ve been trying something new where I dictate a first draft of a chapter into my computer or phone. I try to go through it in one go, even if I am tripping over my words. The dialogue is choppy and a lot of the words are misspelled but it helps me get the structure of the chapter down. It takes the pressure off of staring at a blank page.” (I’m definitely going to try this, Sharon!)

Burnout can also affect creative readiness. Beckie says she experiences burnout “usually after completing a large project. Or even in the months prior to completion. It can feel like such a grind to get to the end, while, in reality, there is no end.” She focuses on other creative projects to help with recovery—things like painting, gardening, reading, or astrophotography.

Andrea says she can get “mind burnout,” where she’s overwhelmed and can’t do any kind of work, including writing. When this happens, she says she tries “to take time to ‘not do’ and just be. It could be days, weeks, or months, but my need to create always returns.”

I’ve had this experience too. I can be “away” from my writing for long stretches, but something—a Restless Writers meeting, a prompt, a new idea, a fresh take on an old story, or just the urge to bring something to life on paper—brings me back.

I wish I had a cheat code that I could apply to instantly switch to creative mode when I sit down to write. But I know there is no hack. It comes down to cultivating a regular creative habit, nurturing your creative self, and filling your creative well so you can step into writing mode as easily as possible.

In many ways, writing sets up a self-sustaining feedback loop. The act of writing itself is what kickstarts creativity and keeps the momentum going.

Once you start writing, you are creating the mindset and conditions to…keep writing.

As Beckie told me, “For me, creative readiness generally happens after I start a project and not before.”

Luckily, the Restless Writers support each other in sticking to our writing projects and nurturing our creative abilities. “They cheer me on,” said Andrea. “They offer smaller goals to help motivate me; remind me that my writing matters to them. I am grateful for them and their patience and acceptance.”

Thanks to my restless crew for sharing their thoughts on creative readiness and mindset. It’s been interesting to see how each of us approach our work and keep moving forward.

We’d love to hear from our readers too! What does your creative mindset look like? How do you stay resilient in the face of writer’s block and burnout? What habits help you “light out after inspiration”?

Maria

1 Comment

Filed under Inspiration, Motivation, Trials and Tribulations

Tagged as , , ,

by | August 5, 2024 · 1:08 pm

Building creative readiness – Part 1: Your physical environment

According to celebrated author and performer Ivan Coyote, “You have to be actively engaged in the creative practice for the creativity to hit you” (Globe & Mail, August 7, 2023). They credit self-disciple, nature walks, and hot showers to their success. Coyote strongly believes that you have to put in the work to be prepared to be creative. That way, you’re ready when inspiration hits.

I think of this as creative readiness – an intentional way of removing any friction between you and your writing practice. It’s an approach that clears out the excuses and signals to your creative muscles that it’s time to write.

Creative readiness has two dimensions: your physical writing environment and your creative mindset. Being prepared to be creative means shoring up both of these dimensions. In practice, creative readiness is a series of individualized actions or processes that mark the transition into writing mode, and a way of preparing yourself mentally to make that transition.

I wondered what other writers thought about creative readiness, so I asked my fellow Restless Writers to weigh in. They had a lot to say – so much in fact, that I’m splitting this blog post into two parts.

In this first part, let’s dig into how the Restless Writers set up their physical environments to work on their creative tasks.

Space to let the words flow

A writer needs space. A place to build worlds, invent characters, concoct plots, converse with their muse, and do battle with their inner critic. Virginia Woolf famously said that women writers needed “a room of one’s own” (literal and metaphorical) in which to write. Ray Bradbury wrote his first novel on a typewriter he rented for ten cents an hour in the basement of UCLA’s Lawrence Clark Powell Library. Edith Wharton wrote from her bed.

I asked AI to create an image of the perfect writer’s office. Here’s the result:

I mean… That looks pretty perfect to me. (The Edison lights and cosy blanket? Love those details!)

In reality, there is no universal “perfect” writing space – it is personal to each writer.

Beckie, a Restless Writer with an enviable backyard, has a dedicated writing shed – but it’s weather-dependent. “Ideally, I write in my writing shed. This works best because there are no distractions, except weather at times when it can get too hot or too chilly. I dream of a mini woodstove in there, with space for a tea pot.” When the shed isn’t an option, she makes do with her dining room table. Beckie is currently editing a memoir.

