Words Have the Power to Change Us

Have you ever opened a new Word document with the intention of writing for hours on end and then suddenly realizing your mind is blank?  Have you ever just typed the heading and then just closed the document accepting defeat?  Don't lie... We've all done it.  I mean I did it just now before I started typing this post!  If you claim you have never experienced this feeling, you are lying to yourself.   When we close the document we tell ourselves, "Oh we'll get back to it later."  That's where the problem lies.  "Later" has a different meaning to all of us.  It could mean hours later or it could mean weeks.  Now it's not just writers who experience this phenomenon.  Every type of artist can relate to that feeling.  Painters could step in front of an easel with their paints all ready to go and then BOOM!... their mind goes blank.  You may be thinking, "What does painting have to do with writing?  They're totally different!!"  Actually, they're more similar than you think.  Now if we treated writing like designing, then it would be a whole new world!  Insert Aladdin song here.

 Writers don't use paint for storytelling.  Their tool is their words.  Each word written is like a new stroke of paint.  Every word is essential to creating the overall story or picture.  A single word has the power to change the readers viewpoint of a character or place.  If a scene is happening outside and the writer provides no description for it, then we all come up with our own interpretation.  Some may think it's sunny while others may think it's on the brink of a hurricane.  Now if the writer uses the word "gloomy" for description, it changes everything.  The mood of the scene is changed to reflect its environment.  It's no longer happy or tragic it has underlying tension along an added sense of darkness all because of one word.

The entire writing experience would be different if it was treated like designing.  The placement of each word would be as meticulous as each paint stroke.  Each stroke is essential to the overall image just like each word is essential to the story being told.  Sure the process will probably take a lot longer if we're constantly worrying about which word will fit where and how will it affect the overall story.  But let me tell you a little secret... There's such thing as a delete button.  If your like me and you stress out over word placement from the start, the delete button is a gift from the Heavens!  Focus on getting all your thoughts out first, and then go back to freak out about which word should go where.  If you approach writing like your painting, then it will be a different experience entirely.  You get to create a picture using your words, and if you succeed then that's something to be proud of. If you touch someone in a meaningful way along the way, then it makes all of the struggles worth it.   And we all know words have the power to change us.  No, I didn't come up with that on my own. Yes, it's a quote from a book.... i.e Clockwork Angel.