A Novelist Idea: Fueling the Imagination is about the Center, Anchor, and Authentic Self

As a writer, I don't subscribe to the notion that I must write every day, let alone write X amount of words on a daily basis.  I do as I please. 

Because it is not the word count that counts; it is my imagination. If I cannot see, hear, and feel my characters and the story in my imagination, well, neither will my readers. So how is pushing writing as a daily activity going to fuel the very mechanism that is my creativity? 

It does not. 

Writing for the sake of writing is just writing... 

Undawnted is where the imagination is unpredictable, insatiable, and undeniably... unleashed. This statement is how I live my craft. Everyone should have a guiding principle, or vision, for their writing career.

What is yours? 

Ask yourself: 

• What do you see in your writing that you would like others to enjoy?
• What do you want to convey that is unique to you? 
• How do you want your reader to feel when they are done reading what you have written? 
• What is it that you want out of writing that would satisfy your audience and your compulsion to write? 

Another question to ask yourself is why do you write? I make this inquiry because I see many writers who have one-sided political views that they use to social engineer their audience. The psychological manipulation of your audience or writing for a small segment of the population will eventually sour people to your writing.

But... I want to be "inclusive!" Watch out for buzzwords. Those types of words usually resonate with fads and failures. I want to represent the underrepresented! If that segment of society is at 5%, then that is pretty much a forgone conclusion. A writer in this category is not interested in being inclusive but rather to the exclusion of 95% of the population, and thus creating a sect, or club. Maybe even a cult mindset in their writing. 

Writers need to be wary of such extreme behavior. 

If a writer writes exclusively for 15 million people who label themselves "Numerics", then that is all the readership you will hope to cultivate. And, writers must be aware of how their writing is accepted or rejected by this section of society. If you are seen as pandering, then you have pretty much excluded them too. 

So what does a writer do? No one wants to be seen as "Numer-phobic," but pandering, and social engineering are just as terrible behaviors to pursue as the former. 

How do writers become authentic? 

That center for which writers get their creative drive is individual to every writer. If you don't know or feel your writing center, there are a few exercises you can do to center yourself. A writer could go somewhere quiet. Sit under a tree, in a library, or in a bookstore. Watch people interact from all walks of life. Do you feel their energy? Do you feel the trees? books? people? buildings? 

With meditation or a creative exercise, find that feeling within yourself. What does that feel like? Can you delve deeper until all there is in the feeling is you? The original emotion that anchors you to a silent reverie of creativity and energy, do you feel that?

Does that center from your spiritual anchor spell out a one-side political or social agenda? Or, is being an authentic person more about all things under the sun, moon, and stars in the sky? Is being your authentic self about personal goals, integrity, and fulfillment? 

Then why do you believe that being exclusive and manipulative has anything to do with being a creative architect in the craft of writing? art? media? science? math? instruction? medicine?

If you are an authentic person, then there is no need to belittle your audience with ridiculous or even immature behavior. A creative person, or anyone, who is centered needs only to live their vision statement as a role model. Behavior that manipulates or panders is against that which centers our spirits and anchors our souls.

I take on the challenge of writing from this universal consciousness. There are no inclusive or exclusive energies. I am not beholden to any belief or feel that I must target society as a change agent. The natural course of change is slow over centuries, not quick in the span of two decades (as we have seen in several artificial mass hysteria events since Y2K). 

If you know who you are and what you are about, then the psychology and sociology of group dynamics does not affect you. Rather, you are driven by what is authentic, real, and tangible. An authentic person wants a centered sense to their world.

When you place yourself into your writing with the energy of authenticity, then your readers will respond in kind. In that center, you cannot look to others for guidance. That place is where you stand alone. It is you: raw, unfiltered, and unencumbered by outside forces. Since every person has this energy center, no matter their age, race, religion, politics, or orientation, your reader will have a deep connection with your writing, and your imagination.

Who do you want to be? Do you want to be your authentic self? Or, are you content with being a marionette in someone else's vision of you? 

I choose to be authentic. 

Have a great and wonderful day.

_____

A writer at heart, Undawnted's own creative spark, DL Mullan, began writing short stories and poetry before adolescence. Over the years, Ms. Mullan has showcased her literary talents by self-publishing several collections of her poetry. She also writes novels, designs apparel, and creates digital art. Ms. Mullan‘s creative writing is available in digital and print collections, from academia to commercial anthologies. As an independent publisher, she produces her own book cover designs as well as maintains her own websites. She is an award-winning digital artist and poet.

Currently, she has embarked on writing her multi-book Legacy Universe, Supernatural Superhero Series.

With her education and experience in writing, DL Mullan shares her knowledge via her newsletters. If you too want to become a Fearless Phile, then subscribe to one of her newsletters on Substack.

Her innovative style teaches writers how to reach their creative potential, and write more effectively.

Learn. Grow. Master… with Undawnted.

What can Writers do to Change Society for the Better?

I came upon a celebrity's acceptance speech for an award she has earned as an artist, musician, actress, and entertainer. In her speech, she discussed how she was beaten down emotionally because she was a woman. She had witnessed how women are treated differently than their male counterparts. 

This trend is true in the world of writing as well. Women often change their names to male nom de plumes for a better receivership of their creative works. Men are given more latitude and praise. 

As writers, should we change society for the better by writing about situations that would not garner public outcry and allow our characters to discuss taboos? Is it our moral obligation to touch upon subjects that would otherwise be swept under the rug? 

I had hoped in the aforementioned celebrity's speech that she would have led by example. I would like have to heard her say: since I have endured sexism and ageism, I am doing x, y, and z to combat what I see as unfavorable treatment toward women artists. 

I was left with a sharp criticism but no real solution to the epidemic. 

Women need to support other artists in their field. If someone makes it big, then that woman needs to promote from within the female ranks of qualified and talented women in the pool. 

Women must understand that you can complain all the live long day and nothing will change. If you want to change, you must first be willing to stand up for the change you would like to see. Hate sexism? Hate ageism? Well there are plenty of women in those categories who would fit the bill to change the dynamics of what, or should I say who, is acceptable to be positive role models in our society.

Society does not change overnight. Society has to be guided onto a path of accepting the unseen voices of the world. In writing, literary works often touch upon these themes. In fiction, writers are given more leeway to investigate and expand especially in science and speculative fiction. 

So as a writer, how can you change the world for the better? 

Have a great and wonderful day! 

Religion is Like Owning a Haunted House is Available

This essay is a satirical and metaphoric look at religion in our society.

We all have them. The haunted house we inherited from our parents and their parents before them. To some people religion is the haunted house that keeps them from knowing or understanding the spiritual side of life. 

In this unique perspective, the author offers an explanation of why humanity owns these haunted houses... with a satirical twist. 

Is your religion haunting you? 

Download your copy from the Sonoran Dawn - Nonfiction store. It is a free download for a limited time, so if you do: please leave a great review! 

Have a great and wonderful day! 

Red, White, and Blue Cover Art for Flag Day

How appropriate for Flag Day! 

My new book will be out on Monday, June 20th. History, politics, and civic duty all rolled into one researched essay....

Check out the Schedule page for upcoming publications and Nonfiction for more Historical Context books.

Busy Little Bee

Well I don't know how I am going to top yesterday's blog post: marijuana is a hot topic! Smoking hot topic? 

I was busy again... building a new website: Visual Studios Productions. Now you can see the artistic arm of this organization as I plow ahead. Nothing lost here. 

Also we have all our book/booklet projects green lighted. That is very exciting. I have to finish up two different books this month. One for a June 20 publication date and one for July 19. (see our Schedule page.)

It is nice to finally get some writing into the public sphere again. I am as eager to open a dialogue on fronts that are taboo and/or button pushers. I believe that if we get passed talking points and religion, we can sit down and make calm, rational decisions about the topics of the day. 

So I hope my take on subjects helps move our individual and national conversation forward. 

Have a great and wonderful day!

Added a New Book to Social Constructs

Society is a complex human creation. 

Sometimes society is positive. Sometimes it is negative. Most of the time society exists between these two dichotomies. 

In our new booklet: Marijuana Legalization, Rights of Others, and Solving Health Issues with Nutrition, we discuss the issues of rights, health, and nutrition.  

When it comes down to it, is marijuana a cure-all, or a symptom helper?  Does getting high mask nutritional deficiencies that could be corrected if the user would take responsibility instead of wasting time being intoxicated?

Dressed to Express Discontent

So there was a bit of a controversy surrounding a blue and black dress on social media recently.

Did you see a blue and black dress, or a gold and white dress? 

The middle dress is the example placed on social media that made everyone lose their minds. The dress on the right and left of the middle dress are the two color differences that created the uproar. 

I personally see the gold and white dress.

Wired says that makes me wrong because the dress is actually blue and black. I say no. I am correct. If I have to change my RGB settings to view the color of the dress then something is wrong with the image to begin with. When I shop online, I buy clothes and accessories, each has come as I have seen it on my monitor. Why should I have to change anything?

My brain and ocular receptors pick up light differently. Perhaps my blue eyes have more rods than cones, or the other way around. That brings up another fascinating point... what iris color predicted which color duo? 

It is known that brown, blue, green iris colors affect image perception. The question is how much? That should be a study about how we view images.

In writing, a character with color blindness or a species from another planet that cannot see a shade of a certain color would be a fine example on how a writer can use the differences in the way humans see and reflect those differences back at us.

Have a great and wonderful day! 

Source: Wired