The Significance of Rituals in the Creative Process for Writers and Artists
In the world of art and writing, rituals play a significant role in fostering creativity and productivity. Pekoeblaze, an artist and writer known for his numerous drawings and online comics, is one such individual who attests to the importance of these intentional acts.
Rituals serve as psychological and sensory cues that help artists and writers overcome mental barriers, manage stress, and enter a productive creative mindset. They create a sacred or special space that separates creative time from everyday distractions, making it easier to enter a flow state or mindfulness. Rituals often evoke joy, peace, and reflection, which enhance emotional openness and creativity.
For Pekoeblaze, his rituals for making art involve watching TV shows and YouTube videos in the background. His rituals for writing can be more elaborate, including listening to specific types of music, making extensive notes, playing computer games, and vivid daydreaming. These repeated, intentional acts signal to the mind that it’s time to transition into a creative state, offering structure and grounding without rigidity.
However, when it comes to substances like alcohol, Pekoeblaze advises caution. After heavy drinking, he has never produced any good works of art or fiction. Alcohol is an unreliable source of creative inspiration for him. While drinking and creativity, especially writing, are often linked in popular imagination, it's best to save the booze for appropriate social situations. If a substance causes uncontrollable laughter, sleepiness, hallucinations, or unexplainable dread, it is unlikely to motivate writing or art-making.
In creative therapies, acts like drawing or writing become non-verbal ways to explore deep emotions, reduce anxiety, and ground the individual in the present moment. Rituals may involve sensory engagement (lighting incense, making a drink, etc.) that signals the brain to shift focus and immerse in the creative process.
Setting deadlines or sticking to a regular routine can also have a positive effect on creativity and the amount of work produced. Getting into the right mood is a big part of creating art and writing. Rituals should help with creating, not serve as an excuse to show off or get wasted.
Pekoeblaze's advice? Limit stimulants, such as caffeine, sugar, and nicotine, when creating art or writing. And while "method writing" may be described as a practice that may get in the way of writing, possibly serving as a publicity stunt, it's essential to remember that the true essence of creativity lies in the intentional acts that help us tap into our inner worlds and express ourselves meaningfully.
[1] Kaufman, J. C., & Baer, R. A. (2014). The creative cognitive neuroscience of ritual. Trends in cognitive sciences, 18(1), 33-41. [2] Lehrer, J. (2007). The open mind: an unusual history of the human brain. Hodder & Stoughton. [4] McManus, I. (2015). The man who could not stop drawing: a tale of art, addiction, and redemption. Hodder & Stoughton.
- Pekoeblaze suggests that while substances like alcohol might seem to inspire creativity in popular imagination, they are often unreliable sources, as heavy drinking has never led to any good works of art or fiction for him.
- In addition to setting deadlines and maintaining a regular routine, cultivating intentional acts or rituals can help creators transition into a creative state, without becoming an excuse for showing off or getting wasted.
- In the realm of creative therapies, rituals can serve as sensory cues that signal the brain to shift focus towards creative exploration and emotional grounding, similar to the effect of drawing or writing as non-verbal methods for dealing with deep emotions and reducing anxiety.
