Crystal balls, English accents and tea leaves
It’s hard for me to write a post that mentions my neighbor (let’s call her Mary – because she’s a far, far cry from the virgin mother) without including a picture. But I do want to keep her anonymity. So, I’m linking you to the ‘Shoes’ video since she dressed up like that girl (or guy?) for Halloween. 1. I think it will help you get the point of how wacky she is, and 2. She looked exactly like him/her. Exactly.
I will tell you however, because it’s her most intense feature (besides the fact that she smells like hooch and incense) that her real hair is huge and long and sometimes black or brown or red or yellow and curly. Kinky, ‘fro-like curly. It’s intense – and I think its existence is a pure extension of the creativity and juiciness that lives underneath – you know, in her head.
But, anyway…the other day ‘Mary’ came over to tell us that she’d had her tea leaves read. She was at a crossroads of some sort, so she went for some psychic capitulation. I’m a fairly nice person, but this sort of crap is something that I usually mock, make fun of and roll my eyes at. But, there was something about Mary’s recap that caught my attention, like a hook in a fish cheek.
- The accuracy with which the Tea Reader nailed Mary’s situation?
- Mary’s total confidence in herself and her path as a result of the reading?
- The fact that she ended her retelling to us with, “And the tea leaf reader has an English accent, so you have to believe her.”
And, so, I called and made an appointment. Yes. Yes, I did. And I only felt a tad bit silly, until my dear friend, Sarah, said to me, “divination is just another opportunity for you to access what you already know.” And that made sense to me. You know how you could give 100 people – all very different – the same horoscope and they would easily make it ‘like totally apply’? We all know our stories like the back of our hands – and when a psychic, a crystal ball or tea leaves tell us things – it simply gives us a new perspective with which to explore the things we’ve already been going round and round about.
So, what did I learn at my tea leaf reading?
- Nothing new. Which is good news – because it means that I wasn’t brainwashed or high-jinxed or duped. Still, some of my ideas and thoughts (that I habitually swat away on a regular basis), were raised into the spotlight and deeply affirmed.
- My muse is not the woman I always assumed her to be, but a man from the 1100′s, waving scrolls at me, telling me to write for the good of the people – to educate, guide and support those in need. Oh, and he has a pet falcon.
- And, yes, it’s true. British accents really do something to and for us Yanks.
Image Credit: Jodi Green
Filed under How To, Myth or Reality, Writing | Tags: divination, muse, tea leaves, writer, Writing, writing process | Comments (8)Brainstorm, no pen, lost forever
There are two things at play here: irresponsibility and intensive muse connections.
irresponsibility
Once upon a time, I would have an inspired writing thought (oft times in the middle of the night) and even if pen and paper were steps and moments away, I’d say…nah, I’ll remember it later.
And every time, every single time, I‘d forget that brilliant thought by the time I found the means to write it down.
There is no excuse for this people. Take action and right it down. I’m proud to say that I do it now – every time. I got to the point where I thought, ‘This is just irresponsible. My muse is offering me a gift and I’m just pissing it away.’ Why would I do that? Why would you do that?
The answer that springs to mind is self-worth. If you aren’t getting your tush out of bed at 3am (or handily leaving a notebook by your bed), you aren’t taking your writing seriously enough. You aren’t believing that these gems are truly important. And where’s that gonna getcha? What’s that all about?
intensive muse connections
Something very cool has been happening to me lately. Every morning when I head out to take a long walk with my dogs, about 10 minutes in, my brain starts writing. Posts, ads, client work, novels (not the whole thing, just snippets), big ideas. I’m starting to think the soles of my feet are directly connected to the creative chunk of my brain.
It’s incredible. I’m totally into it. Literally, this voice, my truest voice, just starts talking…it’s a stream.
Now let’s all review the first half of this post. (pause, pause, pause) Okay, you all with me?
I’ve been incredibly lucky because I’ve remembered most of these walking mind extravaganzas…but I’ve lost some nuggets.
But, I can’t stop and write while I’m walking or I wouldn’t get to walk – and these 30 minutes are all I get! So, I’m going audio – I’ve got a mini tape recorder. It’ll be glued to my palm tomorrow morning…can’t wait to use it.
other solutions?
I’m guessing some of you face the same issues…how do you handle it? What works? What doesn’t? Have any illegible middle of the night scribbles you’re still hoping to decipher – I have many…
UPDATE: I’m thrilled to tell you all that this morning was glorious. I set out with my tape recorder…realizing that now that I was armed and ready, nothing might happen – so I allowed that – and even thought of a whole post about it (coming soon) – but suddenly, BOOM – there came they idea – I hit record and just started talking – it felt unnatural for about 3 seconds – so I made a joke (yes, outloud), laughed heartily at my wit…and kept talking…I captured the post – and thought of more ideas while I walked and talked. Loving my little Radio Shack MICRO-44.
Filed under Blogging, Critical Copywriting, How To, The Business | Tags: copywriting, freelance copywriter, inspiration, Julie Roads, marketing writing, muse, writer's block, writer's tools, Writing, Writing Roads | Comments (25)
