Writing as Spiritual Stillness

Before the first word is written, there is silence.

It’s not the silence of emptiness, but of expectancy. A sacred stillness in which thought yields to intuition and the soul begins its quiet conversation with the Eternal. Every writer who has lingered before a blank page/screen knows this moment. It cannot be hurried, nor can it be manufactured. It asks only that we become still enough to listen.

Writing, at its deepest level is an act of spiritual attentiveness. The writer becomes both pilgrim and witness, traveling landscapes that cannot be mapped by geography alone. Every journey inward reveals another path outward, where the personal becomes universal and the ordinary discloses the extraordinary.

While the world pursues speed, certainty and immediate answers, the writer inhabits another rhythm. Like the nurturing gardener who trusts that unseen roots are gathering strength beneath the soil, the writer understands that ideas require time. Some stories germinate quietly over years before finding their rightful voice. Others arrive unexpectedly, like light breaking through storm clouds, illuminating truths that have waited patiently in the shadows.

This waiting is contemplation.

The contemplative writer learns that inspiration is surrender. Stories cannot be forced into existence. They reveal themselves gradually, often through moments of profound stillness, unexpected encounters, or memories long thought forgotten. We do not simply create stories; often, they find us. They arrive carrying echoes of forgotten generations, fragments of whispered prayers, lingering griefs, and enduring hopes that transcend the boundaries of time.

 

 

 

 

Every authentic story is, in some measure, a search for the sacred.

 

 

Whether writing historical fiction, poetry, memoir or literary prose, the deepest narratives ask timeless questions. What redeems the human spirit? How does love survive suffering? Where does hope endure when certainty has vanished? Why does beauty persist amid brokenness?

These are not mere thoughts; they are spiritual inquiries that have occupied humanity since the first stories were spoken around ancient fires.

 

Perhaps this is why memorable characters remain with us long after the final page. Their journeys mirror our own. Fiction, at its finest, does not invite escape from reality; it invites a deeper encounter with it.

 

 

The spiritual writing journey begins with honesty.

 

Beautiful prose cannot disguise emotional insincerity. To write authentically requires the courage to enter one’s own wilderness by confronting doubt without surrendering hope, and to acknowledge sorrow without relinquishing joy.

Vulnerability is not weakness. It is the wellspring from which enduring literature flows.

There is also a sacred responsibility entrusted to every writer; the calling to bear witness. We become custodians of memories that history may overlook and guardians of voices that might otherwise disappear into silence.

In preserving these stories, writers preserve something infinitely more valuable than information.

It is an act of preserving humanity.

For me, writing has always been an act of reverence.

It is an acknowledgement that beneath the visible world lies another reality waiting to be discerned. The smallest moments often carry the greatest revelations such as the quiet strength of a mother, the unwavering loyalty of a friend, the whispered wisdom of an elder, or the fragile hope that survives profound loss. These are the moments that offer a glimpse of the sacred woven into everyday life.

The page becomes sacred ground for what unfolds, guided by a power beyond the pen.

Ultimately, the spiritual dimension of writing resides in the quiet conviction that words can heal, illuminate and awaken.

The writer’s task, then, is not merely to entertain but to hold a lantern against the gathering darkness and remind readers that even the faintest light possesses remarkable strength.

Long after the final chapter has been closed, the echo of a deeper truth remains.

Writing is an act of remembrance, that every human life carries within it a story worthy of being heard, every soul reflects a fragment of the Divine, and every word written with integrity has the power to become a quiet blessing in a world yearning for hope.

Do you believe that writing is a sacred process?

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Word Rhythm – some time… somehow

 

People ask, ‘so how does one complete a novel?’ The simple response is, ‘write every day.’

Fifty words on a page are better than a blank page.

Consistency is key and if for whatever reason writing is impossible on a day, double up the output in the next writing session. Perhaps not all in one go, divide the writing time to two sessions if possible, on a given day that fits in with what is already on your plate.

 

 

Carpe Diem!

Writing more is by showing up, at a regular time, bottom on the seat, minimal distractions or no distractions at all. Commit to a solid ninety-minutes, then change the activity, but if the juice is still flowing go back for another session.

Blocks of time, free of distractions is essential to see a creative project to completion.

 

Ways in which to maximise creative time is to have a notepad/journal at the ready wherever you are. I have A5 journals in my handbag, workbag and pencils stashed in every pocket. Sitting in the doctor’s or dentist’s waiting room, or with colour in your hair at the hairdresser, or as I do, while sitting in the car at the car wash, scribble a few lines to keep the momentum of your story going. Watching soap suds gyrate in a splash of colour stirs the imagination! Back at your desk, if that’s where you prefer to write, draw those mini journal creative thoughts into your WIP manuscript.

