In the words of the apparently immortal Mick Jagger: “You can’t always get what you want.” We can sing along to this hard-earned wisdom, and, like so many life lessons, we can accept it or not. Turning the idea around, I think of what my Tai Chi teacher, Wolfe Lowenthal, repeats: “Let go of the desperate will to succeed.” Both Mick and Wolfe are saying the same thing: Stop trying so hard and accept what is already given. Creativity asks for the same kind of acceptance and is infinite if we stop forcing it. Creativity is about listening to your inner voice. This is your deepest source of knowing. The mystery is that inspiration often arrives in a gift you don’t recognize, so you abandon it. For example, you begin by wanting to write about a chosen character, scene, moment, or experience, but the image of an unlaced shoe appears. You swat it out of the way and struggle on, but the writing is like overworked dough, tough and unwieldy. You try again, and the shoe, a scuffed leather work shoe with slightly mismatching laces and a worn-down heel sneaks up on you again. This shoe is your inner voice. It is your inspiration. The harder you try to ignore it, the harder it will be to write the poem or story you assigned yourself. Listen to that shoe by getting close up, pay attention to how the toe is scraped, how the grommets are tarnished, how the tongue strays to one side. Oh. The tongue. The tongue is saying something: A day of hard work, and a reprimand from the boss. A day with apple blossoms on the trees, and a song on the radio, and a fellow worker says, . . . . Now you are off and running, racing, writing as the scene opens before you and you are no longer pushing but breathless to keep up. Your words arrive and arrive, and your words unfold into what they want to be. Our creative gifts are inside us. All of them. We don’t need to search, or peek, or cheat, or guess. We need to accept what is given with the kind of generosity and gratitude we extend when someone gives us a present we didn’t ask for, didn’t necessarily want, or even like. No matter what is placed before us, the acceptance of this gift is easy: take it; it’s yours; it was chosen because it’s been waiting to share its treasure and surprise with you. Learn to trust that wild and strange voice that beckons you forward, and “You’ll get what you need.”
Upcoming Events
Cabin Fever Workshop! Feeling confined? Need a winter boost? Join me for a two-day, in-person, open-genre, all-out spree of writing what’s bottled up, weighed down, air-deprived and waiting to be released. We will meet in Amherst, Massachusetts on February 21st & 22nd and write in response to prompts that can only be delivered in person. We will follow the Amherst Writers & Artists workshop method of trust and respect; writers of all experience levels are welcome; space limited. Cost: $300. Information: maureen@maureenbjones.com
Podcast Interview
Amherst Writers & Artists has launched its podcast The Creative Pen, with host Ginger Rex! Ginger invited me as the first guest to talk about the AWA Workshop Method and how it delivers a way for all writers to find their truest voice. Listen here: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/u4cofpnhz78ze17tareju/1-AWA-Podcast-Maureen-Buchanan-Jones.mp4?e=1&oref=e&r=AChkbO2frZ0OdfVB7sUzJMyXooqHdhA835mPIEeJz4zis_8D294chtOTNwSt6WUCdeVPV6L5-pvBNwP-FWJ3X-9f7TuNtgvx1boQTDjBlPbuI2vNlnN3-TFdzalU1I7_qNR8lhL_fwQCeZsEGTZE0RuxW2df1gLT14475kAciWsBVjVfFwI9seUpR2A1yH-yewevHQjLgbnHR9cLgGVkNWrY&dl=0
Prompt Photo
