Do you have a regular set of rituals you do before you create? You might not even realise what you do. Why not turn your creative space into somewhere you want to be, and embrace a more meaningful way to celebrate your creativity – Make Daily Rituals For Your Creative Time.
What is the definition of a ritual? According to the dictionary:
‘It’s a set of actions or words performed in a regular way, often as part of a religious ceremony.’
What is special about rituals is that they are grounding. They tell you that this thing you are about to do is worth this ritual. Focussing on what’s to come. Allowing breathing, almost a meditation before the practise, a grounding into you, a peace to accept what is to come.
When I think of rituals, it conjures images of priests, monks and other religious leaders in a cloud of smoke and candlelight.
I did not think this was something I had in my own life. But it is. The more I’ve thought about my own daily habits, the more I think they fall into rituals. I see how important rituals are as part of the creative process.
Many creatives make space for their art in a number of ways. Some meditate, play inspiring music, pray to their god, or ask for their muse to come. A series of rituals can make the act of creation more special to the creator. It’s a way of showing yourself the respect and acknowledging the gratitude that you are there at that moment to create.
My own rituals
I am a creative person. I create different art in different ways. I write, I design, I sew, I bake, I cook, I make up little songs for my toddler…we all create. As humans, we create in many ways – we imagine; we make from our ideas – building a sandcastle on the beach to cooking dinner. We create, even if we don’t think we do.
For writing, I have created a few rituals in the morning. It’s not that I have a beautiful desk and my own studio…nope, far from it. I write in the kitchen and have very little around me that is mine – but I make it my own space in the morning before everyone wakes up.
Drink
Each morning, I make myself a cup of coffee and pour myself a glass of water. These two things are important in my ritual. I see the glass of water as hydration – that after a night’s sleep I should have a large glass to keep my body in check. The coffee is purely for pleasure, I want to enjoy the time I write. I wake up early, so to encourage me to get out of bed, knowing that a cup of coffee will be there makes it all the easier.
Light
Candles are very symbolic and important in rituals throughout history. Candlelight symbolizes birth, death, celebration. It also represents the light amid the darkness of life and used in many faiths.
Candlelight is important to me, too.
Once I’m sipping on my coffee (and water!) I light a candle. Whatever candle I have sitting around, it’s not important what it is, but just looking at the flame, or seeing it in the corner of my eye makes me feel calm. At the moment, I light a beautiful giant green candle that smells of alpine.
Music
I pop on my headphones to listen to the playlist or soundtrack that I’m writing to. These change often and reflect the mood of the book. I am currently writing a book set around Halloween time and one of the characters is a witch. I am immersing myself in autumnal music, in particular I’m listening to the witchy Practical Magic soundtrack, it’s perfect for the feel-good yet magical mood I want to stay in.
Small & steady
So these little rituals I thought were my habits, but I see they’re steps I take to make my creation time special. And in that way, creating is not a slog. I’m not battling with myself, I’m simply coaxing out the inspiration so I can sit in that space, allowing the words to flow. Some days they flow easier than others and that’s OK. The space is set up and I let it be whatever it wants to be. These rituals may not seem flashy or beautiful, but they are easy for this stage of my life and feel right for me.
If you enjoyed this, have a look at my previous posts such as:
– You don’t need to be ‘one thing’ for everyone else
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