How to Unlock Your Maximum Creativity
Several years ago, I heard an author casually refer to auto hypnosis. I was instantly intrigued. If there’s anything that we writers constantly seek to achieve, it’s to be able to be in that zone with the characters so that we’re able to generate the best quality story. But getting there is hard. So many distractions stand in the way. That’s where hypnosis comes in. By writing with auto-hypnosis, we can unlock our maximum creativity.
Note #1: Auto-hypnosis is sometimes used for other areas of life such as redirecting our energy or changing bad habits. However, I’m going to speak strictly to its use as it relates to writers.
Note #2: If you have reservations or fears about hypnosis, keep reading. Auto-hypnosis is very different from traditional hypnosis and doesn’t come with the same sense of a loss of control over one’s self.
Definition
By auto-hypnosis (also referred to as self-hypnosis), I’m referring to the process by which we relax that left-brain, hyper-critical portion of our mind so that we can create freely. Whereas the more analytical, left side of our mind is extremely important in rewriting and problem-solving (fixing plot holes, critiquing diction, etc.), it can be a huge barrier to the initial, creative effort.
Picture auto-hypnosis as a means by which we either put the left side of our brains into a time out, or give it something to occupy itself, so that the right side of our brains can create unimpeded.
Simultaneously, we want to be able to enter into the story so that our imagination is fully engaged and we’re able to see and hear everything that our characters are experiencing.
Auto-Hypnosis vs. Hypnosis
If you’re wondering if this differs from traditional hypnosis, the answer is that the outcomes are similar, but the methods are quite different.
Traditional hypnosis – conducted by an external party – places a person into a trance so that [in theory] the person can, among other things, bring hidden memories to the surface. Both traditional and auto-hypnosis aim to free up the mind to release what lies within, whether those are memories or simply ideas.
However, the approach to each method is quite different. As you might have guessed, auto-hypnosis is conducted by you. Unlike in traditional hypnosis, you control the state into which you place your mind and you bring your mind back to its standard functioning level by yourself. This also means you aren’t entering into a trance in quite the same way as you would in traditional hypnosis.
Traditional hypnosis is like a sleeping state in which the person is still responsive to the one conducting the hypnosis.
Auto-hypnosis is more like an extreme state of relaxation in which you close off all external concerns and stimuli and become hyper-focused on the task you’ve chosen – writing, in our case. At the risk of stating the obvious, you have your eyes open and are able to write. This is very different from traditional hypnosis.
Is It Only for Pantsers?
As we segue into how we can induce this type of hypnosis, it’s important to note that this can work for either plotters (those who plan/ outline their books ahead of time), or pantsers (those who write by the seat of their pants), or for those who use some combination of the two.
The advance work might be a bit different though.
For instance, if you’re a pantser, you can utilize the auto-hypnosis as it suits you best and simply free write. That means that, with no advance planning or work, you sit down under the influence of the hypnosis, put the proverbial pen to the paper, and see what happens.
If you’re a plotter, you’ll probably want to start with at least a rough outline. From there you can enter into each scene under the influence of the auto-hypnosis and allow yourself to write more freely as if you’re something of a very well-organized pantser.
And of course, those who do a bit of both can adjust the method to their liking. I like to start with a pantser-style summary of the novel, which I then manipulate into a moderately robust outline, and then write. I would use the auto-hypnosis for the up-front summary so that I can freely generate an idea of the story from start to finish (in a very abbreviated, summary form), and then again when I work on the scenes themselves. In the middle, I would use my usual [more analytical] form of thinking/ creating to massage the summary into an outline.
Auto-Hypnosis: How To
There are almost as many ways to induce this type of hypnosis as there are types of thinkers or personalities. What that means is that, you’re going to have to execute some trial and error to find out what works for you. However, I’m going to discuss what I’ve experienced, what I’ve read, and what I’ve heard other writers doing. That should give you some good places to get started.
The key to knowing where to start is to remember what we’re trying to achieve:
- No distractions, and
- An extreme focus
Eliminating Distractions
As I write this, my dog is running around my work area (and the hallway adjoining it), playing with the two kittens – her little brothers. They love this, although I sometimes have to intervene, but I think we can all agree that having them running around pouncing and knocking things over isn’t the best environment for writing.
When it comes to writing a blog post, I can handle it, but it isn’t conducive to the kind of deep focus I need for creative writing.
In addition, in the Myers-Briggs personality system, I’m an INTJ. If you’re an INTJ or an INFJ, you might know that extroverted sensing is my inferior function in my cognitive function stack. That’s a fancy way of saying that INxJs don’t process external stimuli very well. It’s not our strong suit.
