The Joy of the Freewrite

in #freewrite6 years ago (edited)


This is not a freewrite.

This is a piece of writing that was inspired by today’s #freewrite prompt - If You Have Any Thoughts, Please Let Me Know.

I say inspired by at the end of all my #freewrite posts because none of them are true freewrites. A freewrite would be pure stream of consciousness writing, posted as written.

I pause, I delete, and I edit after I finish. Not a lot, but enough.

Even though I don’t follow all of the rules, I still believe in the power of the #freewrite. More than that, I believe it’s inherently part of what makes Steemit great.


“The medium is the message.”

-Marshall McLuhan


The above quote touches on something very important - one of the essential components of any piece of content is the medium through which it’s expressed. In other words, part of what makes the #freewrite so successful on Steemit is the fact that it grew organically from Steemit in ways that perfectly synergize with the platform.



It’s Short

A lot of people are reading this on their phones right now, browsing as they go about their day.

A piece that takes five minutes to write will take two minutes to read. There is an inherent value in content that can be enjoyed without commitment. In the time it takes to read a #freewrite, water can be boiled. A train might arrive. The few spare minutes before needing to leave for work may pass.

This matters. When I edit my freewrites, I don’t add things to them. I clean up what’s already there, distill it to its essence, and make the thought complete within itself.

The result is a piece of creative writing that can be enjoyed in its simplicity.


It’s Daily

This is one of the first pieces of advice given to newcomers on Steemit - post every day.

We are now on Day 77, and though I haven’t participated in all of them, @mariannewest certainly has! She encourages people to regularly create content with a small prompt that can grow in whichever direction the writer decides to take it.

This schedule keeps people coming back because they know they will find something new when they do.


It Gets People Involved

The list of people participating has grown over the past few months, and I expect it will only get larger. More than that, @mariannewest encourages people to reach out and connect with one another.

The Isle of Write Discord server has a channel dedicated to the #freewrite, and another channel where you can post your own.

This is a legitimate community-building project that has been incredibly successful. I’ll add my own promotion to it as well - do the #freewrite! You won’t regret it!

These prompts have given me some great inspirations, and I hope they give you some as well.


Inspired by the 5 Minute Freewrite Prompt - If You Have Any Thoughts, Please Let Me Know posted by the lovely @mariannewest!



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Ellie!! I am in tears reading your post and all the comments!! Thank you so much! You always are and have been such a supporter of everyone here! Thank you so much for what you do!!!

And here are the next prompts :)
Weekends, you have 2 options. You have the choice of a single prompt: https://steemit.com/freewrite/@mariannewest/weekend-freewrite-1-6-2018-single-prompt-option

Of you can get adventurous and weave three 5minute freewrites into one story starting with this prompt: https://steemit.com/freewrite/@mariannewest/weekend-freewrite-1-6-2018-part-1-the-first-sentence

@ellievallie, first I want to say that freewriting or improvising is a great way to flesh out any idea. I typically like to do that when I first start writing as it gets me in the flow. When I'm not limited or censored by my mind, I am free to go to unexpected places. Then, I can find the points that most inspire me and shave it down from there.

Speaking of that, I've found that condensing my ideas down is quite a skill! It definitely requires a solid sense of your message in order to remove all that does not fully serve it. But once you do, you have something quite beautiful - like this right here!

Thanks so much for sharing @ellievallie. I'd love to hear your thoughts about my recent post: These Three Words Will Instantly Change How You Perceive Your Life

The condensing part is definitely something that takes a lot of practice.

Someone once said that you need 10,000 hours to master a craft, they never said you can't do it 5 minutes at a time!

💙

Great post, axios, but I'd condense it a lot more.
The three P's get lost in visual as well as verbal clutter.
I love your message - but "Cut to the Chase" is my motto.

I really appreciate your feedback and I agree with you, it got a bit lengthy. My goal is to provide depth to really explore important concepts but I assume there are more simplified ways of doing this. Its a process of experimentation for sure but the feedback really helps. Thank you!

You've encapsulated many of my own thoughts on this. I noticed the discussion over the technical accuracy of calling it a freewrite and decided to avoid that dust up. I still have some thoughts on it though which you pretty much summed up with this post.

A couple of other things I wanted to add;

  • Marianne's 5 minute freewrite has emerged as it's own destination on steemit and it's because the posts are fun to read and write. If we really had a pure freewrite no one would ever give a crap about reading a bunch of mental vomit. So, regardless of the technical definition what has emerged here organically has value where a purist approach probably would not. As someone else has said, nothing stopping anyone from starting a pure freewrite event.
  • I like how everyone is allowed to develop their own version of it. If it were a bunch of rules to follow I wouldn't be interested at all and it would defeat the stated purpose of getting the creative gears turning. In my case I have a general approach but even that may change from day to day. Sometimes I have a good idea going in and sometimes not. I do stick to the timer but I have a trick...I set the timer to less than five minutes so that I have time to do clean up. This keeps me to the time limit and also allows me to get things to a point that someone else might like to read it.

Well said, @btcnoodle!
"If it were a bunch of rules to follow"....
When I hosted 3 writing contests, I made it clear that I wouldn't count words, and if you slipped past the deadline, I wasn't watching clocks or calendars.
Also, I read every word of every entry. And acknowledge each one.
Some contest hosts will stop reading if the first line doesn't win them over.

Giving daily inspiration is one of the many gifts that Marianne has brought to Steemit! The #freewrite has done wonders for so many!
Beautifully said @ellievallie!

Today I'm stepping in for Marianne.
https://steemit.com/freewrite/@mariannewest/day-78-5-minute-freewrite-prompt-pen

Freewrites have been so amazing for me. They are definitely just streams of consciousness, but I do go back and edit my typos. I don't add or take away, though, so I still consider them freewrites in my own mind.

Great post!

I would consider yours to be freewrites, the thought is still the same as it was originally expressed.

Typos change nothing!

Thank you for writing all of that...it's so true! I've only done two, but I check it every day because my heart is in it! The community is amazing...there's no pressure to win or be the best and it helps to give me an idea for a post. Plus @mariannewest is a gem!

You are very welcome!

And I agree, @mariannewest is a very inspiring woman. She shines from within.

Yes I love to read the freewrites they are perfect length as you write here.
I haven't dared to try yet, not native English so I'm afraid it will be rather strange written lol. But I thinking seriously about it.
Great post!

I don't think the language will be an issue, it's more about creation and expression. English is my native language and sometimes I play with it enough that I write strangely as well.

The next step after wanting to try is trying!

You can't be more right! I'm just keep making excuses here :D I have tried now and I enjoyed it a lot. Fun and much more easy then I expected. Thanks:-)

I agree with you completely! This community is one of the best ones on the platform. And what a great article and promotion for the freewrite. Every problem has been a blessing that I have been able to complete, and I always feel bad if I don't have time to do them because I'm missing out on an opportunity to create something exciting and something new!Hugs!

I understand that so much. I've been mostly disconnected for the past couple of days, and so many potential stories have slipped past.

Today I will write one of them!

Interesting note @ellievallie :)

steemit social media is constant original content . you writing is great post.

Constant original content!

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