What a beautiful post, Jen! Like you, I have to have abject silence in order to anything creative. What is that? So many people have headsets on, or are listening to music, or literally cannot work without some kind of auditory stimulation going on in the background. This drives me INSANE. I have to totally shut myself away. Love your writing studio! What a lovely nest, so conducive to creativity.
And I love that you don't have a desk there. I also have a twin bed in my office because there are so many times I don't want to type at all, but I want to gaze out at clouds through this window the bed faces. I just need to do nothing. Artists must have moments where they are absolutely doing nothing, or at least I do. And I especially loved that you brought up collaboration. This is weird, because I don't know that many writers who do stuff like co-authorship, but I always felt this was not only fun, but creatively stimulating. If you're paired with a person who is like-minded but different enough to challenge you, to bounce ideas off you, to meld with you, it's like some kind of heaven has been brought about. I don't see writers writing in collaboration so much, but it's honestly my preference. I'm working right now on a new story -- maybe a novel someday -- that is fictional, and I'm writing in a vacuum so to speak; that is, by myself. And some amazing stuff is coming forth, but honestly, I miss writing with a partner. So this post really resonated with me.
Nancy, sometimes I think writers could learn a lot from musicians, who really don't treat their craft like "work" in the same way writers to. Lots of collaboration and they call their craft "play"!
This is such a great comparison, and you're right. Blues and jazz players are even more promiscuous, as they tend to move around and play in different groups, and that diversity leads to even more creativity. I was listening to the Ringo Starr special the other night. He's coming out with a new country album -- and while I really don't prefer country, it was the eclectic group he had on stage, singing songs like "Act Naturally" that really took me back to my teenage years. I'm digressing, but yes, here's to collaboration!
I loved reading this. I’ve always wanted to just live a life filled with play and joyful work. Through Zen practice I learned that this is attainable to all who are prepared to work on their mind. But now that I have a child, it’s much harder to remember that. Thank you for the reminder❤️
Thank you, Mona. I agree that care-giving can really complicate the work we do for our own joy and self-care—and also makes that restoration that much more necessary.
What a beautiful post, Jen! Like you, I have to have abject silence in order to anything creative. What is that? So many people have headsets on, or are listening to music, or literally cannot work without some kind of auditory stimulation going on in the background. This drives me INSANE. I have to totally shut myself away. Love your writing studio! What a lovely nest, so conducive to creativity.
And I love that you don't have a desk there. I also have a twin bed in my office because there are so many times I don't want to type at all, but I want to gaze out at clouds through this window the bed faces. I just need to do nothing. Artists must have moments where they are absolutely doing nothing, or at least I do. And I especially loved that you brought up collaboration. This is weird, because I don't know that many writers who do stuff like co-authorship, but I always felt this was not only fun, but creatively stimulating. If you're paired with a person who is like-minded but different enough to challenge you, to bounce ideas off you, to meld with you, it's like some kind of heaven has been brought about. I don't see writers writing in collaboration so much, but it's honestly my preference. I'm working right now on a new story -- maybe a novel someday -- that is fictional, and I'm writing in a vacuum so to speak; that is, by myself. And some amazing stuff is coming forth, but honestly, I miss writing with a partner. So this post really resonated with me.
Nancy, sometimes I think writers could learn a lot from musicians, who really don't treat their craft like "work" in the same way writers to. Lots of collaboration and they call their craft "play"!
This is such a great comparison, and you're right. Blues and jazz players are even more promiscuous, as they tend to move around and play in different groups, and that diversity leads to even more creativity. I was listening to the Ringo Starr special the other night. He's coming out with a new country album -- and while I really don't prefer country, it was the eclectic group he had on stage, singing songs like "Act Naturally" that really took me back to my teenage years. I'm digressing, but yes, here's to collaboration!
I loved reading this. I’ve always wanted to just live a life filled with play and joyful work. Through Zen practice I learned that this is attainable to all who are prepared to work on their mind. But now that I have a child, it’s much harder to remember that. Thank you for the reminder❤️
Thank you, Mona. I agree that care-giving can really complicate the work we do for our own joy and self-care—and also makes that restoration that much more necessary.