PSYCHOLOGY OF THE WRITING ART.

PSYCHOLOGY OF THE WRITING ART

Recognition, and Ignition of Cognition.

Psychology of writing can take the stead of psychology of thinking, being that it is the mind—mental capableness that is employed to perform both activities. In contrast, while ‘writing’ has to do with the laying down of mentally worked up ideas—inspirations or facts fetched from perception; ‘thought’ has its results held up in the mind. Psychology of writing involves the retrieval of knowledge from perception and nature by mental performances—reasoning for ideas or facts and laying them down on paper. It is simply the act of creating literary works by drawing information with cognition—the psychological result of perception, learning, and reasoning. Whenever a person makes up his or her mind to do so, especially, if doggedly done; he or she may write. There are however, three major factors that affect a writing performance: knowing them is having writing psychology revealed already.

Segmentation of Cognition

The Perfect Writing State that Aids Cognition.

Evidently, environments, schedules, and rituals, are factors that restructure the writing processes and intensify performance. By principles, there are certain practices that incite the motion—the action of memory retrieval, and sets the flow of that performance active to dispel anxiety or boredom wontedly roused by inactivity. It is best to design at least a strategy that will alleviate the difficulty and attention overload that comes with the exertion, as they are, to every other endeavour: this has to do with how to combine the trio [environment—place, schedule—time, and ritual—routine] to induce unhindered concentration, unfettered inspiration, and unadulterated emotional state. Furthermore, any of the many facets of a workable strategy may activate the recalling of ideas, facts, plans, and other relevant knowledge as stored in the perception or fetched from nature. This though depends on the writer’s state of mind, in tangent to the place and time that is chosen to actuate a particular writing project. Let us examine these factors singularly, before seeing how they combine to enhance performance.

1. The Environmental or Place Factor

Environment refers to the area in which something exists and the totality of the surrounding conditions of the place. The “thing” in question here is the art of writing. Regarding the environmental aspect, significant as either noise or tranquility, asides from its diverse moods: it influences the intellectual productivity of a creative imagination both positively and negatively. High-intensity background noise that exceeds 95 decibels affects performance in two basic ways: while it disrupts complex tasks, it improves simple ones. Noise arouses the alertness, needed to see mindless and monotonous works through; however, it can tune one out of a creative flow when the exertion is the kind that calls for conscious, reflective thought, likewriting. More so, the thought of having a below required skill to carry out a task, enables noise amplify anxiety, even to the point of depression.

Wherever the condition for optimal performance tilts—be it in abject silence or utmost chaos, depends upon a thinking writer’s psychological makeup. While some will write better in soundproof chambers to ensure absolute silence, some others write anywhere—in trains, planes, even parks. The intensity—decibel level of a background noise in a writing environment, nonetheless, as long as the writer can mindfully tune it out and work still, does not matter: some writers would rather put up with the bustle of a metropolis, than the mere ticking sounds from a dutiful clock. What matters really is making the most of the high requirements subjected on the discrete environmental conditions that affect writing, to master the one that will facilitate your preservation of the state of flow. In an environment, whatever does not disrupt a flocking thought, invariably serves as its intensifier, or a vital element that makes up its constituent, and typically enhances a creative flow.

The location of a writing environment doubtless plays a fundamental role in the sort of maintenance, sufficient to sustain a productive workflow; hence, you have to “put yourself in an environment where you can completely accept all the unconscious stuff that comes to you from the inner workings of your mind.”¹ I concur to this assertion, “the only environment the artist needs is whatever peace, whatever solitude, and whatever pleasure he can get at not too high a cost,”² but “if noisy environment however, is the convenience you need, go there.” I will add. Although, most professional writers’ workspaces are quiet, do not let the incapability to afford privacy deter you from establishing notable progressions in your writing career pursuit: adapt to any workspace in your apprenticeship phase of the endeavour, and then carve out your suitable writing niche in due time.

Psychologically reasoning, it is not irrational to have your inspiration triggers put in the right place—a built, penning comfort zone—a special space, made convenient, solely for writing. These objects will help to cultivate the cue for desired behavior: in constructing this space, the abstract ideas, images, plans, tentative sentences, feelings, and other personal symbols relative to encode the environment in specificity to represent the knowledge needed to craft a text are associated with the place, in tangent to the writing time. A writer who had formally engaged self in activities or experienced events earlier—in this place will have stronger pulling tendencies to reckon: that environment will serve for the writer, a retrieval cue from perception or ignition to turn on fresh knowledge to get into his or her awareness, whenever he or she enters it. Each feature that makeup the constructed environment would serve as a specific prompt, to retrieve stored information in the bank of perception, create new concepts from caught ideas, and think up fresh ideas, to progress life as will be written: all of these possibilities are worked in the mind, with imagination.

