Read on Twitter
Some thoughts and a piece of advice about being creatively productive right now:
It's, uh, really hard. Despite the most exciting project on my plate being in the most fun, early ideas phase, brainstorming story ideas and shaping themes/characters, I find myself pretty listless most days.
I'll spend all day THINKING about it, and get very little done on it. Maybe one idea worth exploring per day coheres. But that's largely because I'm wildly distracted, seeking short-term endorphins to distract from the weirdness/challenges of life right now.
More than ever, I'm seeking attention (via social media, friends, whatever) rather than paying attention, as JGL talks about in this nice (short) TED Talk I watched yesterday:
ANYWAYS, everyone knows all of this already, I imagine some of this sounds familiar to most people trying to do creative work right now. But I wanted to share one thing that has meaningfully helped me recently.
Which is, to walk over to the lake near me, with a notebook, WITHOUT MY PHONE, and just sit for a bit. I do this as often as I can muster, which is still only about 45 minutes a day, a few days a week, i.e. not much at all - and I'm trying to make it a daily thing.
And not having your phone with you makes you feel weird and anxious at first. But it makes such a PHENOMENAL difference to not have the option of distraction right now, of endorphin escape. To be forced to sit with your thoughts, and then eventually push through to what's beyond.
Every time I've done it, I've walked away with a whole page or two of notes and ideas worth exploring, more than I'd get done in a week if left to my own distracted devices (appropriate!).
I realize this doesn't sound like much, but the bar is super low right now for feeling good about getting shit done, and those moments of not having my phone on me have made all the difference. Give it a try if any of these feelings sound familiar?