Cute shed, Beckie!

Andrea has a self-described “backyard oasis” at her home, complete with multiple writing spots and a pool if she needs an active break. Her space is weather-dependent as well. If she’s forced inside, she opts for the living room couch. Wherever she is, she needs a bit of nature. “I look for a spot that is comfortable and full of light; under trees, or where I can see them.”

Staying mobile means Andrea is ready to write when inspiration hits. Sharon, who’s working on a mystery/thriller novel, likes to mix up her writing spots too. “I usually write sitting up in bed against the headboard with my laptop on my lap (obviously) and my notes spread out around me,” she says. “If I’m at the library, I go for the comfiest chair I can find.” Sharon finds sitting at a desk to be too formal.

Like Beckie, I have a writing space all to myself, but it’s also my home office. I have a work-from-home day job, so my 9-to-5 is the same space as my 5-to-9. On the plus side, a dedicated office means I don’t have to fight for space or negotiate with family members for a little quiet time. There’s room enough for my books, writing supplies, files, and two desks. I can close the door and focus on my work whenever I want.

My creative readiness struggle is transitioning from work-Maria to creative-Maria without physically leaving my office. I’ve started to venture out of my formal office and – like Beckie – set up on the dining room table so I can step purposefully into the writing zone.

Technology, talismans, and snacks

The physical writing space includes all the things we need around us to write. That can look different for everyone, but the basic categories are writing implements/technology, writing supports, sustenance, and ambiance.

Sharon gets back to basics when she writes. “I’ve usually got a glass of water beside me on the nightstand and a little bowl of some nibblies – M&Ms, almonds, chips, they all work. I’ve always got the outline for my novel nearby to remind me where I’m headed.”

Andrea’s setup is also pared down: she just needs a notebook and a pen with blue ink, with “candles and calm.”

Beckie is the only RW who mentioned music. She likes to write with “a chill playlist – something ambient.”

As for me, I need my laptop or lined notepaper and a good pen (I write longhand when I’m brainstorming or outlining); my hard-copy story notes and outline; coffee with plenty of milk; and quiet. Those are the absolute must-haves for me to write.

I do appreciate some technological supports. I prefer to keep my phone out of my line of sight, but I do use the timer for writing sprints. Music can get my creativity going, so I sometimes have a classical playlist or an instrumental soundtrack playing. But music with lyrics is too distracting for me. I am experimenting with a talisman – I’m not a woo-woo person but I do believe in the power of rituals. I found a hunk of clear glass on one of my waterfront walks, and I’m placing it near my laptop as a reminder to focus my writing energy.

Making a “creatively ready” writing space

Here’s what I’ve learned about preparing one’s physical space to support a regular writing practice:

  • Identify needs versus wants. While having the perfect physical writing space is every writer’s dream, it won’t be the reality 100% of the time. When it comes down to it, all that any writer needs is a comfortable place to write and the materials you need to be productive and creative. Everything else is gravy. (Like those Edison lights or the soundtrack to Interstellar.)
  • Know yourself. Some writers do their best work at a bustling coffee shop, while others need quiet and privacy to get going. Note where you’ve been productive in the past and do your best to replicate those conditions.
  • Have options. Less-than-ideal conditions can give you a great excuse to skip out of your writing time – like if a heat wave is keeping you from writing in your she-shed, you’re out of M&Ms, or someone stole your favourite seat at Starbuck’s. Have a plan B, even if it’s not ideal.
  • Don’t rely on perfect conditions to write. Waiting for conditions to be just so or spending too much time creating an idyllic space can lead to not doing the work. If there’s anything you should strive for, it’s the ability to build a regular writing habit. I think Sharon said it perfectly: “Don’t overthink creative readiness too much. Have confidence in your ability to be creative at any given time. Most of the time I am just diving blindly into creative projects, knowing that I’ll get where I want to go at some point because I have shown myself many times before that I can.”

Bottom line, creative readiness is about balancing the conditions that help you write at your best with the very minimum you need to put the work in, plus the creative confidence to push on.

In the next part of this post, we’ll talk about the mental and psychological side of creative readiness, and how the Restless Writers get into the writing mindset.

