Are you an outdoorsy person? I am, so it’s easy for me to accept that spending time outside yields creative and productive writing sessions. It feels somewhat mysterious and magical, but I’ve experienced it enough to know it’s real. If you don’t find yourself drawn to the backcountry—or even your backyard—it might seem dubious or even suspicious.
Long ago, I noticed that during a long-enough walk, no matter if it was on a path, in a neighborhood, or in the woods, I would get ideas. The walk had to be at least 30 minutes—longer was better—and I couldn’t be listening to a book or a podcast or checking email or social media. I also had to be alone.
So is it just a mystery? Am I asking you to just trust me and try it? I mean, you certainly can, and I don’t think you’ll go wrong.
But if you’re a fan of evidence and logic, I’ve got you. There are several ways nature enhances creativity, but today let’s look at just one: the removal of distraction.
Our brains are busy these days. When we’re in the built world, a lot of inputs come at us, all the time. Emails, Zooms, phone calls, texts, TikTok, notifications, the social media dopamine draw, etc. Then there are responsibilities: Work to-do lists, housework, childcare, parent-care, partner-care. Self-care. At home, at work, at the grocery store, on the road . . . there are always many options for how to spend our time and where to direct our attention.
Out in nature though, alone, with our phones on airplane mode and tucked away into a pocket, we have many fewer options. Usually, there’s only one thing to do. Usually that thing is walking or something else that requires more physical than mental effort.
Just temporarily escaping all those demands on our attention gives our brains a rest, which creates the space required for ideas to flow in from our unconscious.
Roseanne Bane, author of Around the Writer’s Block, would call being outside “Process Time.” “Practicing your ability to enter into the flow with a simple, regular Process activity of your choosing will increase your ability to draw on your creative power when you sit down to write.” This is because it allows us to get lost in it.
Of course, we don’t have to go outside to remove distractions, but outside—even (or especially!?) when it’s cold—it’s a lot easier to keep them out of our brains. And, it gives us access to nature’s other benefits, such as phytoncides—about which more in another newsletter!
Do you have a draft ready for the impartial eyes of a wise outsider? I still have some slots in my winter schedule. Let’s chat.