[If this is all new to you, think of me as someone who’s especially distracted by external inputs or stimuli. If you’re interested in knowing more, I recommend personality hacker – start here for a discussion of the cognitive stacks, the “car model” as they define it. – or personality junkie, which has a great article about this topic.]
In order to compensate for that, I do particularly well if I cut out as much in the way of external stimuli as possible. I have blackout curtains and if I’m struggling to get into the writing as much as I need to, I close them and turn off all of the lights. I sit in the dark, with only the light of my laptop screen.
I have noise-cancelling headphones and usually listen to some type of white noise like rain and thunderstorm sound effects. There are also multi-hour sound effect videos for things like fans, the ocean, running water (a river or stream), etc. I close the doors so that the kittens play elsewhere in the house. I get my dog some play and exercise and then put her down for her nap. If you have kids, you’re probably going to have to do likewise, or work around their school or sleep schedule.
I turn off my email, silence my cell phone, close the internet except for any white noise I have on [research later or ahead of time, not during this process], and make sure family members know when I’m working and need no distractions.
You might also want to think about things like sugar, alcohol, cigarettes, larger meals (instead of more frequent small meals), etc. that can create more fluctuations in your energy. Sometimes sugar or caffeine makes me super focused for a very short period of time…but then I crash. In the end, I’m more tired than I would have been without them. I find that moderating these helps me to stay as consistently sharp as possible without highs or lows.
The key to this type of focus that we call auto-hypnosis, is that it needs to be as unbroken as possible. If you can only do an hour at a time, do so. But try to get a solid block of time in which you have as few distractions as possible.
Extreme Focus
Here’s when the process becomes more complex. The work of getting your head into the zone in which you’re very deeply focused on the characters is something of an art form. It’ll differ more per writer than simply eliminating distractions.
Keep in mind that some of these are used during the brainstorming/ problem-solving phase of your creation. You’ll notice that you can’t necessarily write while conducting some of them, but they may be the key to getting into the right headspace to begin with.
Here are some things that I’ve used, or have heard other writers use to induce this type of auto-hypnosis:
- Exercise – some writers run, or cycle, or walk, or…whatever. While doing so, the rhythm of their movements opens their mind to work through the story and discover where it’s going, or what the characters need to do to get from point A to point B.
- A very repetitive craft – this one is trickier. I’ve found that cross-stitch or quilting – though I like them – are too mentally engaging to function as part of the auto-hypnosis process. But some crafts like Diamond Dotz, which I also enjoy, are just mindless enough to function like doodling. While my left brain is applying colored dots to a canvas (it’s all laid out with a legend… little thought required), my right brain is free to think through my story.
- Doodling or using a fidget – this is like exercise on a small-scale. Rather than engaging the whole body, you’re working with your hands to give them something relatively mindless to do. That can give your mind free rein to wander.
- Passive Movement – some people think really well while driving or riding in a car, train, or plane. Most of us aren’t in planes everyday, but if you’re going to be in a moving vehicle, it might be a good time to capitalize on that opportunity. I don’t know why this one works as well as it does, but when I’m in a moving vehicle, my mind sails free. It’s incredible.
- Meditation or visualization – this type of meditation isn’t the typical emptying of your mind. That wouldn’t really serve our purposes here. However, you might start off – in a quiet place devoid of distractions – by emptying your mind of all of your other concerns, focusing on relaxing each of your muscle groups, and then allowing your mind to step into the story. Take this as far as you want to. If you’re working on an individual scene, think through what’s just happened in the story and then, once you’re fully immersed, walk forward into the next scene. Allow yourself to place yourself in the character’s shoes and engage all of your senses. What is happening around you? Who comes to see your character? How does your character respond? What does she want to acquire or accomplish in this scene? Go there with her. If you’re developing the entire story, expand this process, start at the beginning and visualize the entire story to the best of your current knowledge.
You may have noticed that I organized this list from the most active to the least. The more active scenarios tend to be ones that writers use in advance – while they’re thinking through the story or a story problem at a higher level. Then they come back to the keyboard and write.
As the activities become more passive, you can use them as a launching pad in the actual writing process. You might find that you do one thing one day and another thing another day. Or you might find that you need to start with some doodling, or crafting in a quiet place, and then move towards the deeper visualization that sparks the writing process. It might be that most days you’re fully immersed and only need this when you’re feeling some writer’s block or confusion about the plot.
Be flexible with yourself. Pay attention to times when you’re doing something and find that your mind is especially open and creative. Try various things until you find those things that work for you. And if you’ve used a method that has worked for you, let me know. I’d love to hear from you!
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