For fun, I asked AI to adjust that image of the perfect writer’s office to include a timed device that would keep a person locked in their chair so they don’t get distracted. The image looks pretty unhinged, but someone should invent this.

Take my money!

Until next time,

Maria

2 Comments

Filed under Motivation

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | June 10, 2024 · 12:00 pm

Curious creativity

Recently, I was chatting with a writer I know who is results-oriented to the extreme. He proceeds by tackling and completing tasks in a linear, structured way. He swears by detailed outlines, story-arc schematics, and rich character tables.

He confessed that he was dealing with writer’s block.

“I don’t get it,” he said. “I know exactly where my novel is going, and how my main character will overcome a critical internal conflict. I even have the final dramatic scene laid out in bullet points! But I can’t seem to get writing. I’ve set goals for myself, but all my deadlines have flown past—whoosh! It’s totally frustrating.”

Sounds like it’s time for my friend to try a curiosity challenge.

A curiosity challenge is a mindset technique — suggested by one of our blog readers — that can help you get out of a writing slump. I’m trying it myself this month, to help me address creative anxiety, re-kindle my passion for writing, and get back into a regular writing practice.

All that a curiosity challenge involves is the reframing of a goal statement into a curiosity question. It’s simple and powerful. Instead of setting a rigid word-count goal or deadline for yourself, try turning it into an experiment.

Frame your experiment with phrases like: “I’m curious if…” or “Is it possible to…” or “I wonder if…” or even “Wouldn’t it be cool to…”

Here are some examples:

Instead of saying this……try this.
I have to wake up extra-early all week so I can meet my word-count goal!I’m curious if I can get up an hour early every day this week and write before my kids get up.
The only way I can make this submission deadline is if I write the whole thing this long weekend!Is it possible to write 10,000 words over one long weekend?
I have to focus on this chapter and finish it before I can move on with my novel!I wonder if I could write a scene from my main character’s dog’s perspective?
My revised chapter 1 is due to my writing group in less than a month!Wouldn’t it be cool to share a revised draft of chapter 1 with my writing group next month?

This approach takes the fear of failure out of the equation. If you’re anxious about not being able to achieve a writing goal or getting derailed, remove the anxiety by eliminating the high-pressure stakes.

If you’re finding yourself stuck or blocked or bored, bring this curiosity perspective to your writing. Don’t plan; play. Be bold. Explore a possibility. Do something new just to see if you can. Broaden your understanding of what you can achieve by trying something out.

Be ever-curious and challenge yourself with a not-so-serious approach. You’ll be surprised by how this simple hack can give your creativity a kick-start.

Are you going to give the curiosity challenge a try?

Maria

P.S.: June 2024 marks the 15th anniversary of the first blog post we ever published as the Restless Writers. (!) This is a super-exciting milestone and we are planning some fun ways to celebrate. Thanks to our readers for being here, and kudos to all our fellow writers who are on their own creative journeys.

1 Comment

Filed under Motivation, Trials and Tribulations, Writing supports

Tagged as , , , ,

by | May 3, 2024 · 7:50 am

The possibility of poetry

Fellow Restless Writer Andrea and I had signed up to attend a virtual workshop hosted by our local library called “Prompts to Find Your Inner Poet.” I almost didn’t join in, for two reasons: one, I am still working to get over my prejudice against poetry; and two, the workshop was being led by Lynda Monk, a coach, speaker, facilitator, and author who is passionate about journalling – and I hate journalling. (Raise your hand if you’ve ever felt traumatized by Julia Cameron and her morning pages.)

Fortunately, I gave myself a rousing pep talk, convinced myself that it was only for an hour, grabbed a bottle of wine, and headed over to Andrea’s house, so we could attend online together.

The workshop, held last week, was well attended – about 35 people – and Lynda gave a gracious, welcoming, and warm introduction to the workshop. She told us there would be writing exercises (which I was eager to dig into) and that “we are all poets in some way.”

If I had expected the event to be cringey, it wasn’t. Lynda opened by asking us to reflect on “what is poetry?” She described a type of literary expression that is resonant, captures beauty and emotion, helps us feel “aliveness” and connection, and speaks to the “unspoken”: the “spaces in between and around experiences, thoughts and feelings.” She outlined a plain language understanding of poetry that was immediately accessible.

