When Work Becomes Fun – Glorious Creativity
// “Ok, guys. Go! You’ve only got 8 seconds to catch your reader’s attention. Write!”
The room was a mix of expression… some faces furrowed in concentration, desperate to finish their thoughts before the five-minute timer ran out. Some showed panic, realizing that original ideas were lacking and ‘imagination muscles’ were out of shape. And then there were those who looked like deer in headlights—“What are we doing?”
The fury of scratching pens and pencils followed for the next five minutes. You could almost hear the wheels turning and smoke rising.
Creativity! Beautiful, glorious creativity!
Get out of your box. Break free from of the practical. Dream. Stretch those muscles. Force yourself to think bigger, brighter, bolder.
Like Philip José Farmer said,
Imagination is like a muscle… the more I wrote, the bigger it got. Click To Tweet“Use your verbs. Shorten those paragraphs. Vary your sentence lengths. Slash unnecessary intensifiers.
“Show me, don’t tell me.”
The topic, randomly chosen from a coin in my purse… 2004. Do you remember where you were in 2004?
Now, write. Can you feel it? Can you hear it? The sights and sounds of years-gone-by. The friends, the foes, the adventures catalogued in memory and imagination.
Beep, beep, beep… The buzzer announced the end. Already?
It wasn’t long enough. We needed more time. // The walls of our forgetfulness were only beginning to crumble. I sensed an urgency for a Saturday morning Writing Workshop in the near future.
Eager creative minds were desperate for oxygen and expression.
So ended the Masterclass held last night at Creative Collective, our community of worshiping artists in Jeffreys Bay. I had the immense privilege of being teacher and influencer to those who wear the label ‘Writer.’ The momma-bird, if you will, kicking the babies out of the nest.
I love my job.
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♥ HOORAY!
My book is available on Amazon and Kindle.
IDENTITY: Finding the Proverbs 31 Woman in the Middle of Kid Chaos (Mom Awesomeness Series)
In South Africa, you can order a physical copy from me. Send me a personal message, and we’ll make arrangements.
For more info, check out the book page here!
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Every Friday, I join an inspiring group of writers to write for FIVE MINUTES on a one-word prompt. No editing. No revising. Just WRITE. This week, the prompt word was WORK.
// indicates the start and stop of the timer.
For more information on Five Minute Friday, check out the Five Minute Friday website!
I love it when work is fun! Mine usually is (I teach high school). I teach English, so I say the same things to them when they write ;)–Show, don’t tell, avoid passive construction, use strong verbs.
Haha, I can so imagine an English teacher saying that. Mine did. Language is a wonderful thing, and I’m sure being able to pass down your love for words is incredibly satisfying.
Thanks so much for stopping by! Have a great week!
I was in the moment with you. The five-minute timer feels so constraining, but it’s a good practice. And it gets better with practice. I’m one week coming back from a business trip and trying to get back into my groove. The discipline of writing and jumping out of the nest is what I need. Your words inspire me.
The trip I took was work and fun. I spent my time advocating play to families at the Maryland State Fair. Seeing children dig deep into play and families get new ideas for play thrills my heart.
Wow, Cheryl! That’s sounds so interesting. I’ve always been passionate about seeing kids play and learn and discover! You must have been so excited to share your passion with the greater community.
I’m so glad you stopped by today! Will go read yours too. Have a great day!