Putting Realities in the Back Seat

I'm working on a new story. I'm two chapters in and it's in that tender chrysalis stage, where it could blossom into something beautiful, or it could erupt into a cloud of fairy glitter. That's what chrysalises do, right? Something like that.

I've found that the best way to sidestep glitter eruptions is to write from a place of possibilities - which generally means having to get Little Kid Kelly involved in the process. This isn't to say that I don't still believe in all sorts of possibilities, but the whole being an adult process can sometimes get me a bit distracted by realities.

This doesn't work for me when I'm writing. Keeping track of word counts and making goals for the same is helpful, but if I'm writing to that goal rather than to the story, I never get as much done. Basically, I need to get my grown up mind to take the back seat - letting the little kid mind run rampant through this new world discovering whatever she can.

Sometimes, this requires a push. And for this, I generally turn to childhood favorites - books, TV, or movies. Those fictional worlds that first made my developing brain explode in wonder. It doesn't matter if these things are no longer my favorite in their category, what's important is the reminder of feeling like absolutely anything is possible.

Here are some of my go-tos when I need reentry into the world of Possibilities:

This series was a staple of my childhood - the books that I was most likely to smuggle under my coat so I could sneak off and get some reading in at roller skating parties. And the books that left me with a never-to-be-fully-extinguished (but-thankfully-so-far-resisted) urge to wander through deserted construction sites in the hopes of meeting a kindly alien looking to gift me with powers.

Nothing gets my brain working like a dance party, and no song gets me back in my younger mind set like this one. This may or may not be because my sister, friends and I learned the dance to this...I can neither confirm nor deny. One thing I can say without reservation - I wish I could rock a turtle neck like these ladies.

There are very few rough scenes that can't be figured out over a pile of Legos. Something about working with your hands while your mind wanders...it gets the job done. Particularly, if what your hands are working on is building a Lego Hogwarts.

Chewandswallow remains one of my ideal vacation spots.

via GIPHY

My childhood was a revolving door of the original movies and extended universe books. I don't know that there will ever be another fictional world that so opens my mind to the beauty of never-ending possibilities.


So, what inspires you when you need to get creative?