by Jenna | May 16, 2012 | Writing Articles
I'm fascinated about the debate about "writer's block." Some people claim that it does not exist, while others find themselves in the grips of it and feel invalidated by the people telling them it isn't possible.
I think it's a question of definition.
What does it mean to be blocked?
I met a writer once who claimed he was "blocked," which to him seemed to mean that he was completely unable to think or express anything, verbal, written, or otherwise. He simply refused to try to express what was going on inside him (we were in a coaching session), saying, "I don't know. I'm blocked," as if it was a disease that had consumed him that he was unable to control and he was unable to speak, think, write, or act.
I think this is what people mean when they don't say they believe in writer's block -- that it seems unlikely that writers are so completely unable to communicate.
I'm inclined to agree, but I've also heard so many stories about writers who have been blocked for years, it's a bit confusing.
Plumber's block?
Chris Guillebeau said to me in an interview, "Have you ever heard of plumber’s block? Of course not — so if you’re a writer, you just need to write."
It's like writer's block has become a passive excuse for not taking action on our writing, just like saying we're creatively blocked is a passive way of not taking action on our creative work. And while I think it might actually be possible for a plumber to feel blocked, Chris makes a good point.
Can we redefine it as resistance?
On the other hand, if we redefine writer's block as that constellation of perfectionism, procrastination, fear, excuses, anxiety, negativity, confusion, apathy, discomfort, and self-doubt otherwise known as resistance, then I think we've got something we can understand and deal with.
To my mind, resistance is a truer naming of writer's block. It encompasses that sense of reluctance we feel about pursuing things that we know we want to do. I've known I've wanted to write for years, but hadn't completed any larger works until recently.
Resistance is the stumbling block, and fear is its silent partner.
Writing — or taking action — is the answer, according to Seth Godin and Ira Glass. I'm inclined to agree.
Interesting links on writer's block
Wikipedia article on writer's block
Seth Godin on the writer's block epidemic
Ira Glass on storytelling (animated)
i09 on different storytelling writer's blocks and how to deal with them
Trippy therapy techniques for blocked Hollywood writers and executives
Warmly,
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by Jenna | Apr 13, 2012 | Writing Articles
If you’ve ever felt called to doing something artistic or creative, you’ve probably also realized by now that it can be pretty uncomfortable to share that work with other people.
There’s a deep vulnerability that comes with sharing our voices, art, words, acting, performing and other creative expression that can be so unnerving that many people never quite get past the word “Go” and instead sit on the side lines, reluctant to put themselves out there.
- I see it with writers who never quite seem to finish their writing projects or stall when it comes to developing plans to get their work into the world.
- I see it with actors who are terrified of going to auditions and postpone calling their agents until they “feel ready again.”
- I see it with artists who hide their work away in their studios and never make a sale.
I have something to tell you.
This is all driven by fear.
Fear that you aren’t good enough, won’t measure up, don’t have something new to say, that what you say won’t be liked, think you’re being presumptuous to think you deserve a place at the table and more.
I know because I feel ALL of those things myself. Every single one of them.
The key is to not to let the fear stop you. I like to help you look directly and compassionately at the fears and old wounds that hold you back so you can move forward more comfortably and courageously. Usually those fears aren’t so scary when we nudge them out into the light.
An experiment
If you want to experiment with this, write down a fear that’s swirling around in your head right now (I’ll wait, and yes, I really do want you to write it down in black and white on paper).
Okay, now ask yourself, “Is this true? Do I know this for sure?”
Then ask, “How can I reframe this belief?”
Here’s an example:
- The fear: “My script isn’t good enough.”
- Is it true?: “No, I don’t know that for sure.”
- Reframed: “I’m going to focus on the strengths of my script and do my best to make sure they shine.”
by Jenna | Sep 29, 2011 | Writing Articles
One of the things that can stop us from moving ahead with our creative work is our creative wounds.
These are the painful experiences we've been through associated with our creative work that lead us to make decisions that it's not safe to be creative or take creative risks, and that ultimately we'll be hurt if we express ourselves creatively.
These wounds show up in our lives looking like creative blocks, and we can even forget about them until we do a little deeper digging.
So How Does One Heal a Creative Wound?
Here's a simplified version of the process I'm using with my clients, which is based on Isabel Parlett's powerful business transformation work.
- First, identify the story of the creative wound. What happened, factually? What happened, emotionally?
