Write Drunk

{Poster by Obvious State}

I saw this poster on Etsy several weeks ago and I can’t stop thinking about it.

Write drunk; edit sober.

~ Ernest Hemingway

Remove all inhibitions when creating, set yourself free and clean up the mess later. Just dive into the work and sort it out once you’ve exhausted it. Dream like you did as a child, then follow through and make it coherent as an adult. Live creatively to have the most fun. I could go on…

This ties into a lot of areas of my life:

• my current photo a day project – forcing myself to create every day and not worrying about if it’s “art”
• doing 20 minutes of yoga first thing in the morning, then going for a run – done before all the excuses and distractions have a chance to come rolling in
• beginning the rest of my day with one of my top priorities for our business (focus day) or our family (free day) before anything else, including checking email, so I know I’ve at least done one thing to work towards my goals before I spend the rest of the day responding to someone else’s needs
• when writing, say a blog post, I just barrel forward and put down everything I want to say, casting a blind eye to spelling and grammar and things making sense, that’s for worrying about later when I’m no longer drunk on the story I have to tell
• brainstorm often and write down every idea I come up with
• I love to brainstorm while I’m driving out of town. I get on a long stretch of road, Darren gets out a notebook, and I get him to write a list. I think one of the reasons I find this so helpful is because I can really focus, my only distraction is driving, and because I can’t act on any of my ideas right away, I’m free to come up with many more and I “edit” them when I get home.
• similar to brainstorming when driving I always bring a notebook with me when I’m going to be on holiday or even out to dinner, I often come up with a plethora of good ideas when I’m away from the studio, out of my familiar surroundings, and away from my nagging to do list
• oh, and of course I always try to partake in a little silliness when I have a glass of wine – be it free reminiscing, laughable activities, or talking through fantasy projects – everything is open season

How do you live more creatively? How do you write drunk and edit sober? Where are you when you come up with your best ideas? What circumstances are you often in?