Motivated Monday

Yesterday, Shirley at Clever Chronicles left a comment on Friday's post that inspired me to write this one. Thanks, Shirley!

Her comment referred to having time but not having any motivation to put it to use.

So many things are non-motivators for me. Anything to do with housework. Hate it. Maybe I have five minutes and need to dust the living room. Likelihood I'll grab the Pledge? About a million to one. What makes me finally do it - whenever that is (and probably not when I have the five minutes free time)? Knowing someone is coming over or when it finally reaches the point where I'm screaming to myself, "I can't stand it anymore!"


But here's where writers have it lucky. Writers, artists, any creative types or even non-creatives who are forced into working on a creative project. Pay attention.


Look around you. Close your eyes and listen. Close your eyes and taste. Close your eyes and feel - fabric, bark, a wall, whatever. It doesn't matter. Inhale. Exhale. You can do all these things from a bed or chair, inside or out. At the mall, at the zoo, on your patio. You don't have to do anything ... except remember.


Let the sensations flow over you, through you. Put them together with feelings. How do you feel when the breeze blows over your skin.? What does the scent of spring remind you of? Does the blue of the sky remind you of your mother's eyes?


These are the things unmotivated writers can do. We can store them away for when we are motivated to write. And we'll wonder where this line came from. How we thought of that. It's because we were writing even when we were unmotivated.


Sorry about the extra white space. It's a Monday Blogger thingie.

Comments

Mason Canyon said…
Very inspiring post. It is hard to be motivated sometimes. These helpful tips would also give a person time to relax and re-charge their thinking. Have a great Monday.

Mason
Thoughts in Progress
Writer said…
Happy Monday, Carol!
Like you, I hate housework, especially doing the dishes. ;)
I love creating, writing in my case. So when I lack motivation I play my favorite CDs. I get REALLY motivated with classical music. Yesterday for instance, I needed a double dose of this since my tired neurons refused to send the right words to my brain. So, I pictured myself in the scene that I was writing, as one of the characters and visualized everything in the room...and voilá, I was able to finish my story. A little motivation goes a long way.
Cheers!
Unknown said…
Wanna hear something sad, I've hired a housekeeper to come in twice a week. It's the only thing that motivates me to clean. I want to have my house clean for my housekeeper.

CD
LOL about the dusting and the housework. Do I ever relate to that!! This post is really motivating Monday for me, thank you :)
I tend to dust when my sports teams are losing. Gives me something constructive to do while I continue to gaze at the TV in dismay.
Carol Kilgore said…
Mason - Yes, recharging. It's vital.

Claudia - I love almost all kinds of music. Visualization always works. Sometimes it's just hard to get there.

Clarissa - Twice a week? I'm SO jealous. I'd never do ANYTHING ever again.

Karen - You're welcome sister housework hater :)

Alex - LOL! Wanna tell Live-In Handyman about that?
Kathy McIntosh said…
Well, sometimes housework seems more appealing than writing. When no inspiration is coming, when I'm discouraged about sending out ye olde ms. once again.
But your ideas are spot on and I thank you for them. Now I have justification for lying in bed in the morning instead of jumping up and running to my laptop.
Elspeth Futcher said…
Housework. Blah. I do it only under threat of company. Sad, but true. At least, I get points for honesty.
Summer Ross said…
I noticed I do this exact thing. I do it with everything I am to write, even if its a school paper. I might wait until last minute to do it, but by then I've absorbed so much information that it just glides out of my fingertips as if I hadn't done anything at all. :)
patti said…
Oh, I LOVE your intentionality!
Almost EVERY exercise can improve our writing, if we just let it!!!

You go, girl.

Patti
Sheila Deeth said…
Ah, the dreaded housework. I kept putting it off, planning to do it after the bazaar. Now I'm using aching muscles as an excuse to put it off more. Could use them as inspiration too I guess.
notesfromnadir said…
Excellent advice about really paying full attention to surroundings.

As for cleaning, I always let things go until I absolutely have to, like I'm out of shirts so I absolutely have to do the laundry. Dusting? Eh, that can wait another day, or week...
Carol Kilgore said…
Kathy - Housework has never been more appealing to me than anything.

Elspeth - Soulmates, that's what we are.

Summer - Yea! You get an A+ and a gold star :)

Patti - Absorbing and relating. That's what we strive to do. All while telling a story that will knock their socks off.

Sheila - I no longer even use excuses, LOL.

Lisa - I don't mind laundry too much. Weird, I know.
Helen Ginger said…
Great post. I would, however, need to write my feelings down right after my "experiencing" session or I would likely forget. Too much going on.
What excellent advice - and nothing helps a story be more believable than adding scenes with varied sensory perceptions.
Carol Kilgore said…
Helen - Me, too, sometimes.

Jane - Right.
Gail said…
I found you through Journeling Woman. I enjoyed my visit so much I will return.
VR Barkowski said…
Dust? You dust? *Hangs head in shame"
Hahahahaha....I'm exactly the same way when it comes to housework. I'm going to start sending out notices, maybe on facebook, for people to come visit me. Seems no one EVER shows up when my house is clean. But, man!, let it get messy and the whole world 'just thought they'd drop by for a minute' or 'I'm in the neighborhood....'. At least then, I've go a few minutes to stuff everything in the tub or under the bed!!!

Love the un-writing/ writing advice!
Carol Kilgore said…
Gail - I'm glad you found me. You're always welcome at the Tiki Hut. Thanks for commenting.

VR - Only when forced. Or shamed :)

Words Crafter - Why is that? Dirty houses must send out vibes that say 'Visit Me Now!' - LOL
Elana Johnson said…
Oooh, great post. Yes, unmotivated writers can find motivation. I like to set my own deadlines and then stick to them.
Carol Kilgore said…
I'm with you on my own deadlines, Elana.
So I stopped typing to listen just now, and I heard the fan in the bedroom, cars passing on a main road about three blocks away...and my ears ringing. :)

A moment ago I would have said my office was totally silent except for the tapping of the keys on my keyboard.

Patricia
Carol Kilgore said…
Smiling :)

Your character awoke in the night heart pounding. She listens. Hears what you heard, nothing more. She turns over. Then she hears a creak on the stairs....
Anonymous said…
Love this, Carol. Writing from life is only limited by way of the experiences we allow/disallow for ourselves or our imaginations. Good to have that reminder. Thank you.
Hi. I'm visiting from Karen's blog.

Motivation is important. I feel supremely unmotivated to iron my husband's work clothes, but it has to be done, and since I work part-time, and he works full-time, it's on me.

I love writing more than ironing (of course), but I have problems with inspiration over motivation. If I'm depressed or tired, it doesn't seem to happen.

I like the idea of storing for when we are ready to write.
Anonymous said…
Yes, having time but lacking motivation is a holiday problem. During the work year, I'm so busy I need two of me to finish everything, but I've got a million ideas for writing. On the holidays, I'm finally sitting still but my brain seems dead.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on getting some motivation.
Glynis said…
Excellent post, Carol. Motivation has been my problem lately and just forcing myself to write hasn't done much good. Thank you for this strategy.
Carol Kilgore said…
Just keep trying new things. We're all different, and each of us needs to discover what works for us.

.