Lynda shared one of her favourite poems – “Wild Geese” by Mary Oliver – and asked us to reflect on what stood out for us in the poem. A word, a phrase, a feeling? She shared that the poem evoked a sense of quiet, and that everyone needs to be able to access that kind of quiet in order to write.

She returned to this concept later in the session when she talked about the white space on one of the presentation slides. “Our creative selves need white space, where we can recognize what we have within our hearts to say.”

Throughout the session, Andrea and I would make little affirmative noises in response to some piece of insight that Lynda shared about poetic language. I found Lynda’s approach to talking about poetry, and encouraging each of us to explore new poetic prompts, to be the opposite of cringey. She was engaging, positive, non-critical, practical, and inclusive.

One takeaway for me was what Lynda had to say about the transformative effects of poetry. To paraphrase, poetic writing can transform what we’re feeling into something else (e.g. writing about a negative experience can turn it into a positive one), and poetic writing can transform ourselves, by altering our perceptions about our own experiences and emotions.

The writing exercises were intriguing and fun – Andrea and I agreed we should share the prompts at a future Restless Writers’ meeting.

  • Take the first line of your favourite poem, and use it as a prompt for your own poem. Lynda used Emily Dickinson’s “I dwell in Possibility” as the line prompt.
  • Use the structure of an existing poem as a template for your poem. “Otherwise” by Jane Kenyon was the perfect prompt to have us imagining our own alternate lives.
  • Cut words out of a magazine or newspaper, and paste them into poems in different shapes. (Ahem, an idea for the next Restless Writers’ holiday craft night?)
  • Create a “book spine poem.” This was another exercise Lynda encouraged us to try on our own time – you take books from your shelves, and make a poem out of their titles. Mine is below.

Principles still missing.
How did that happen?
The novel cure underland, surrounded by idiots, sediment in streams.
Do not disturb the big thing.

I’m thankful I talked myself into joining the workshop, and I’m thankful for Lynda’s generous and gentle approach. It opened up something in my imagination and in my writing that I might have been repressing. I’m looking forward to exploring more poetic writing this spring.

Maybe I’ll even give journalling another go. But no promises.

Which of the poetic prompts above will you try?

Maria

PS: Learn more about Lynda here.

7 Comments

Filed under Inspiration, poetry

Tagged as , , , , , , ,

by | April 16, 2024 · 4:35 pm

Filtering out the no(i)se

Did you know that you can always see your nose?

Made you look! Or rather, made you notice.

Your nose is always smack-dab in the middle of your field of vision, but your brain chooses to ignore it most of the time. (You can learn about the phenomenon here.) That’s because it’s expected sensory information. Your brain doesn’t need to register your nose (unless something’s going on with it, like maybe there’s a butterfly perched on it) so your brain filters it out in order to be more efficient.

After all, your brain can’t be expected to actively report on absolutely everything it comes across all the time. And you don’t want it to. You want your brain to clue you in to the important stuff, like the sign-post you’re about to walk into, the twenty-dollar bill lying on the sidewalk, or the fact that your duck a l’orange is burning to a crisp.

This ability – called unconscious selective attention – means your brain can safely ignore unnecessary inputs so it can handle the important stuff.

(Interested in this concept? Read more here. The invisible gorilla experiment is also pretty cool.)

Why do our brains do this?

Unconscious selective attention can help you focus on your writing efforts. Most writers need quiet, calm spaces in which to work, and those spaces are increasingly hard to come by. But this is when your brain gives you a helping hand. You’ll be able to edit out unimportant background noises that might be preventing you from concentrating, like the chatter in your local coffee-shop or the lawnmower outside your window. It also means you aren’t distracted by the colour of the rug, or the hum of the HVAC system, or the fact that you’re wearing slippers.

But you might want to think differently about selective attention when it comes to your writing.

This is one place where you want to consciously select the information your reader should notice. It’s your job to point out that background information when it will enhance your writing.

When should you pay conscious selective attention?

  • When you want to make a description of your setting richer. What sounds percolate through the scene? Is there a unique quality to the light, or a scent to the air? Bring some of that sensory flavour to the foreground.
  • When you want to build suspense. A ticking clock. The lack of birdsong. A hum in the air. The sun slowly going down. Adding these barely noticeable layers to your scene will give your readers a sense that something is about to happen.
  • When you want to slow the pace down. Is your character taking a moment to reflect on a decision or remember the past? Take note of the small gestures and non-critical elements to give the scene a meditative quality.

