This is part of my “Art of Noticing” series, in which I learn, find, or discover the things around me that usually go unnoticed and turn them into an endless source of creative inspiration.
NOTE: The last of these “Noticings” blog posts will run on April 13th. I’m going to keep recording the 9-minute daily podcast on which these posts are based, though, so if you want to keep your dose of daily Noticings, be sure to subscribe to the Art of Noticing podcast here on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
(You could also listen here on Substack, but that’s a miserable way to listen to a podcast so I don’t recommend it. Do yourself a favor and use a podcast app so you can listen on your commute or at the gym or something.)
You might know that on Sundays, members of this site get an [almost] weekly podcast called the One-Drink Book Club (sample episode here), in which one of my author friends and several of my reader friends get together to discuss what’s up with the writers … and to answer whatever the readers want to know. If you know my old Self Publishing Podcast, the ODBC reminds me of that.
Originally, the idea was to just chat about what was new between Emma and I: writers checking in. The readers would … do something. Who knows? So we sat down and tried it, thinking winging it would pass for “authentic.” It didn’t. It was a hard-to-follow mess.
So we ditched that first attempt and instead framed it in this way: “We’ll talk about the business of books, from a reader and writer perspective as appropriate, for as long as it takes us all to finish one Friday-afternoon cocktail.”
That framing made all the difference. With limits in place, we were much more creative and interesting!
Here's how this "noticing" can benefit my stories and art:
Work Within Limits to Boost Creativity
We usually think boundaries restrict our creativity, but actually working within clear limitations focuses the mind and breeds resourcefulness. Every time I’ve been forced to work within certain “creative fences,” I’ve found that the best stuff comes out.
Example: The Dream Engine was written in one month as part of our “Fiction Unboxed” project. The fact that we had to hurry meant we couldn’t overthink anything. Or, “writing myself into a corner” in another series. That led to a really creative solution that wouldn’t have come up if things had been easy!
Restrictions Focus the Narrative
Limitations also prevent stories and ideas from sprawling aimlessly in all directions. Putting walls around your work will give you direction, at least in my experience. A lot of times, I’ve found that freedom is actually the enemy of good writing because it leads writers to the easy answer … which is usually the cliche.
So I say, don’t let yourself off the hook. (Hell: Put yourself ON the hook sometimes!) Set word counts for chapters or limit scene locations. Even within stories, restrictions (for characters this time) can really pay off. Give your characters urgent deadlines and ticking clocks! Limit their resources. Take away easy options and force them to be focused and strategic.
People ask what happens when I paint myself into a creative corner. I tell them that I do it on purpose because such great things come out. Who knows? It might be just the hack you’ve been looking for!
Want to learn on the go?
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