Why I Enjoy Writing
by Muddy Kinzer
There is a piece of me that is inherently creative. It is not bossy or demanding, like the part of me that insists I exercise whether I want to or not. I don’t have to force it with a sharply pointed stick to motivate it, like the part of me responsible for laundry and clean bathrooms. This part of me is just there, sitting in the middle of the floor of my mind like a giggling toddler that I can’t wait to pick up and play with.
Over the years, my creative outlets have taken different forms. I have a collection of patterned paper, inks, rubber stamps, and multi-colored markers that thrill me whenever I look at them. As a volunteer art teacher, I have spent many a happy hour elbow-deep in chalk pastels, paint, charcoal, and watercolors.
I love them all!
Well, not the set-up, of course. It takes time to pull out all the supplies and even more time to clean up afterwards. Washing out brushes, scrubbing off glue from my kitchen table, mopping up drops of colored paint from the floor... My creative ventures are fulfilling, but they are also events.
But writing—aahhh, writing! Only a computer or a piece of paper and a pencil and I’m good to go.
Writing slides neatly into the small blocks of time that make up my day, and I can do it at home on my computer or anywhere else with my notebook and mechanical pencil. I love writing longhand, in cursive with no abbreviations, forming each rounded letter if the ideas are coming in leisurely, or cutting off the ends of words when I have trouble keeping up. I can write sitting in a chair with my feet on the ground or lying on my stomach on the floor with my feet crossed in the air.
In a pinch, I don’t even need those basic supplies to write. I can ponder, create, tweak, and rewrite all in my head while I do my daily exercise, when I’m driving someone to somewhere, or at night in the period of time between turning out the light and drifting off to sleep. I just have to make sure I remember it long enough to record it.
Writing gives me the freedom to correct mistakes. In life, I can set myself into a tailspin when I say the wrong thing. But in writing, I can erase the offending line or use it as a springboard for further conflict and/or growth. When my characters have an argument and I think of the perfect retort three days later, I can go back and add it in. Life is uncertain: I may have happy endings or I may not. With my characters, I can give them any kind of ending I want.
Whether I’m buzzing with creativity or too tired to get off the couch, whether I’ve had a bad day I need to escape from or a great day I’d like to extend, writing is always there waiting for me.
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After years entrenched in the baby/toddler stages of life, Muddy Kinzer is now realizing there is life after kids! She writes, plays with art, and is still indispensable to her 3 sons because she has a car. When she’s not enjoying the health benefits of good quality dark chocolate, she writes on her blog Muddying the Waters at www.muddyingthewaters.com.
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Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
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by Muddy Kinzer
There is a piece of me that is inherently creative. It is not bossy or demanding, like the part of me that insists I exercise whether I want to or not. I don’t have to force it with a sharply pointed stick to motivate it, like the part of me responsible for laundry and clean bathrooms. This part of me is just there, sitting in the middle of the floor of my mind like a giggling toddler that I can’t wait to pick up and play with.
Over the years, my creative outlets have taken different forms. I have a collection of patterned paper, inks, rubber stamps, and multi-colored markers that thrill me whenever I look at them. As a volunteer art teacher, I have spent many a happy hour elbow-deep in chalk pastels, paint, charcoal, and watercolors.
I love them all!
Well, not the set-up, of course. It takes time to pull out all the supplies and even more time to clean up afterwards. Washing out brushes, scrubbing off glue from my kitchen table, mopping up drops of colored paint from the floor... My creative ventures are fulfilling, but they are also events.
But writing—aahhh, writing! Only a computer or a piece of paper and a pencil and I’m good to go.
Writing slides neatly into the small blocks of time that make up my day, and I can do it at home on my computer or anywhere else with my notebook and mechanical pencil. I love writing longhand, in cursive with no abbreviations, forming each rounded letter if the ideas are coming in leisurely, or cutting off the ends of words when I have trouble keeping up. I can write sitting in a chair with my feet on the ground or lying on my stomach on the floor with my feet crossed in the air.
In a pinch, I don’t even need those basic supplies to write. I can ponder, create, tweak, and rewrite all in my head while I do my daily exercise, when I’m driving someone to somewhere, or at night in the period of time between turning out the light and drifting off to sleep. I just have to make sure I remember it long enough to record it.
Writing gives me the freedom to correct mistakes. In life, I can set myself into a tailspin when I say the wrong thing. But in writing, I can erase the offending line or use it as a springboard for further conflict and/or growth. When my characters have an argument and I think of the perfect retort three days later, I can go back and add it in. Life is uncertain: I may have happy endings or I may not. With my characters, I can give them any kind of ending I want.
Whether I’m buzzing with creativity or too tired to get off the couch, whether I’ve had a bad day I need to escape from or a great day I’d like to extend, writing is always there waiting for me.
* * *
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
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Nicely written! I enjoyed that.
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