Take a moment to notice the things that your brain is helping you ignore for efficiency’s sake. Your writing will be the better for it.

Maria

Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

Leave a comment

Filed under Writing resources

by | October 29, 2023 · 6:21 pm

The fear is real

Photo by Vadim Bogulov on Unsplash

Dig into your characters’ phobias to add depth, detail, and humanity

Content warning: This blog post touches on some common and not-so-common phobias. If you struggle with a phobia, feel free to skip this post. Also, I recognize that phobias are anxiety disorders and can impact a person’s life in profound ways. My writing here is meant to explore, in a light-hearted manner, the ways that writers can grant characters life and depth by giving them a phobia. In no way is this meant to downplay the very real impact that phobias and anxiety can have.

I have a phobia of bees.

Yes, all bees. Even bumblebees, those guileless panda bears of the apian world.

All stripey stinging insects set me off. In fact, if anything buzzes near or past me, whether it’s a fly, hummingbird, or a slight breeze, I’ll do my little frantic bee-flee dance until it’s gone.

The origins of my fear of bees lurk deep in my psyche, and I may never know why that part of my lizard-brain responds to a buzz. But I have a theory. My phobia may derive from a childhood visit to the local pick-your-own apple farm. I got lost in a “corn maze” and was swarmed by big angry wasps. My young and impressionable self was confused and trapped in a dark, creepy, fire-hazard labyrinth, and attacked by flying monsters. Even though I ended up with only a few stings, the experience stuck with me. No wonder my instinct is to run away.

My friends can get pretty impatient about this phobia, especially if we’re trying to enjoy a lovely summer evening outside on a patio. It’s okay, I get it. I’d be irritated by me too.

Pretty much everyone’s got a phobia – or phobias. Whether it’s bees (apiphobia) like me, or clowns (coulrophobia), dentists (dentophobia), teenagers (ephebiphobia), holes (trypophobia), or books (bibliophobia), a phobia is a uniquely human condition.

For some people, phobias can lead to intense symptoms – from chest tightness, racing heartbeat, and difficulty breathing, to anxiety, confusion, and dread. Phobias vary in terms of degree too. They can be a mild irritation or have a debilitating impact on a person’s day-to-day life, or anywhere in between.

As writers, we aim to create colourful, relatable, flawed, complex, and authentic characters. As you build out your characters, you might want to think about whether or not they have a phobia, and what that phobia means to their life and their story.

Here are 8 ways a phobia can add depth and layers to your characters and your story:

  1. Internal conflict: Your whole story might focus on a character’s struggle to overcome their phobia, which may have been brought on by an unresolved trauma of the past. A detective who comes face-to-face with his fear of confined spaces. A parent who must combat their agoraphobia to keep her daughter safe. A child prodigy pushed into a musical career by over-ambitious parents must fight their fear of loud noises.
  2. Relatability: Some phobias can help to make a character relatable or humanly flawed. An estimated 77% of people have a fear of public speaking (glossophobia), so giving your character a case of nerves before a big speech would make them pretty darn human.
  3. Comedy: While it’s never nice to mock the afflicted, a character’s phobia can give you plenty of opportunities for humour – whether it’s slapstick, gross-out, physical, punny, or ironic. Some of those opportunities are driven by the kind of phobia at play. For instance, trichophoba (fear of hair), decidophobia (fear of making decisions), and chronomentrophobia (fear of clocks) all seem like they could lead to some laughs. Just try not to be mean about it, gosh.
  4. Horror: The opposite is also true. So many horror elements derive from phobias. Spiders, snakes, sharks, clowns, garden gnomes, mirrors, demons, dolls, blood, the dark, fire, sleep – you name it, and there’s probably an absolutely terrifying horror story to write about it. And if the phobia doesn’t exist yet, just make it up. Guaranteed you’ll scare the pants off someone.
  5. Motivation for action: Writers must regularly shove characters into shitty situations to drive the plot and reveal the character’s growth and transformation. Having a character encounter their phobia will lead them to take an action. That action could be retreat, charge ahead, cry, faint, scream, what have you. The action your character takes in response to a phobia can provide a transition into the next beat of the story and provide deeper insight into your character for the reader.
  6. Signature quirk: A phobia can also be a kind of personal branding for your character. Indiana Jones Jr.: afraid of snakes. Indiana Jones Sr: afraid of rats. Ron Weasley: afraid of spiders. Wolverine: afraid to fly. Peter Pan: afraid of growing up. Maria: afraid of bees.
  7. Revelation: Your character’s phobia can be a clue to be unravelled over the course of the story. It could be the key to a shocking childhood accident, a genetic link to another character who has the same phobia, or the real reason why a villain does what she does. Go deeper, and make it matter.
  8. Novelty: If you ever feel stuck for an idea for a story, just google “list of phobias” for instant inspiration.

