Sometimes a regular notebook just won’t cut it.
A couple of months ago, I hit a brick wall when it came writing. I’d sit at the computer with my fingers hovering above the keys and nothing would come out. Then I’d move to using the good old fashioned paper and ink method, only to be met with the same results.
One day, as I allowed my mind to drift, it alighted on a memory of a little girl who I let doodle in my large sketchbook. She enlisted me to help her out and while we drew, we created stories to go along with each picture.
Thinking I didn’t have much to lose, I pulled out the giant sketchbook and was surprised to find I felt inspired to write again. As it turns out, my mind was in nonlinear mode. Looking at the screen and the college-ruled paper, both forcing me to write in straight lines, immediately put up a mental wall. But having the large open space of white to write however and wherever I wanted tore that wall down.
So, the next time you find yourself blocked, try changing the medium. You might be surprised with the results.
By the way, those purplish splotches are juice from pomegranate seeds. (I was feeling experimental.)
# Belle Enchanted » Blog Archive » Fun with a Writing Sketchbook wrote on December 5, 2008 at 12:53 pm:
[...] with the writing, now that the incentive of NaNoWriMo is gone. But Ann-Kat’s posted about her Writing Sketchbook and the pictures from her writing sketchbook are really inspiring. She says: Looking at the screen [...]
# Jace wrote on December 6, 2008 at 4:00 am:
That’s fantastic you discovered a way to write out of the box.
Eh … what were you experimenting with the promegranate juice?
# Ann-Kat wrote on December 6, 2008 at 1:47 pm:
The experiment…well…er…I had this half a pomegranate sitting on a plate beside me and I swear, those seeds looked like deep scarlet rubies. I wondered if that color would translate to white sketchbook paper. (In the back of my mind, I was thinking about how our early ancestors had to get creative with their paints and dyes.) As you can see from the pics, not exactly. LOL