Image by Arianne van Noordt
Been a bit quiet round here lately, hasn’t it? That’s pretty much how I’m feeling at the moment: just… quiet.
For the first time in a while, I have an absence of urgent deadlines and a sense of breathing space. The routine-busting school holidays have arrived, but for once they’ve brought a sense of liberation: embracing their inevitable constraints on productivity, I’m feeling less compelled to be “working” all the time. Perhaps relatedly, I’m feeling heartily sick of my own internet-addicted habits – perhaps enough to change them, at least for a while.
I’ve talked before about Wallas’ stages of creativity. Right now, I feel that I’m going into an incubation phase. I don’t know what’s germinating, but I do know that the process needs quiet, solitude and (metaphorical) darkness. I need to stop talking for a while so I can hear myself think.
As a result, I’ve decided to have some downtime – something like a Quiet Night In, but longer. I’m not going to keep to a rigid blogging schedule; I may not blog much at all for a while. (I’ll post outstanding ‘six things’ and ‘sunday best’ guest posts as they come in – and do contact me if you’re keen to do one! – but I’m not going to chase new guest posts right now). I’m also going to cut back the time I spend on social media – and read some books, catch up with some movies, listen to some music instead.
It feels like I’m commencing a transit behind the moon: a spell in the peaceful dark where the crackle and flicker of our hectic blue sphere is temporarily occluded. See you on the flipside.
I did a pastel drawing recently (copy of a painting): it was remarkably peaceful, absorbing and much less stressful than painting.
I was unaware of Wallas’ model for the stages of the creative process but I have been using a similar analogy for several years. When I was in my twenties I used to train with weights and there is a process: you eat, rest, exercise, rest and repeat. Depending on exactly what you’re trying to achieve what exactly to do at each stage may vary but the basic shape remains. And the same applies to writing: you eat (you take in ideas), rest (allow those ideas to gestate), exercise (write), rest (think about what you’ve written).
Bloggers who try and post every day burnout (or boreout – a new word I learned yesterday) and so do their readers. I post every five days, a book review followed by a literary article. That gives me time to do research and time to do other stuff. And I always make sure I have a stack of blogs ready to go so I never feel pressurised to post something that’s not ready to go.
Boreout! Love it
Look out for the Kona Eclipse, folks! It’s rare, so worth getting out your telescopes for, as she slips behind the silver veil of summer. I will look forward to seeing her again, when she re-emerges, spiritually refreshed, emitting her colourful, poetic and magic wisdoms to lift us as the bright light fades into autumn.
We’ll miss you, but totally understand the “Internet addiction”, which I’ve been accused of recently (!). Enjoy a complete break without a moment of guilt (or craving).