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Fannish Friday: Creative Timing
Has there been a time in your life when you've just been bubbling over with creative energy and been more prolific than usual? A time when you wrote or drew or edited vids all the time? And if so, can you put a finger on what made that time so productive for you? I'd be interested in hearing about it whether it was fannish in nature or if you were creating original works--either is great!
For me, the two times in my life when I have been ridiculously productive as a writer were when I was still in school (middle school, high school, and the gen ed portions of college) and then later when I had a data entry job where I worked so fast that I could spend at least two or so hours of the workday writing and still exceed all my quotas.
The unifying factor: both times I was stuck at a desk in a situation where I couldn't read or browse the internet and where I wasn't being mentally stimulated. In school, I wrote longhand in notebooks--so many notebooks! At work, I wrote in Word docs that I emailed to myself and then deleted. I could get away with writing because no one expected me to be doing it and no one could tell that I wasn't taking notes or working. And writing, as I discovered then, begat more writing--it all built on itself. My mind came alive.
This is clearly The Way to get me to write extensively. This is also not replicable in my current life because I have a job I actually like and have to pay attention to. It's sad knowing I'll probably never been in a situation like that again. Nowadays, writing is both enjoyable but also laborious, and I'm often too tired to do it. I miss those halcyon days of writingwritingwriting all the time!
What about y'all?
For me, the two times in my life when I have been ridiculously productive as a writer were when I was still in school (middle school, high school, and the gen ed portions of college) and then later when I had a data entry job where I worked so fast that I could spend at least two or so hours of the workday writing and still exceed all my quotas.
The unifying factor: both times I was stuck at a desk in a situation where I couldn't read or browse the internet and where I wasn't being mentally stimulated. In school, I wrote longhand in notebooks--so many notebooks! At work, I wrote in Word docs that I emailed to myself and then deleted. I could get away with writing because no one expected me to be doing it and no one could tell that I wasn't taking notes or working. And writing, as I discovered then, begat more writing--it all built on itself. My mind came alive.
This is clearly The Way to get me to write extensively. This is also not replicable in my current life because I have a job I actually like and have to pay attention to. It's sad knowing I'll probably never been in a situation like that again. Nowadays, writing is both enjoyable but also laborious, and I'm often too tired to do it. I miss those halcyon days of writingwritingwriting all the time!
What about y'all?
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I didn't start posting on AO3 until 2019, and going by my stats page, in 2021 I wrote close to twice as much as I did in my next most prolific AO3 year so far. I think that was the year when I'd really started to get into the swing of fandom exchanges and other events, but hadn't yet gotten to the point of starting to get burnt out on them. I was also not only still super into Discovery at the time, but I also got into The Expanse that year and I tend to write more when I've just gotten into a new fandom.
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Haha, relatable!!!
the year when I'd really started to get into the swing of fandom exchanges and other events, but hadn't yet gotten to the point of starting to get burnt out on them.
There often is a sweet spot like that!
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Absolutely! I think this is true for most people.
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- I worked in retail. Sometimes retail keeps you busy, but when it doesn't, you can't leave. I was also a manager, so I could write on a legal pad attached to a clipboard and look plausibly like I was working.
- I was in a big, active fandom. The community discussions and enthusiasm were inspiring.
- I was in my early 20s, meaning that I magically had infinite time and energy and did not require sleep.
- My physical health was good. I became chronically ill in the late 2000s, which coincided with not writing at all for a while, though it wasn't the only reason for that.
- My mental health was bad? I'm not sure how much this was a factor, but sometimes when I'm not doing well, I channel my stuff into writing. But sometimes I write a lot when I'm doing well too, so it may not have been that relevant.
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Right now I'm actually doing pretty well? As far as novel-writing is concerned I can get 1K words done in a day, despite not being madly in love with this particular set of characters. (There have been occasions in the last year and a half when I have been in love with the characters, and spent all Sunday doing almost nothing but writing.) This despite all the other stresses going on right now and the publishing work. I think it helps that I have more energy (and am less depressed) than I did/was in the early 2010s (or late 2000s, honestly).
With regards to you, specifically, I really don't think you're never going to feel that flowering of creativity ever again. It's not just that you have a job you enjoy, but also you've got a lot of creative energy being put into you, right now, who you are, in terms of important stuff like gender identity and religion. It makes sense that you would be dealing with that stuff directly right now, and not need or want to deal with it indirectly through fic, or have a lot of energy to spare for fic otherwise.
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As far as novel-writing is concerned I can get 1K words done in a day, despite not being madly in love with this particular set of characters.
This is a real accomplishment! I have definitely noticed, and I'm very happy for you.
As for your insights into me...I think you are totally right, though I'd never thought of it from that perspective. I had next to nothing going for me during that period. I had no social life--fandom was IT for me.
Now that I'm working so hard on other things, there just isn't the energy or time for it. And I definitely had not thought of stuff about gender and religion being creative...but it is! Thank you so much for this insight!
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