Embrace the Unknown
Creative Hibernation: Part 5
New to Creative Hibernation? Catch up on previous posts and view the whole series here »
Hey there, sleepy bear.
This is Part 5 of our Creative Hibernation journey, which has so far led us through some introspective explorations and quietly curious observations of our writing — with absolutely zero pressure to do anything except to notice what happens to our creativity when we take a step back from the hustle.
And we’re still on paused time, so — if you can — try to stay in that mode a little while longer…
I’m leaving you with a slightly existential task this week as we explore all the unknowns within our creativity, our writing process, our stories — and search for a deeper meaning within them.
Because ‘the great unknown’ is often the source of all sorts of writerly frustrations: sticking points, writer’s block, rage-quitting, dry spells, self doubt and a whole bunch of other creative meltdowns.
I think perhaps this is because the unknown is sometimes confused with uncertainty, or seen as something scary and dangerous — something that needs to be controlled or micromanaged or eradicated.
But I fucking love the unknown.
The unknown is an exciting place. Yes, it can be daunting, but isn’t it where the real magic happens? That mystical place we step into whenever we fully and truly get into the flow — into the zone — and reality falls away? The place where we discover solutions to hitherto ‘impossible’ problems and explore ideas we never could have possibly planned?
The unknown is where we transform a seed of a story into something beyond our imagining.
So, I hope you’ll venture into the void with me and see how a little unknowing can help create a treasure map of exploration and discovery…
But first! A quick recap of how we got here — and some handy links if you need a refresher of the Creative Hibernation series so far.
In Part 1, we looked at the importance of writing downtime, and how it can give us new perspective on our WIPs.
In Part 2, we looked at all the different facets of our writing, research and inspiration, to fill our brains with everything that makes us wanna write.
In Part 3, we looked at taking a positive view of our writing, our WIPs, and our attitude toward creativity.
In Part 4, we looked at how to cultivate a simmering, growing excitement for our work with the help of a little delayed-gratification…
And now, if you’re brave enough, we’re going to take a deep breath, hold hands, and venture into the unknown together.
We’re going to learn how to sit with that sometimes uncomfortable feeling of uncertainty.
We’re going to learn how to unlearn the unhelpful lessons that might be holding us back.
We’re going to ruminate on all the things we don’t know.
And maybe discover some things we didn’t even know we knew…
Inviting in the unknown
A lot of writing advice — or perhaps our natural instinct — guides us toward planning and plotting and setting out all the things we ‘know’ about our stories, so that we have a handy guideline to work from. So we don’t get lost. Or stuck. Or confused.
Logical so far? Yes. But.
As helpful as that can be, our carefully drawn plans rarely work that way in practice.
Writing is a slippery fish.
Your creativity is even slinkier. Your ideas? Like an oiled up otter. Because the parts of a story can’t be quantified in the same way as, say a recipe. If the instructions say you need a pint of milk, then it’s pretty clear 100g of beans simply won’t do. But when it comes to writing, well, you might simply decide to sell the cow and plant the beans, instead. And lo and behold, a giant beanstalk starts to grow, and what then? Uh oh, we’re in the unknown now…
(Psssssst. This is where the magic happens.)
Do you ever start writing and veer off into a totally unexpected direction? Do your characters sometimes throw a tantrum and decide to react in a completely different way to how you’d intended? Do you occasionally find unexpected subplots and metaphors in your literary bagging area? These are all glorious, subconscious-driven, creatively-charged unknowns — and, in my opinion — the most enjoyable part of writing.
Because you can’t always plan for the unknowns that might occur within your creative work, but that doesn’t mean you need to be wary of them. Invite them in! Create a safe environment for all possible unknowns to thrive, and see what happens when you stay open to the options. Fair enough, some of them might be straight-up bonkers, but some of them might have some salient points to make.
Remember in the last post where we practised listening to our creativity (yet again), and focused on following the excitement in our work? Well, what’s tinglier and more thrilling than a big ol’ unknown and all the undiscovered possibilities lying in wait for your creative brain?
We can get just as excited about those faceless, undefined unknowns as the stuff we do know. Perhaps even more so, because they’ll feel fresh and new and full of potential.
And, as we looked at last week, when faced with a plot hole, blockage or sticking point, we can simply reframe it as yet another exciting unknown to unravel.
So, while we’re still chilling in our calm, no-pressure, cosy caves of hibernation, let’s invite the unknowns in and see what fun we can have with ‘em:
