I'd wager to say most (if not all) writers do whatever it takes get a thought written down just as quickly as it's come to them. Agree? It's part of this affliction we have called Writer's Brain.
Yesterday as I showered, exciting ideas and new plot points for my WIP were swirling through my mind. I couldn't wash and rinse fast enough, since I knew I had to get them noted. And so when I was finished, I ran the fifteen feet to my laptop and started clacking away.
Enter my husband.
He found me perched at my desk, wet hair plastered to my head, loose towel draped around my body.
"Tell me you're not writing straight out of the shower."
"Indeed," I said. And I kept going.
Have you ever found yourself writing (or doing what you do) under strange or funny circumstances?
28 comments:
Been there! A couple nights ago I couldn't sleep because of a story going through my head, so I sat up in bed, grabbed my bedside notebook and pen and started writing. I didn't want to wake up my husband, so I did it in the dark. Can you believe that the next morning I found out that my pen was out of ink. I had to rub a crayon over the page to read the imprint left by the dry ballpoint. Needless to say, my husband just smiled and walked away. :)
How funny, Janna. I've had shower moments, too, and I usually let my hair dry a little while I pound my thoughts out on the computer.
I usually get my story ideas when I am taking the dogs for a walk with my husband. I don't tell him my ideas right away; he tells me when I do, the excitement fades, and it's true. But then I am dying dying to tell someone. So I do it on the page.
Stina, how funny! I'd have been frustrated, and probably wouldn't have thought about the crayon trick. Brilliant thinking!
Pink - That's a great way to do it, so the excitement is fully represented on the page.
Oh yes, and I fear it makes me a bit rude. I get ideas when I'm on the phone with my mom or my SIL, and I'll have to tell them, "Oooh, hang on a minute, I've just gotta write this down before I forget!"
They're thankfully very indulgent of my whims on that score, and I do try to only do that when it's something really strong, not a passing whimsy. :)
I've found myself writing while alone in the car, stopped at a red light and also in a restaurant writing on a paper napkin.
I've also had that happen in the shower. I think we get these moments when we're most relaxed.
As weird as this may sound...I had a great idea pop into my head while my daughter was in labor...I was the coach and couldn't get to a pen and paper in time. Luckily, I remembered after all the excitement and was able to get to my notebook...of course, only after I held my beautiful grandson.
I am the poster child of not doing this enough. I can't tell you how many ideas bounce around in my brain, and I keep saying "Oh! Great idea! I'll write it down when I get a moment." Only to find that I never get a 'moment'. The next thing I know... I've forgotten my idea. (You'd think I've learned my lesson by now!)
Re: Pink Ink's comment - I need to stop telling my hubby about my ideas too. He is a strategist and will point out plot holes and give me different ideas, and then I don't feel excited about my idea anymore. :(
Jen - Good think they don't take it the wrong way!
Barbara - I bet you're right about the relaxed thing. I do see a pattern, come to think of it.
Ang - That's hilarious! Glad you didn't lose the idea... and that you got to hold Baby first!
Turk - You need a Handy Dandy Notebook for your back pocket. ;)
I've been known to take out my notebook shopping, upon overhearing a catchy conversation. At concerts, too, quoting the artist's words between songs.
The shower is a great place for me to get ideas, apparently. I need to put a waterproof notebook in there.
Sometimes I write ideas in the steam!
LOL. That happens to me a lot. My resolution? I keep dry erase markers in the shower. When the idea hits, I write directly on the tile (parts that aren't wet). At least I can get it out that way and type it up after I'm out of the shower. Clean up is really easy too. Weird? Yes. Effective? Very.
I wonder why the shower creates so much creativity? I don't know how many times I've figured out plot problems in the shower. Weird.
I know one time I was driving on the interstate and thinking about my story. I had a big idea and couldn't write it down (I was by myself) and so I called my hubby and told him to write it down. Haha!
Joanne - I try to keep a notebook in my purse, just for those reasons!
Wendy - I'm sensing a theme with the shower.
Cel - That.is.awesome.
Melissa - Great story! LOL - I've had to call my own cell phone voicemail for a "creative" message while driving. :)
Hee hee! Yes, been there, too!
Don't drip on the keyboard.
ROFL!!!
Unfortunately this usually happens to me when I'm about to fall asleep. Grrr...
I'm too lazy to get out of bed and write it down and then, most of the time, lose it.
I'm still giggling! Love to hear that I'm not the only one who writes under "weird" circumstances. I was putting my shoes and sox on and the line I was looking for jumped into my mind and I typed away with one shoe and sox on!
Yes, definitely! Although I usually just hand write whatever's in my head if I'm dripping wet. :)
thats why they invented labtops :)
Have written poetry while driving and tried to record dream snippets on a bedside tablet, which turned out to be utter jibberish the next morning. We need waterproof paper & lighted pens.
Michaéle - And it sounds like we're not the only ones! :)
Travis - That's truly a BIG concern for me, Queen Clutz. ;)
Jessica - I can't blame you, though. With little kids keeping our days busy, those nights of sleep are SO important.
Donna - That's a great mental picture! LOL
Melanie - I guess that's true for me, too. In this particular case, my WIP was already up from the work I'd just been doing. It was easier just to apply my notes to the doc. :)
Josh - And I'm so glad they did!
Angie - Lighted pens would be awesome! Surely they have some somewhere. If not, get on it, lady!
Of course! I'll stop whatever I'm doing if a great idea comes to me. Or, I'll grab a scrap of whatever I can find and start furiously scribbling away.
I write in the dark all the time because I dont' want to bother my husband while he's sleeping. Some mornings, it definitely shows that it was dark, with the words running into each other and in crooked lines :)
Laughing! oh, the shower is the best place for ideas -- something about an idle mind as you do mundane things - same as washing dishes will do --
I am bad about NOT writing thoughts down, however, if something really great comes to mind and I'm in the shower - I will do just as you did *laugh*~!
:D I have been known to write on my hand or arm when I can't find a pad. Usually I keep a pen by the bed, but I forget the pad and am too lazy to go find one.
I like the dry erase in the shower!
Debbie - That reminds me of why I choose the computer over paper if I can: I'm such a messy scribbler (and can type so much faster than I can write) that I get frustrated with handwritten notes. :)
Marsanne - Kudos to you! Even if it's a little hard to decipher... ;)
Kat - That's it! That idleness is what lends so well to the brainstorming.
Kimmi - LOL! I haven't had to resort to that in a long while.
LOL! the shower is my only place I have to be alone! LOL! I have sooo dine this many, many times! I love it! And I'm glad I'm not the only one! LOL! Jenni
Jenni, hi! :D You are certainly not alone, girlie.
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