Talk about liberating. Every writer knows the dread of the blank computer screen or the blank page. The first thought is usually: how do I start? Who wouldn’t want to be liberated from the fear of even getting started? We want our most creative selves in the foreground—fearless, idiosyncratic, alive with new ideas.
Writing is not easy for most of us though, in part because most writers have an internal editor who is a pain-in-the-neck.
Even in the past ten minutes—since I started writing this post—I have been avoiding writing. Anything other than writing! I had to stretch and do some yoga. I walked outside for the mail. I checked my HSA account, had a turkey sandwich, and then it became essential that I clean out a desk drawer that has been a mess since Clinton was president. Busted. So busted.
Fortunately, there are dozens of tools in the writer’s toolbox that kick the internal editor out of our lives at least for awhile so that writing can be fun and more creative. The goal is to push the boundaries of what we think we are capable of.
Freewriting is one of those boundary-expanding tools; in my opinion one of the best.
The deceptively simple concept of freewriting is that you just begin to write. You set a time limit and then stick to it. Keep your pen moving, or fingers typing for ten minutes, say, without stopping. If some grammar problem crops up, ignore it and keep going. If you begin to ramble, don’t stop. If you know what you are writing is not deathless prose, who cares right now?
Because there is a powerful truth inherent in freewriting: in freewriting you can’t lie. None of us can. If we feel something, it will come out. We may not have even known how strongly we feel about something until that moment. Why? Because we are not censoring ourselves. The internal editor will be so flummoxed by this new rapid-fire technique that it will not be able to keep up.
And when it’s over, you can toss the whole thing in the round can. Or you may spot one juicy sentence so full of life that you wonder where it was hiding all this time.
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One of the best things I ever did in my life was volunteer for a small Portland non-profit called Write Around Portland.
Write Around Portland has a simple, but powerful mission: to offer free ten-week writing workshops to people who would otherwise not have the chance—due to life circumstances, money, health, social situation—to do anything like it. Snacks are provided, bus passes are provided, childcare is offered, journals and pens passed around. All people have to do is commit to being there and giving their best. Volunteer facilitators, who have gone through a thirty hour training program and are like an army of highly training staff facilitate these workshops which can be life-changing in their depth.
As a facilitator myself, I saw a program up close that built bridges between the diverse members of our city; a program that used writing to break through the barriers that keep us apart. In fractured times like these, we need all the help we can get to break down barriers between people. It turns out that even mainstream businesses are using freewriting these days to boost the creativity of their employees and break down barriers. In Accidental Genius, author Mark Levy says we can generate our best ideas, insight and content by the act of fearless freewriting.
One of many techniques Write Around Portland uses is freewriting with the addition of prompts that get people started. Since the program is ten weeks long, two hours a week, we had time to take the raw material generated from this exercise and gradually polish it into poems, essays, fiction and non-fiction stories.
Here are a very few of Write Around Portland’s prompts used on the first evening to get the juices flowing. Maybe some of these prompts will free your creative spirit too, I know they sure help me enjoy my writing more.
v The world seemed different after…
v What you don’t know about me is…
v I’m not the kind of person who…
v I come from…
v This year, I…
And of course the list poems that provide fodder for future writing:
v things that make me angry,
v things that make me laugh,
v things I’ve lied about,
v what I fear most is…
Is there a prompt that resonates with you? Do you have one you use for yourself?
P.S. Don’t be surprised if you emerge as somebody you weren’t expecting with all this creative freewriting. After years of using prompts in my garden journal, I found this doozy yesterday:
Journal Entry March 21st
-Start Black Prince and Amish Paste indoors
-Mid-season corn—“how sweet it is”
-slugs have got to go
-Dreamed last night I was Clint Eastwood
-Woke up. I am Clint Eastwood
-uh oh
P.S. What do you do with your garden slugs? Clint wants to know.
Write Around Portland workshop photographed by Bonnie Caton. All rights reserved.
Wonderful post, Susie! I love your take on the power of freewriting. Thanks for your kind words about Write Around Portland. We just sent out a tweet with links to these two posts. No doubt you’ll inspire many more to pick up their pens and give freewriting a try!
Thanks Robyn, for tweeting that out. When I got the video, I just had to share it. It is beautifully done by the filmmaker too. I have met Kate, the facilitator, at a poetry event. If you remind me of her last name, I’ll put a tag with her full name on the blog post too (if you think she would want that.) I love your organization, so it isn’t hard to shout out about it. -:)
Hi again Robyn, just got your other note. I’ll add Kate Gray as a tag. Thanks for reminding me of her name. And also glad to know that you’all are just using Write Around Portland and not the acronym, WRAP. It WAS kind of confusing at times for sure.
Wonderful program and idea… This year I ….. Thank you for your kind comments on my blog… Michelle
Thank you Michelle! From what I can see of the beauty and effort you put into your blog, it is worth every comment.
Susie what a great place to volunteer. I use quotes to engage me in writing. Those that speak to me are placed in draft posts for later. I have hundreds and once I get the itch, I write…perhaps you could call it free writing…I hope to do more of it this winter.
Oh yes, that’s right–you use the inspiration of poets to get you going. That is really a great idea. One of my favorite tricks is keeping 3×5 cards (I even have them in my purse and everywhere I go) and when ideas strike, I jot them down. A writing teacher one time told me he has a file on his computer he calls his “parts pile.” I loved that. Odds and ends of stuff I hope to use one day.