I talked about UNcrafting, how to connect back to the heat of our creativity and tone down the muscle of the inner critic. It is sure hard to be clear when speaking about such an abstract and often unheard-of concept. But, over all I think that it was a helpful introduction.
After some talking, and some snacking (we had great snacks thanks to Kiala) we began writing. We UNattempted 2 prompts:
1. First thoughts-- The point is you have to write down all first thoughts, which means you breath and think, and breath and think and resist to get on the idea-train where you follow an idea.
2. Synesthesiacs-- In this one, you pick out a prompt out of a hat, each prompt has a situation and one of the five senses. The sense and the situation are not congruent, which leads to cosmic writing. Some examples of the prompts were: Flying:Taste/ Giving Birth:Smell/ Sunrise on the Moon:Hear
The second prompt really brought out some fantastic writing. I was humbled and pleased to the upmost power.
There were seven of us including me. This surprised me since there were 13 facebook yes's and about 10 email inquiries. I later found out that some writers were lost and went to the Alumni House. I had first told them the workshop was going to be there, and had forgotten to tell them that the venue had changed. I was informed about the mix-up by an unfriendly email. This sort of a put a damper on the night... It never feels good to make a mistake. But it's good practice to do what I preach; to stay in the present moment, and not blow a paper-cut into a knife wound by compulsive itchy thinking patterns.
Luckily, for me, I was in the state of mind to be direct and compassionate in my email replies because the meditation at the end of the session was really powerful. I felt my blood pressure go way down. What a treat.
My hopes for next week are:
1. Everyone knows where to go, and those who were lost attempt again to show up
2. That my nerves cool and I can be an example of staying present
3. I see surprised faces at how electric the writing is.
This sounds amazing. I will try my best to come out and join the next session.
ReplyDelete"feels like i need this in my life right now"
I really like your writing prompts. Mazuri and I tried the same thing but with different and much more familiar prompts. I think next time I will try something more like what you have done. I will try my best to get to your workshop.
ReplyDeleteKate, I'm really enjoying the terminology you are introducing here. I think the idea of UNdoing Poetry is one that will really give writers and non writers a great entry into tapping into their creativity. I can't wait to hear about week two. Was it electric again?
ReplyDeleteKeep at it. You are building something great.