4 Ways Writers Can Keep The Creative Juices Flowing

shanedustin (55)in #writing • 5 years ago

It can often seem difficult to keep the creative juices rolling. Seasons of uncreativity occurs when the writer is forced to put their work to the side due to outside factors of life. Illness, travel, schools, pressure, stress, visitors, holidays, etc. – each is a factor that can hinder and block the creative juices from reaching the imagination. When this occurs the writer can be overwhelmed for weeks, to months, and even years, but if allowed to go on for years the writer is committing literary suicide. Rarely if allowed to go more than a couple years will the writer ever take up their craft and write again. So, I give you a word of caution. If you find yourself in this stage it is important that you find ways to stay creative.

Once there was a new writer who was exploding on the scene and his work was being accepted by magazines, and being published in journals. The creativity was alive and ripe. And after his last story to be published he decided to take a two week vacation and during that time the market crash of 2008 had occurred, and he lost financially. To remedy the situation he went back to work full time because his writing income wasn’t substantial enough to pay the bills. Each evening when he would get home after work he found that his attention was required by his family. And by the time his kids were off to bed and the house settled for the night he would spend some time with his wife and watch TV, and then off to bed they would go. Almost every night for a year he thought about writing and would tell himself that the next day he would set up for an extra hour and write, but he never did. The couple of times he tried all he managed to write were blank pages, and no matter how hard he tried the creative juices that feed the imagination just wasn’t there. In other words, his imagination wasn’t being properly feed. And after two weeks of doing this he slowly drifted from staying up an extra hour to going to bed with his wife. Years later he still hasn’t written a single word, and all the great talent wasted all because he let the creative juices die by a lack of self-discipline. He discovered the great challenge that most new writers face. How to juggle life and the writing dream at the same time? How do you juggle spending time with your family, pay bills, go to work, and still find time to stay creative and write? During the day he neglected to find ways to stay creative. He neglected to keep the dream alive.

This is by far the greatest challenge any writer will ever face. This great challenge is by no means an easy process to master. It can be done, but takes dedication and hard work. It requires you to find ways to keep the juices flowing and feed the imagination. It is the imagination that gives any form of art expression. Writing is like art, without creativity it cannot be done. So, therefore it is up to you the writer to find ways to keep the imagination alive and ripe. There are countless ways this can be achieved and thus it is up to you to find the best ways to stay creative. Below are four ways you can accomplish this task.

4 Ways to Stay Creative

1. Read a wide array of different genres to maintain a broad-spectrum knowledge of general publishing trends.
I have never met a writer who didn’t read a lot. It is a must if you want to be a writer of any kind. Not only does reading help you to improve your skills as a writer, but it also one of the best ways to keep the creative juices flowing into your imagination. It is important to explore all types of genres, from fantasy, science fiction, to romance. Read everything you can. From novels to short stories, magazines, e-zines, etc., not only does this allow you to feed your imagination, but also keep you up to date on general publishing trends. It will keep you informed on the current market, such as word-length changes at certain magazine or publisher, shift in editorial staff, and so on.

2. Keep in touch with others writers
      Keeping in touch with fellow writers can be of great benefit. They can share ideas and have long conversation on current and future market trends. These consist of writers’ clubs, conferences, study groups, criticism groups, Facebook groups, you name it, there are hundreds of places were writers can meet up with each other and share there ideas. These places are great places to seek advice, instruction, and encouragement.
      Word on Caution! These types of groups can be temporarily satisfying. Left unchecked it can clog the creative juices and the need for written expression, causing a writer to write words on paper tailored to a specific taste to fellow members of a certain group. It very easy to write and please the group because of the praise they give, causing the writer to forget they are writing for the general masses and not the group. As sad as it is, these types of groups, occasionally, “take in each other’s literary hog wash” and wonder why they fail to sell their stories. Be warned.
      Other than the easy trap to fall into with these groups, nonetheless these groups can be great resources to keep the creative juices flowing and feed the imagination with new material. Just remember you can’t make a career out of writers’ groups. But do go and meet with your fellow writers from time to time. Writing is a lonely career that can be discouraging and a tough business to break into, so it is important to seek out your fellow writers to help you build fire of enthusiasm to let the creative juices flow.

3. Notes (Notebook)
The notebook is another great tool in the writer’s toolbox if it used in the correct manner. I myself only keep a notebook during the editing stages. Stephen King once said, “Notebooks are a good way to immortalize bad ideas. My idea about a good idea is one that sticks around and sticks around and sticks around.” And I have found this to be true in my own experience. Every story I have ever written were the ones I never recorded in a notebook. They were good ideas and so stories stuck with me. Now with that said, I know plenty of writers who do keep notebooks and swear by it. I myself have no quarrel with a notebook. Each writer is their own. You have to find what is best for you, and if writing down ideas works to help keep the creative juices flowing, then by all means use a notebook.

Benefits of a Writers Notebook

Thought Stimulate
Increases Focus
Increases the Habit of Writing
Evaluate Progress of Story Development
Write Down Questions
Gain Perspective Over Thoughts
etc.

Notebooks are good at recording ideas, plot line, scraps of dialogue and characterization. And when kept in check they are valuable assets, helping to keep the creative juices agile, receptive, free flowing, so you can gather a rich storehouse of material to use in the future. It is your job to find any means necessary to keep the imagination on fire. Be Warned. You must take caution. Notebooks are like writers’ clubs, it can be overdone. Just never lose sight that notebooks is a means to an end, not the goal itself. Your job is to write stories, and not notebooks.

4. Write Daily
This is by far the best tip to keep the creative juices flowing. No serious writer can be a real writer without this habit. If you don’t have time to write, then you don’t have time to be a writer. When you take on the habit of writing daily the benefits are enormous. It allows you to stay in the correct mindset and in story mode, and when you are story mold the mind allows the imagination to flow freely, and when the imagination flows free great stories are written. Keeping an active mind is the best tool to keep the creative juices flowing.

8 Benefits of Daily Writing

Increases IQ
Increases Imagination
Increases Writing skills
Increases Memory
Increases Comprehension
Increases Self-Discipline
Increases Communication Skills
Increases Self-Confidence

As you can see from the benefits, writing daily does wonders for the writer. The more benefits something offers the better it is for the creative juices to feed the imagination and allow the stories to flow with ease. Remember, serious writers write daily.

Summary

The imagination is the writer’s best friend. Without it no story can be written. Therefore, it is your job to research and find ways to help you to cultivate the mind to increase your imagination. If you are a serious writer you will find ways and use whatever works. And another great why to increase your imagination is to love what you do and have fun doing it. If you are not having fun writing and feels like a choir then your imagination isn’t going to do its job. Why would it? It isn’t enjoying the activity. Talent is cultivated, and is best cultivated when the activity is enjoyable. As the painter Bob Ross once said, “Talent is pursued interest.” With that said, I want to wish you all a good life, a good night, and may your dreams come true.