It’s easy for me to write about a character who’s afraid of bees (or sharks, deep water, or the shrill of my smoke alarm), because that’s what I struggle with. As I proceed with my WIP, I’ll be challenging myself to open my mind to other types of fears that my character could have, and all the ways that I can make my character more human.

Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia (fear of long words), anyone?

What are your characters afraid of?

Maria

Leave a comment

Filed under Inspiration, Writing ideas, Writing resources

Tagged as , , ,

by | July 17, 2023 · 8:20 pm

Future you will thank you

Think of something you regularly resist doing. Something you make excuses to avoid, that you always put off until the last minute, or that you dread until you actually get started.

What comes to mind? Paying your taxes? Leg day? Going to the dentist? Flipping your mattress? Writing thank you letters? Leg day? Is it leg day?

For me, it’s timed writing exercises. (And leg day.)

There’s something unsettling about being given a tightly constrained topic, coming up with an idea, writing under the clock, trying to write well, and—gasp—sharing whatever writing you’re able to churn out. In our writing group, I’m usually the one who greets a new writing exercise with a groan and lost-my-pen-sorry-can’t-write excuses.

I don’t really know where this resistance comes from. My inner asshole will say it’s because I’m lazy. My inner therapist will say it’s because I have a fear of failure and a fear of success. Let’s say they’re both right. Writing, and writing well, is hard work, and sometimes it’s easier to do just about anything else.

I got to face this resistance head-on in a Restless Writers meeting back in April. We had just wrapped up our pre-meeting ritual of Sun Chips, sparkling wine, and catching up. Beckie’s idea for a “pen-to-paper power 10” activity was the first thing on the agenda, and she asked if we were all still up for it.

I felt the resistance burble up immediately. I knew that this activity was meant to spark some creativity, activate our writing muscles, and give us some quick writing wins. Still, I piped up with, “I’d be okay with skipping it.” I assumed my mind would be blank, I wouldn’t know what to write about, and whatever I did end up writing would probably be garbage. Yikes. But the others were gung-ho, so Beckie pulled out a stack of prompts.

The prompts were simple but intriguing:

  • Write about an item you have that isn’t expensive but means a lot to you.
  • What colour do you feel like today and why?
  • Write a recipe for something abstract like a feeling or an event.
  • Write a magic spell for something you need right now in your life.

My interest was piqued. I ignored the remnants of resistance hovering at the edges of my brain and told myself that at least this would be over in 10 minutes.

We all picked out the prompt that worked for us. I chose the magic spell one. Beckie set the timer, and we settled into silence.

The first minute was bleak. I told myself I could literally write whatever I wanted, even if it was a magic spell to win the lottery. Because if there’s anything I need in my life right now, it’s cash-ola. This got me thinking that winning the lottery isn’t the only way to get money—I could get a windfall some other way, or snag a promotion, or one of my business ideas could hit pay-dirt.

The second minute was when the prompt clicked. I came up with a pagan-inspired spell to put me on the path to good fortune. (I’m still on that path, obviously, otherwise I’d be on a beach in Cabo right now.) I wrote as quickly as possible in my signature chicken-scratch, and even had some time to edit before time was up.

When the timer dinged, I had written something I thought was funny and clever, with a tongue-in-cheek style and a smidge of satire.

In fact, everyone had written something. We read our writings out loud, which led to new conversations and tangents and ideas. I had a frisson of excitement in my tummy, like I just accomplished something a little bit brave. I get that same feeling when I single-handedly exterminate a centipede or put an Ikea bookshelf together.

