Daydreaming

When was the last time you pulled yourself away from your desk, lay on the grass, and watched the clouds float by?

Instead of shutting off your computer and going for a walk, how many times have you stayed glued to your screen, switching back and forth between e-mail accounts, or checking Facebook or Tumblr, for new postings?

Can you remember when you simply sat in a beach chair overlooking a lake or river or the sea, or found a park bench to watch people as they passed?

If you can’t recall the last time that you took a break from your work, put down your pencil and stepped outside to look up at the stars, or kicked off your shoes and ran a bath, maybe it’s time that you take a moment now to simply close your eyes and daydream.

Daydreaming doesn’t require a goal, a set time in which to pursue one’s dreams, a schedule or structured way of dreaming. The whole point of daydreaming is that there is no goal or structure. It’s a chance to delight in one’s imagination for the pure pleasure of enjoying the scenes and pictures as they appear.

Writing is a form of daydreaming, but there’s a difference. You need to use words to write, whereas when you daydream you only need to see the pictures, the images. It can be like watching a movie. Just let the images wash over you. Your imagination will immerse you in the scenes. You'll enter a new world, discover new sights.

Yes, there’s a benefit to daydreaming, aside from the pleasure that it gives. You can use the skills that you learn in daydreaming to help you envision the story that you want to write.

But that’s a side-benefit, really. The true benefit is the simple pleasure that you receive from letting your imagination take you on a journey to the clouds and back.

For more information about daydreaming, visit:
http://jolenesbeenwriting.blogspot.com/2012/01/daydreaming-to-writing.html
http://www.thewritersclinic.com/1417/surprising-secret-success-daydreams/
http://kevinbrown55.hubpages.com/hub/daydreaming-and-creative-writing
http://www.creative-writing-now.com/what-is-fiction.html
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs016/1101860524916/archive/1102656912346.html
http://www.melbournerwg.com/1/post/2012/01/daydreaming-filling-the-blank-white-page.html