Free your mind and the rest will follow . . .

The last time I posted I discussed creating sacred space in which to work.  Mostly I was talking about physical space.  However, most of the work of writing goes on in the head and can take place all over the place.  Like Agatha Christie, I do some of my best writing while washing the dishes.

Still, there are times when I am really on fire and other times when I am just plodding along waiting for some magic to happen.  I think most of us writers are this way.  If we waited for inspiration to strike every time we sat down to write we'd have shin splints from standing.  However, there are many ways to call on the Muse and boost both creativity and productivity.

To my way of thinking, the most deleterious influence on our writing lives, as well as our entire lives, is the internal critic we walk around with.  In our everyday lives, the voice might tell us we are too fat, or every time we pass a mirror the voice finds something to nag about.  We tell ourselves a thousand negative things every day.  If you don't believe that's true, take a look at this video to see some of what I am talking about.



When we write, that small voice can be just as unrelenting.  We call it the internal editor and it is often our harshest critic.  It tells us that we don't know what we are doing, everything we write is crap, so-and-so has a much better career than we do, we are a fake and our readers will catch us out, and on and on.  Self-doubt is common in all artistic endeavors, but in order to create, we must learn to silence this voice or be victim to our own fears of inadequacy.  Then we must replace these thoughts with new, confidence-building mantras to boost our creativity.

Meditation is one way to gain discipline over the mind.  Through meditation we train the mind to focus, either through guided imagery, music or silence, depending on the skill or purpose of the person meditating.  Gassho meditation, which is one of the pillars of Reiki, we focus on the feeling of where the two middle fingers meet when hands are in prayer pose.  If any mundane thoughts. like your shopping list or what day to go to the cleaners, come into the mind, let them float away like a feather on water.  If any negative thoughts pop into your mind, like you can't be doing this right or this is silly, brush them away also.  Now is the time to go inward, to commune with your own energy, your own intuition, or your guides.  Try to spend at least fifteen minutes a day doing meditation of some kind--even if it is just sitting still and attempting to keep your mind clear.

The other part of changing your mindset is to replace the negative messages you send yourself to something positive.  Monitor your thoughts and when you find realize you are being critical of yourself, replace your thoughts with something positive.  I'm not suggesting you come up with something on the spur of the moment.  You can plan on using simple affirmations to counteract all the negativity you tell yourself.  I am a confident productive writer can go a long way toward dispelling any disparaging things you've been telling yourself about your writing.

Next we'll talk about how to formulate your own affirmations for writing and for life.