Having word count goals helps to hold one accountable. My target is to finish a chapter at each writing session,  if possible, or to leave a trigger sentence for the next writing session, to pick up the pace, action and momentum.

Caught in a roadblock? Pull out a notepad and write, if you can’t take your eyes off the road, audio record your verbal musings — now traffic cops, I dare to say, have not come up with traffic fines for the some time… somehow writer at a standstill in a roadblock, NOT in moving traffic, I must add – that is a massive NO-NO! Anything that will hinder the imagination is a blaring siren and flashing lights… although a fictional high-speed chase adds adrenaline to a thriller… let me add that… to my…

Like we need our zzzz’s,  we need our number of words down on the page each day.

Some like holding themselves accountable through a writing group and others prefer to create their own deadlines. Either way, commitment matters to take your draft from a manuscript to an actual book.

 

Courage is the commitment to begin without any guarantee of success ~ Wolfgang Von Goethe

 

Some have a few writing days set aside in the week and commit like it’s a job they go to for five or six hours a day. If these are the only days available, the habit is cultivated and creative productivity soars on those days.
Roads trips, as long as you’re not doing the driving, is another great way to nab some writing hours, the imagination will be stimulated as you travel through various locations.

My next some time… somehow is to jump on a train and go to the furthest end of the line and back while writing. I am a desk-bound writer so this is an adventure that might or might not yield a new result. Let’s hope nobody throws me off the train for wearing heavily shaded sunglasses, a cap and seen to be furtively writing some secretive lines, perhaps on the comings and goings on each platform?

Get on that train, write at the car wash, whatever you do, do create space for your book!

Happy Writing, Happy Musing!

Carpe Diem!

Please share your some time… somehow to help others maximise writing outcomes.

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Is Commitment on Your Agenda?

Across Time and Space explores commitment in relationships in romance, friendship and family relationships. Whether or not it leads to the commitment of, ‘I do’ – commitment is a primal need in relationships for one to feel valued. The protagonist in Across Time and Space has been in a relationship for a length of time, a comfortable, complacency envelopes the relationship creating restlessness that becomes the catalyst for unimagined challenges.

This begs the question, does commitment mean unstinting devotion and loyalty akin to ‘til death do us part?’ The answers are vast and varied depending on the values one has embraced or formed.

Being raised in a time and place which instilled that a promise of commitment meant fulfilment of that promise on a nominated, ceremonial day which comes with its own merits and flaws. This might be considered ‘old world’ or fit for ‘Cinderella and her Prince Charming’, yet the expectation is that couples will unite or commit in a way they deem appropriate to both of them. Yes, the operative word is both – not ‘one’ making a decision, on a whim, that life’s path has beckoned a change for ‘one’ without consideration for how this might impact on the other half of both. Such is the life of the protagonist in Across Time and Space and her partner – good people in their own right who buckle under the fear of commitment, fear for the loss that might be incurred in all that has yet to be achieved in life.

This leads me to why should commitment be feared as the end to individuality and relinquishing of one’s dreams? Commitment should encompass all spheres of one’s life in relationships: singular and joint dreams, commitment to professional ideals and commitment to going off on a whim if its one’s choice to do so by acknowledging that both need to be aware of such changes. Meryl, in  Across Time and Space will clarify the choices she makes to catch the star of her destiny that she feared might never be realised in her lifetime.

Commitment can have its dark and dangerous side when passion overrides reason. This brings to mind Catherine and Heathcliffe in Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights where both are inextricably and destructively hemmed to each other. Stepping outside literature as we turn on our televisions to the reality of the evening news or an online article on domestic violence which results from unhealthy commitment which is power and control. Supposed commitment, commitment without reason creates a dark, terrible and often tragic situation.

Commitment in family relationships be it as mother, father, grandparent, carer or extended family member should be based on trust, approval, open communication and support from love shared  to promote good mental health.

Love, respect and freedom of choices are a right that should not be debated, it’s a basic human right – a human right that should acknowledge commitment to respectful consideration through communication  before heading off alone into the sunset.

Commitment to values  includes commitment to the values of place, the place we call home – the country- the city- the street- our backyards. It is often those who cannot commit on a personal level who cannot commit to democracy, justice and a fair go.

Reason should always caution passion, dreams should be lived for peace and joy to reign for both halves in any relationship and for all in our choice of place that we call home.

What’s your take on commitment to all things in life?  I would love to know your thoughts.

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