It's a holiday weekend, which means you've got a little extra time to do what you want, right? This weekend I've got the perfect assignment for your writing.
Get out and about. Go someplace gorgeous.
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As writers, we're continually calling on ourselves to recreate worlds, to sharpen our syntax, to speak with clarity on the page. And whether we're always aware of it or not, we call on our senses when we write.
We can't expect fresh perceptions and insights to arise if we don't occasionally uproot ourselves from our usual places and put ourselves someplace new. Whether you make a simple shift in quality of light you're experiencing or take yourself to an entirely new physical space, it's not difficult to energize your creativity and renew your senses. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
All Aglow
This past week I got to spend an evening learning about video blogging with the Bay Area Bloggers Society. My friend, Mary Cary, showed us around her studio.
"Isn't it great how diffused the light is?" she said, pointing to an illuminated umbrella. "This kind of lighting makes everyone look beautiful."
Later, I chatted with Emily Kischell (LiveWires), and Laurie McAndish King (Travel Writers News). As we talked, I noticed how glowy we all looked.
"Don't know about you, but I'm feeling rather gorgeous right now," I quipped.
For the briefest of moments, me and these two smart women shared a big belly laugh as we preened and flipped our hair for an imaginary sea of admiring cameras.
A simple thing, isn't it?
Shift the quality of light, and our perceptions dance.
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"Lobby Love"
A few days later, my newly potty-trained daughter had to make a bathroom stop. ("Now, mommy!" she said.)
The gorgeous Acqua Hotel just happened to be nearby, and remembering its lovely lobby, I decided to stop. My little one easily charmed her way past the front desk.
"I want to buy this bathroom for my room," my three-year-old told me with all seriousness. She was obviously impressed by the aesthetics of the place.
For the next half-hour, we loitered happily in the lobby. She checked out the view from every sofa. She stood quietly as she listened curiously to the indoor fountain. She patted the silk-covered decorative pillows with approval.
After we left the hotel, the whole day seemed better. A new environment -- no, a new and gorgeous environment -- refreshed our senses.
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Light, Wood and Books, Books, Books
And here I sit, writing to you from a long, polished wooden table at the Mill Valley Public Library.
This place really is as gorgeous as it looks in the photo. The big French doors are open to the late afternoon light, and through the windowpanes long redwood boughs are lilting and surfing in the breeze.
My aluminum-cased laptop always looks good, but in this light, in this space, it's not just a mere machine. It look like a work of art.
photo credits: cobalt123 (flickr), acqua hotel/jdv, mill valley library)
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Try This
The gorgeous places I've described in today's blog post are all interior spaces, but you need not keep yourself indoors. Get creative and see what new spaces and aesthetic journeys you can take this weekend, indoors or out.
What will you do to refresh your senses? Will you go someplace gorgeous, someplace new?
If You Blog: Why not write a post about your own gorgeous places? Send a trackback to this blog and leave a comment below so we can share the adventure!
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