Tag: creative-writing

Posted in What I Do, Work & Life

Should I Say That?

Posted on by Ann B. Hibbard

Years ago, I started writing because random thoughts would hit my brain and I’d want to flesh them out. Then I’d want to share them. There isn’t always a lot of consistency to those thoughts. Sometimes they are triggered by my morning Bible reading. Other times relational interaction give me pause.

There are responses to events around me, random mental pictures that I want to flesh out, new habits and practices that work for me that I want to share, and just general thoughts or ideas that come to mind.

Sometimes these ideas flow faster than I can process them. Other times it can be a disturbingly long time between ideas. But that’s another discussion for another day. (Yes, I have notes on it already!)

For today, though, the thought is this: should I really write about everything that comes to mind?

You probably already know the answer to that. It’s a resounding NO for a wide variety of reasons. But I’m not always incredibly wise about how I invest my writing time. So, I need to set myself some guidelines and boundaries to help me process what to say. And that’s what I have to say today…a glimpse into those guidelines!

Does it stick?

The best ideas are those that have staying power. The ones that I can set aside and then come back to and still know how to flesh out — and maybe even have the ability to flesh them out better than when I first had the ideas.

Now, this doesn’t mean it just floats around in my head. I’ve lost a lot of great, “sticky” ideas by not writing them down! But, if I can jot down a few notes (a brief theme or title followed by 3-5 sentences or bullet points to serve as reminders) then come back a few days, weeks, or even months later and flesh it out, it’s definitely an idea that has stuck. That makes it worth considering.

Does it grow?

Mental images of The Blob aside, good ideas really need to grow and evolve. What starts as a brain tickle needs to develop substance if it’s going to be useful for myself or anyone else.

Even a “sticky” idea can prove to have little more substance than those brief notes I jotted down. While the lack of growth doesn’t mean it never needs to be shared, it’s really not worth it to take those few bullet points and just add fluff without substance. There’s enough of that floating around. I don’t need to add to it. There are other avenues for sharing those thoughts. After all, if we would all share a few more brief, positive thoughts on social media, it might be a more encouraging place to hang out!

Does it relate?

This is a big one. I have written a lot of things that have never seen the light of day. They stay on my computer or in my journal. Why? Because they aren’t relevant to anyone other than me. That’s not to say that there aren’t other people processing the same things. But, there are certain things we shouldn’t throw out into the wild. If we share them, they should be shared privately with individuals for the purpose of encouraging and strengthening one another.

While nothing I write is relevant to everyone, it’s important to have wisdom to know when what I write is not really relevant for public sharing at all.

Does it honor Christ?

Not everything I write is a Bible thought. It doesn’t always have a spiritual theme or express ideas of faith.

And yet…

I am a Christian. That means I am a citizen of the kingdom of God. My number one priority in life should be allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Father. Period. Even if I am writing a random tip about life, it should never, ever contradict that allegiance. My writing can’t be neutral. It is either nourishing others in their lives of allegiance — or sparking the interest of those outside the kingdom — or it is an act of rebellion. Treason. There is no middle ground.

That can sound harsh, but when you swear allegiance to something, it’s an all or nothing reality. You are either for or against. No one is ever truly neutral.

So, the things I write should reflect that I am growing in the fruit of the Spirit, even if I struggle in that growth, and that I hunger to serve my Lord.

Am I always diligent to answer all of these questions before I write or publish something? No, I’m not. But when I look back on what I’ve written over the years, the things that fit all of these are the ones that still hold true (and that I still like even after all this time). I hope that in the coming years I will become increasingly faithful to hold to these guidelines, confident in the words that are pouring forth from my fingers.

Posted in Thoughts from Life, What I Do

Day Two

Posted on by Ann B. Hibbard

Day One was a good day. Well, for writing at least.

All of my timing worked out. Even with a slightly sluggish start to the morning, I got in my exercise, morning devotional reading, and school with my son and still had time to spare before I needed to clock into work.

So, I sat down to a blank screen and had just over 1000 words written before it was time to quit. For the first time in a while, the ideas and the words came together to flow into productivity.

On the one hand, that’s a great thing. Day One success can be so helpful to get up and do Day Two. Then Day Three. Making it a habit.

But, Day One success can also be a struggle.

The very next morning, I procrastinated for 30 minutes. I wrote some reviews because that was easy and safe. I sent a couple of check-in chats on Marco Polo. I cleared my inbox.

Why?

Because I was scared to sit down to another blank screen and not have Day Two go like Day One did. On Day One, I had ideas before I ever sat down. On Day Two, I was going to have to sit down first and see if the ideas came to me.

That’s just plain intimidating.

And for over half an hour, I let that fear and intimidation keep me from even trying. I let it eat away at the time I had available to write. I let it distract me.

But I finally made it. I started tapping away at the keyboard, and the very experience of the morning gave me something to write about. I didn’t have as much time to write because of all the time I wasted. I wouldn’t make it to 1000 words. I probably wouldn’t even make half that. But I showed up, and that very act showed me that I actually did have something to say.

Here’s the deal, though. On Day Three — or Day Twelve or Day One Hundred and Fifty-Seven — I might actually sit down to a blank screen and have…nothing. At some point, my fears will become reality.

But I’m also realizing something else. On those days I’ll still have something to do. I’ll have a folder of rough drafts ready to be edited. I’ll have a folder of completed drafts ready to be published. I’ll have something to work with. Why? Because I sat down on Day One and turned my thoughts into typed words. I sat down on Day Two and conquered my intimidation.

On Day Two, I confirmed the habit of doing it anyway. Of sitting down with the intention of working toward being a writer once again. This is a part of me that has been dormant for far too long. And because of that, I’ve been incomplete. I need this.

So, I’ll do it.

I’ll do it on the days when I have the ideas before I even sit down to the computer — and then enjoy seeing those ideas materialize into coherent content. I’ll do it on the days when I have the ideas but then can’t seem to get them out coherently. I’ll do it on the days when there are no ideas beforehand, but something comes to me because I make myself do it anyway.

I’ll do it on the days when there’s nothing. Absolutely nothing. At all.

What have you allowed to slip? What have you not done because you’re not getting around to being yourself? What have you allowed intimidation to keep you from doing?

What can you do today to get started? To reinforce what you’ve started but are afraid to continue? To keep going even when you’ve hit a dry spell on something that’s been going so well? To grow and improve in something you’ve been doing diligently?

No matter the obstacles before you today…do it anyway.