It felt…good.

On YouTube, I follow Kara and Nate, an adorable couple from Nashville who have a travel channel. (You should follow them; they’re a blast.) Kara has this saying that goes something like, “Future Kara loves past pain.” That saying helped her power through extreme challenges and achieve impressive things. She might not have wanted to do the thing—like go skydiving or hike up the equivalent of Mt. Everest—but her future self was really glad she did.

Participating in a short timed writing exercise may not be apples-to-apples with skydiving, but it was still the thing I didn’t want to do. Getting myself to get started and do the work was the hard part. While I was writing, the words came easily. When I was done, I felt energized and exhilarated—and ready to do more.

We tried out the same writing activity at our next meeting. And guess who was a convert? Yours truly. I may now be our group’s writing-exercise evangelist. Those 10-minute sprints are fun, unpredictable, challenging, surprising, and real. They remind me that if I want to accomplish my writing goals, I have to put in the work.

If you’re resisting getting started on your writing project, give a timed writing exercise a try. Or book a writing session in your calendar, or have your SO/best friend/accountability partner harangue you into writing.

Lean into the discomfort. Future you will thank you.

Maria

PS: Have you tried a timed writing exercise before? How did it go? Do you have a favourite prompt to share? Leave it in the comments.

Leave a comment

Filed under Motivation, Writing ideas

by | March 11, 2023 · 12:14 pm

“How’s that novel coming along?”

Honouring your unofficial accountability partners

How many times have you been on the receiving end of a question like this?  

“How’s that novel coming along?” “Have you finished your book yet?” “When can I read that short story?”

No matter who asks me this kind of question—my writing group colleagues, my sister, or a random well-intentioned stranger who hears that I am a writer—I have an emotional, visceral response. An internal shudder. A surge of irritation. An immediate need to run away or hide.

I find it’s easy to respond with a little white lie: “Still chugging away!” Or a deflection: “It’s fine. But tell me about your new job!” Or a half-hearted attempt at a joke: “You’ll have to wait a bit longer—I’m holding out for a 6-figure advance and a Netflix adaptation.”

If I’m feeling especially fragile, I want to lash out with sarcasm or venom. Or just cry.

It’s no fun being reminded that your work in progress is just that—a work in progress. As in, not done yet. Especially if you feel stuck, if you’re comparing yourself to another writer, or if you had planned on reaching whatever word-count by now. Maybe you haven’t written anything in weeks, and the shame and self-loathing is gnawing at your insides. Maybe you gave up on your novel and turned your focus to renovating your laundry room, or gardening, or moping. (Been there.)

Whatever plot problem, personal vulnerability, or other form of writer’s block has caused your project to stall, it’s not the fault of that friend or family member who innocently stumbled into your creative dark night of the soul.

Instead of blasting that hapless individual or succumbing to those negative feelings, try this instead:

Pause: Take a deep breath. Sip your drink. Tie your shoelaces. Do something to give yourself a moment before you respond.

Smile: The action of using your face muscles to smile can have an effect on whatever negative emotion you’re actually feeling. Basically, fake it ‘til you make it.

Say thank you: This person is taking an interest in you and your writing. They don’t know about your internal struggles. They probably care about you and genuinely want to know how it’s going.

Clock your response: Notice the emotion you feel in response to their inquiry and reflect on why it set you off. Think about why you had the emotional response you did.

Be honest with them: You’re not obligated to tell this person why your writing has stalled. That’s between you and your muse—or you and your therapist. But if it feels right in the moment, share that the writing isn’t going as smoothly as you like. They might have some words of wisdom, or at least a sympathetic ear.

Be honest with yourself: If something isn’t going the way you want with your writing, you’re the only one who can change things. Ultimately, you’re responsible for moving forward with your creative project. Whatever has you stalled—lack of time, lack of motivation, boredom, frustration, a problem with craft, a problem with structure—it’s up to you to dig into that challenge and find a way through it.

As unwelcome or uncomfortable as those questions are, they can be the kick in the pants you need to get back to writing. Taking a closer look at why questions like this set you off can help you understand what’s keeping you from moving forward.

And that can ultimately help you turn discomfort into action.

How do you handle questions about your writing?

Maria

Leave a comment

Filed under Motivation, Trials and Tribulations