- Then identify the conclusion that you've drawn as a result of that experience. What have you decided to believe about being creative as a result of the experience?
- How can you reframe that limiting belief into a new way of looking your creativity that is both believable and supportive?
- Now do some release work on the story -- write a forgiveness letter and shred or flush it, do a shamanic fire ritual (a "green fire"), use ho'oponopono, or create another ritual to let go of the old story.
Simple as this work may sound, it can have quite an impact.
by Jenna | Jun 24, 2011 | Writing Articles
Changing the Way You See Yourself
If you’ve had your hands analyzed or done any visioning work with me, you’ll recognize that a big part of making your purpose real is being ready, willing, and able to adjust to and adopt a new, higher level way of seeing yourself.
It can take time to change your view of who you are.
And it isn’t always easy to do.
Impostor Syndrome, Anyone?
You might feel like you’re pretending to be someone you’re not, or like you can almost grab hold of that new identity but then it sort of slips away and you’re left grasping at nothing.
Regular Life Getting in the Way
I’ve seen it happen with my visioning clients — they get clear on their big vision, but then lose focus then when they go back to their “regular lives” or can’t quite remember how or why they decided what they decided — unless they have help to stay in touch with their new way of being in the world.
Un-Squashing Our Creative Selves
I’m also seeing this happen with creative types.
Yes, ideally being creative is easy and just flows naturally from us.
But that’s not what I see on a daily basis.
More often than not I see creative spirits squashed and held back by our own fears and doubts.
And even more fundamentally, by who we see ourselves to be.
How You See Yourself Makes All the Difference
For instance, if you think of yourself as a IT worker who is a writer on the side, it is a whole different ballgame than when you know you are a writer who happens to be doing tech work to pay the bills.
You’ll make different decisions, take different actions, and have different priorities.
And Therein Lies the Rub
And those decisions, actions, and priorities are the make-or-break difference between getting your creative work out there into the world versus walking around with a movie inside your head for the rest of your life, your manuscript gathering dust on your shelf, or your tribe never hearing the message you are hear to share with them.
It’s all about knowing who you are and doing the work to make it happen.
by Jenna | Apr 26, 2011 | Writing Articles
Resistance is swirling all around us this week.
Are You Resisting Success?
Steven Pressfield, one of my heroes and the author of The War of Art, says in his new book Do The Work: “The more important a call or action is to our soul’s evolution, the more Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it.”
All the more reason to go for it, right?
Another favorite piece of advice from Steven Pressfield is about how to choose which one of your ideas to pursue first: The one that scares you the most.
The Many, Many Forms of Resistance
Then today as I was reading “Week 8: Recovering a Sense of Strength” in The Artist’s Way, I found the concept of Resistance coming up big time. Julia Cameron talks about the creative blocks we come up with to avoid our art:
- I’m too old. (age block)
- What am I going to get out of it? (finished product block)
- I’m too busy. (workaholism)
- I have more important things to do first. (workaholism)
- I have to overhaul my whole life first. (drama)
Taking Action to Overcome Resistance
Julia makes the point that we must take small, daily, creative actions to accomplish our creative goals rather than looking for one big sweeping gesture. This is one of my biggest pitfalls.
Steven Pressfield makes a similar point about showing up every day, to do the work.
Jennifer Louden says, “Just. Do. The. Writing.“
Sonia Choquette taught us, “Suit up. Shut up. Show Up.” (I’m fairly certain she attributes this teaching to Julia Cameron herself.)
What To Do With All This
At the end of our session today, we outlined our Secret [Big] Dreams. “In a perfect world, I would secretly love to be a ______________.” My answer: A published author.
Then we identified our “true north” for that dream — the how-you-know-when-you-get-there goal. Mine: A real physical book published with a core group 0f raving fans.
We picked a mentor for that dream. (Mine: Steven Pressfield. Seems obvious!)
Then we identified a 5 year vision and a 1 year action plan. My one year action plan looked like this: Write regularly. Get clear on what to focus on.
So I asked myself, “Of all my ideas, what would scare me the most?” The answer: A creativity book. (Holy shit, Batman.)
My participants asked why — my “Who do I think I am?” stories come up fast. But I’m ready to go there anyway. So now I know what my book is about, and I can get to work on it along with my screenplay (which I’ve been working on this week, hurrah!). Yowza.