2. The Schedule or Time Factor

Time is the instance—a single occasion for an activity to take place. This period is considered a resource under the assigner’s control, which when marked, it is deemed sufficient to accomplish a mere task or an entire project. Time to write has to be scheduled—assigned, and made suitable to actuate set writing goals. It is of utmost importance to input recess periods in-between working intervals: a break amid one to three (1–3) hours will doubtless boost writing productivity. Research has it that the peak periods to run sensory-motor tasks—intellectual tasks involving the use of the mind, and maximize productivity is during the early hours of the day—ante meridiem, while perceptual-motor tasks—tasks involving the muscles to relate with the environment—physical activities, fare better later in the day—post meridiem.

At the first light of dawn, say about 6 A.M. when the cool weather compliments your body warmth, and no one is in sight to disturb, pen down the inspiration in an unbreakable fluency till the full brightness of day comes; continue till about noon, and then have a worthy rest. This time of day is merely suggestive, as any time a writer adopts, and makes workable for him or herself to progress writing tasks or projects is good enough.

3. The Ritual or Routine Factor

Ritual is simply a stereotyped behaviour—an observance or practice, made customary. This is more of a routine—an adopted habitual method of carrying out a procedure. The wide variation of rituals—routines reveal the diversity of the various chosen environments made fit for writings, even for the same individual. It is the flexibility of the human thoughts, which bring about easy adaptation to any change that gives rise to such norms: one can think in any environment; albeit, some location will enhance that activity so as to maximize productivity. The key is to locate or construct your environment, and set a timely routine that enables concentration absorption, and then allows maximum exposure to retrieval cues so as to draw necessary knowledge—once stored in the perception, how short or long the memory is notwithstanding. Routine helps the brain get accustomed to tasks; hereby, easing cognitive yields.

The Inference

In summation, the environment that will perform such a feat—facilitate the state of flow has to be prepared in such a way that it will maximize the brain’s ability to process the art of writing upon entering into it, and cue the behaviour that enables the aforesaid, all the time. For maximum impact, it is recommended that the writer should “establish one or a few regular places in which to do all ‘serious writing’”³ at a particular time that happens regularly—a routine: “by following these recommendations, the writer creates a space solely to think and write, avoiding extraneous activities therein. This space, therefore, becomes associated with all the mental products of creating meaning and can then serve as a unique retrieval cue for those products.”⁴

Like the spirit that all lives bear, and the intention that sees to the workings of every activity, psychology is responsible for the carrying out of every aspect of human dealings—thoughts, expressions, and actions, which have creativity—writing inclusive, conceived, gestated, and birthed. This article was crafted to keep you conscious of the procedural workings of this profession—writing, pertaining to the suitable place, time, and manner that will bring a writer to thrive in its processes, especially during the penning periods.

Hope the article, which came by the above title, is well taking to make its purported impact—being to aid your right writing capableness? I foresee you using this know-how to beef up your writing already with the veritable and viable contents, making your inspiration; because of the right conditions—place and time, and attitude—routine, revealed to collapse various forms of impedimenta, which you ply.

The forthcoming newsletter introduces another like it, which precedes others in the same series and their articles that certainly will be as impacting as others afore them. It will be coming soon…. Keep watch!

This expected newsletter will introduce a whole new subject matter: of course, pertaining still, to the essence of right writing. It will be hitting your inbox soon—just tomorrow to be precise. This introducing newsletter will usher in the next ten bulletins, which will reel off the write right rule-series, and their accompanying articles. The tutelages therein, if applied will cause your writings to soar from the mundane sphere to the realm of extraordinariness. These decisive problem solvers to writing prodding challenges proffer answers to this summarized question:

IS THERE ANY RULE GUIDING WRITING?

The ten WRITE RIGHT rules have been deduced to govern writing, and improve the aspiring writers’ writing prowesses. This is the time to concentrate, if you had not done so afore now. Be expectant; for the expectation of the faithful will not be cut off.

Take charge, my colleague.

Malik Obynna.

References:

1. Bob Dylan
2. William Faulkner
3. James Boice
4. Maria Popova

Acknowledgement:

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