I have this fantasy picture in my head of what it looks like to be a "real writer". A cabin on the shore of the lake, early morning coffee, walls lined with nothing but bookshelves and a giant window, out of which I can watch the sunrise and hack away on my old typewriter.
In reality, I don't drink coffee. The only water I live near is the leaky drain pipe above my bedroom window in Harlem. And most of my writing is done either in my dressing room during my breaks throughout the show, or on my phone as I bump along my commute on the subway.
To quote Amy Poehler, who just released her memoir, "Yes Please", "I wrote it when I could. I had to let go of the idea that creativity comes out of stillness. I find that creativity usually comes out of chaos."
Not to accuse Poehler of plagiarism, but I think she may have been borrowing from Genesis 1 there. "Now the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the deep." (Genesis 1:2) Out of this chaotic, empty mess, God begins the process of the creation of the universe. God didn't wait until He had His ducks in a row, because He knew that His creativity was the only antidote for chaos.
Don't wait for everything to make sense before you start creating. The most honest, vulnerable, and vital creativity is forged within the chaos, on the journey towards clarity.
In reality, I don't drink coffee. The only water I live near is the leaky drain pipe above my bedroom window in Harlem. And most of my writing is done either in my dressing room during my breaks throughout the show, or on my phone as I bump along my commute on the subway.
To quote Amy Poehler, who just released her memoir, "Yes Please", "I wrote it when I could. I had to let go of the idea that creativity comes out of stillness. I find that creativity usually comes out of chaos."
Not to accuse Poehler of plagiarism, but I think she may have been borrowing from Genesis 1 there. "Now the earth was formless and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the deep." (Genesis 1:2) Out of this chaotic, empty mess, God begins the process of the creation of the universe. God didn't wait until He had His ducks in a row, because He knew that His creativity was the only antidote for chaos.
Don't wait for everything to make sense before you start creating. The most honest, vulnerable, and vital creativity is forged within the chaos, on the journey towards clarity.
