I think the point about typing versus writing is a good one, but I don't think that it's meant to be a substitute. I find that when I need to get started on a writing project, the best thing I can do is just start typing. Then I begin to get ideas, and I can go back and edit out the "typing." I like to think of that as my "warmup."

Years ago I took an art studio class. One of the first things the instructor had us do was take a piece of charcoal and draw a huge line across our lovely blank sheet of paper. As soon as the page was "messed up," it was easy to start drawing.

Action may not be everything, but you need to start somewhere.

and there are so many nuances to this ...

compare this: the heartfelt rendering of "moonlight sonata" by a 17-year-old piano student ... the precision-like execution of beethoven's fifth by a conductor who's performed it 300 times ... a zydeco band belting out a crazy cajun melody ...

who is the "better" artist?

oh, and here is the next instalment of this conversation:

http://www.moritherapy.org/article/chaos-and-creativity/

I've heard some musicians play a piece and found myself thinking, "Wow! Great technique...But - there's nothing of the performer shaping its delivery."
I've heard the same piece performed by another musician and been spellbound! As if he found someone so interesting that they got intimately acquainted and now we are being introduced to this music as a beloved friend the performer is eager for us to love, as well!

A stunning example of the artist's role in rendering those static notes on the page creatively is Joshua Bell's performance on the movie soundtrack, "The Red Violin." It's the saga of the successive owners of a magnificent violin down through the centuries and the music it sings for them. This young violinist had to play his instrument in such a way that it expressed the "voice" and style of the one playing it in the story - also keeping it culturally accurate for the historic period. His playing was the only time I've heard an artist transform his solo instrument into a whole host of movie characters! To listen to the CD, you think you are hearing different violinists performing!! A fine technician would have played the music correctly, even observing the musical conventions of each era, but it would have sounded like the same studio musician doing all the dubbing.

I've read the reflections of some scientists and physicians that touch my heart and lift my spirit as they capture their awe toward the worlds their research or patients reveal to them.

I guess it's the difference between photocopying an image and giving it your personal rendition.

Thanks for listening, y'all!
Lauralyn

Isabella, so glad my words found a receptive welcome in your wonderful imagination!

Jeremy, thanks - always - for the illumination your passionate curiosity brings to often overlooked places in my heart and mind!

was struck by your words

that's what makes our efforts to communicate with one another creative - this desire to translate and render something that stimulates us mentally/spiritually into an external medium

because that's how this all started! trying to translate the creative activity and/or inspirational moment into the scientific medium.

interesting ...

JohnD

Rather, I approach writer (or creativity for the purposes of this discussion) like I would riding a bike or knitting or exercise or any other activity that requires brain training and brain stamina. I write at the same in the same place every day. I have found that even if I'm not in the mood, having a routine like this makes it much easier for my brain to get the signal "now it's time to write" and to find the pathways in which it then needs to work. Also, like any other activity, I believe writing takes practice. We believe that to be a good musician or athlete, a person must practice. But for some reason, we have this misguided belief that writers and artists should just produce perfect and amazing work instantly, when really these activities require the same amount of practice in order to reach a superior level of proficiency.

What's tricky about all of this is that we're all individuals, and what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for another. I teach writing, and I always tell my students to write every day, at the same time and in the same place, to at least get into the habit of a writing discipline. But at the same time, this approach really may not work for everyone. Some people bristle at such routine and it can squelch their imagination. I need quiet; other people prefer noisy places. I work on a computer; someone else may work best writing things out long hand or collaborating with another writer, etc. There is no one way to write, paint, etc., just as there is no one way to write a story, paint a picture, create a piece of music, etc. It can be different for everyone.

But I do believe that it's not magical. It takes practice and hard work to actually do the work. I know a lot of talented people who will never write anything because they just don't write. I don't think I'm particularly talented, but I work really hard.

Judith

Thanks for hanging in there and reading this to the end!