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Left and Right

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

Left and Right

By Nandy Ekle

The brain is a whole entire organ. Or is it?

The medical books tells us our brains are actually made up of two hemispheres connected by the corpus callosum. The left hemisphere controls our logic and analytical skills. The right hemisphere, according to experts, is the home of our creativity and imaginations. The corpus callosum enables communication between the two sides.

Sorry. I didn’t mean to give an anatomy lesson.

In the past couple of decades, this has been a hot topic for doctors, nurses, psychologists, educators, even artists. And writing, my friends, is art.

So, the point of all this. When we’re working, as in a day job that pays our bills, we mostly want our “left brains” to be the active side. We might need complete silence in order to keep the right side sleeping, or we might need music playing to distract the right so the left can work. (I actually have a funny story about how my right kept my left from doing what it does . . .)

When we sit at the desk in front of the computer, that’s the time to open the door and let          Mr./Ms. Right out to play. The hard part is getting Dr. Left to go behind that door.

So, my dear readers, your assignment. Write in the comments below the ways you deal with the two sides of your brain to accomplish whatever task you have.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

The Zone

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POST CARDS FROM THE MUSE

The Zone

 One of my favorite places to go for lunch every day is The Zone. I take my lunch and my computer and I sit listening to words without any distraction.

The Zone is not a quiet place; in fact, there’s a lot of commotion and conversation going on. There’s so much happening that sometimes I have to struggle to get it all down before it’s over. Emotions and feelings float around the room as well as thoughts and ideas. It’s a place I love dearly and always feel a little surprised when I get to go there.

The Zone is inside my head and it’s a place where the real world ceases to exist. I can listen to what my characters have to say and why they say it. I can watch what they do and why they do it. And I hear their thoughts and why they think it. When The Zone happens I feel as though I’m watching a movie in my mind and simply taking dictation. And usually, this is when I do my best writing.

I wish I could give you directions to get to The Zone. I will give you some, but it’s the kind of place that hides in shadows, like an island covered with mist. Sometimes your ship lands there with no problems, sometimes the island jumps around hiding from you. But there are some steps you can take that will help you find it.

First, take advantage of the time of day you are the most creative. Mine happens to be during the lunch hour. Sometimes I really don’t feel like writing anything until I boot up that computer and open up the word processor. Occasionally this is all it takes to get to The Zone.

Next, write a sentence. I’m not being contrite or snotty. Writing a sentence, not even necessarily a good one, but any sentence can be one of the hardest parts of starting a new story. You know the story, or at least you know some of it, but that first few words can be so intimidating. So show them who’s boss by writing them. If they aren’t the right ones, fix them later.

After you get a sentence written, close your eyes and listen to the character your story is about. If he/she is talking, the rest will fall into place.

Before you know it, you will discover that you only have thirty seconds left to clock back in to work. You’ll feel as if you just woke from a dream, only there will be pages and pages of words on your computer screen. That’s when you’ll know you’ve had lunch at The Zone.

Congratulations. You have just received a post card from the muse.

Nandy Ekle