#MondayBlogs Writing Rituals: All You Need To Know

Intro:

There are so many writing tips out there many writers don’t know where to start when they are looking for extra help. Sometimes, it’s as simple as starting with yourself, like your daily habits or your office space. Today, Heena Rathore P. is discussing writing rituals and how creating one can help energize your writing. Let’s welcome her!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in guest articles are those of the author/s and do not necessarily reflect my own. To show authenticity of the featured writer, articles are posted as provided (a.k.a. I do not edit them). However, the format may have changed.

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Writing Rituals: All You Need To Know by Heena Rathore P.

First of all I’d like to thank Shannon for letting me do a post for her amazing blog, Thanks a lot, Shannon!

What is a Writing Ritual?

Rituals, as defined in Merriam-Webster, are a series of actions or type of behaviour regularly and invariably followed by someone. So, in layman’s terms, Writing Rituals are nothing but these actions done specifically for writing or writing better.

In short, Writing Rituals are actions that trigger your creativity while shifting your mind into a mood for writing.

How are they beneficial?

Writing Rituals make sure that you are using the creative side of your brain to the fullest. Imagine yourself as a fitness freak who goes to gym every single day. Now, what is the one thing you would do before beginning the actual workout or the heavy workout? The answer is a warming up. So, to put it simply, Writing Rituals are important to prepare your brain to write, a creative warm up or a jumpstart, so to say.

As creative beings we all are well aware that if a writer is not in the mood for writing then he/she will most definitely NOT write and, as as a writer myself, I know firsthand that this happens quite often.

But, this can be easily avoided if you practice Writing Rituals.

To summarise, following are the benefits of Writing Rituals:

The ultimate cure for the much dreaded Writer’s Block.
Helps in writing better.
Helps in utilising the complete potential of your creative mind.
Saves a lot of time and emotional energy.
Helps in writing regularly.
Makes you more organised and disciplined.
Helps in successfully avoiding distractions.

How to create a Writing Ritual?

The name Writing Ritual sounds heavy, right? But creating one is simple, trust me. Just think about what really relaxes you?

A hot bath? A cup of tea? Meditation? Music? Dancing? Exercising? Jumping? Eating? Power-napping?

You can make any of these things a ritual. But the key is to treat it like one and with respect otherwise it won’t work.

For e.g., Scented candles, hot shower, soft cotton clothes and meditation help me relax. So, my Writing Ritual involves all theses things. I take a long, long hot shower, put on my cotton shorts and T, light a scented candle on my writing table and meditate for 5 minutes.

After doing this when I open my laptop, I feel like I’m totally ready to write. And that, my friends, is what is really important. You can’t write unless you feel ready to write.

Sometimes I also add a hot cup of coffee or hot chocolate to my ritual.

Writing Rituals can be as simple as having a fixed place to write or writing in a certain position. Or they can be as complex as having to climb the mountaintop to write at a particular spot there. So, you see, it’s not difficult because it’s all upto you. In fact, it’s quite fun and I’m sure you’ll love doing it.
Just make sure that you do it regularly (each and everyday, if possible.)

Is there some science involved?

The answer is, yes. As everyone knows, our brains are divided into two parts: Left Hemisphere and Right Hemisphere. Left hemisphere controls logical thinking whereas the right hemisphere controls creative thinking (in creative people right hemisphere is dominant.)

So, in order to use the right side of the brain it’s important to buzz out the left side entirely and trigger the right side. And this can be achieve only through relaxation. As far as my research goes, right side of the brain works flawlessly when a person is relaxed.

And Writing Rituals achieve this state quite efficiently.

Do famous authors have Writing Rituals?

Yes, as a matter of fact, most of the famous authors have their very own Writing Rituals. Right from Jane Austin to Stephen King, Mark Twain to Victor Hugo, everyone had/has one. Some are a lot simpler than others while others are a lot weirder.

If you find this subject interesting, you might want to check out these amazing articles:

What about you? Do you a Writing Ritual(s) of your own? Or are you convinced to have one now?

If you want to create one but feel that you can’t, then don’t hesitate to contact me. Please feel free to share your experience in the comments.

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Bio:

Heena Rathore P. is a writer from urban India. By profession she’s a freelance writer. Presently, she’s working on her first novel, Deceived, a psychological-thriller.

Apart from writing she loves spending her time reading and doing other creative stuff like painting, sketching and drawing.

She’s an introvert, a thinker, a neat freak, a voracious reader who is highly opinionated and a dog-lover.

You can connect with her at her Author Blog, Twitter, Instagram Goodreads or Facebook.

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Want to be a guest blogger? Now is the time to submit. I will be stopping guest blog posts in December, but before then, I would love to have you on! I am accepting original posts that focus on reading and writing. Pictures, links, and a bio are encouraged. You do not have to be published. If you qualify, please email me at shannonathompson@aol.com.

~SAT