ANDRE BEGIN

If it were up to me, I would write all day, every day. Not surprisingly, when I am about to blow out the candles on a cake or throw a coin in a fountain, more often than not, my wish is for more time to write. I don’t think I am very different from anyone who feels passionate about something they enjoy.

I enjoy writing that much, and I have so many stories to tell, whether through blog posts or screenplays. I truly love the art form and the creative process.

However, within the package deal of life, we don’t always have the time or ability to write all day, every day. We have other responsibilities.

I have often joked that I should get a personal assistant, a chef, and a housekeeper to take care of some of the things that keep me from the computer. The reality is that I’m not earning enough from the writing for outsourcing to make sense… yet!

That being the case, I have made peace with the fact that the distractions can be a good thing and can become part of the creative process.
Here are some of my reasons why stepping away from writing projects to tend to other tasks can be a good thing:

Sometimes my best ideas don’t always hit me when I’m at the computer. In fact, I have experienced many of my brainstorms in the shower. Also, fresh ideas have been known to pop up in my head while my hands were busy (like during housecleaning), but my mind was free to wander.

Time away from the screen (like when I’m taking the cat for a leash walk) can be beneficial for letting ideas come to me, which can help build a more fulsome storyline.

When I am interacting with the world around me (like when running errands), the experience can sometimes offer insight into the human psyche, which can lead to aha moments in character development.

Stepping away from a project and returning with a fresh pair of eyes allows me to catch typos, mistakes, and sentences that could be combined for efficiency.

Sometimes, the first idea to hit me isn’t always the best. By allowing my mind the time to drift and rearrange words into different combinations and permutations, I can pick the best and strongest version.

Sometimes, with time away, when it comes to a structure or storyline, an idea may occur to me to advance the storyline that wasn’t obvious during a previous iteration.

And of course, rest is an important part of the creative process. We are not machines.

These reasons only scratch the surface of why making peace with distractions is a mindset that can help to minimize friction in the creative process. Otherwise, I find that the internal struggle it can create can be creativity-crushing in itself.

As artists, we need to go with the flow, accept the non-writing priorities at face value, work within the active writing time we have, and view the time we are busy with other things as equally beneficial.

However, when we are on a tight deadline and need to have a finished product ready in a limited amount of time, blocking distractions might be necessary to bring the work across the finish line on schedule.

And sometimes, it takes time to get into the zone. To be constantly pulled from it prolongs the time it takes to establish a strong connection with the writer’s voice. That being the case, blocking distractions is sometimes a necessity.

But in those times when time is on our side, when distractions and commitments might be out of our control, working with them rather than getting frustrated might be the way to go for a balanced creative process.

Did you enjoy this post? If you did, your likes and shares are most appreciated. If you haven’t already, please check out the rest of my blog at andrebegin.blog.
Sincere thanks for reading!
Have a great day,
André