An introduction to my writing tools, Part III: The Morning Page

In this installment of my writing tools, I'd like to introduce you to The Morning Page. This is another tool I learned from the book, The Artist's Way. It's kind of an early morning brain dump, a way to get new ideas for projects and it can even be a journal of sorts.

But the thing to remember is that the morning page is just for you and only for you. You don't share it with anyone. You don't let anyone else read it. You use it as a sort of playground to do and say whatever you want. You can grouse, you can celebrate, you can brainstorm and you can solve problems with the morning page. It is a safe harbor where you can say what you want to say, without fear of censure, reprisal or criticism.

Ever have one of those days where you want to say something to someone, but don't know how to say it? Do you worry that hell hath no fury like that of your significant other? Do you have something you want to talk about, but know that the subject matter just bores everyone you know to tears?

Never fear, The Morning Page is here!

I got into writing because I had arguments with my sisters and lost every time. Each of them could talk faster than me on their own. Then both would team up against me and then there was no hope.

So I learned to write. I know that when something is on my mind, the paper is going to listen every time. The paper will never interrupt me. The paper will never change the subject on me. I can take what I have written and hand it to my adversary for them to read or not to read at their own peril.

I found solace in writing that I could not find anywhere else. I wrote letters to girlfriends, friends and relatives. I wrote letters to politicians, newspapers and manufacturers. Once I got going, I found it hard to stop.

So to blow off that steam every day, to release the stable of writing horses for a good run, I write a morning page. Every single day. Unless I'm sick, traveling great distances, or otherwise carried away with life, I write a morning page. Even so I rarely miss a day. In a year, I'll write over a million characters.

I feel uncomfortable if I don't write that morning page. It's like not exercising for a day. I feel like something is missing. This is true of any habit, and for me, the morning page is a habit.

I write a morning page because if there is something on my mind, I can dump it there, think about it, and then decide if I want to talk about it with that other person, or find some other way to deal with it.

I also write a morning page as a warm up exercise if I've got the bug and need to crank out another article ("need" as in "hooked on writing"). I write because I love what it does to my brain. Some people drink coffee to wake up. I write. If I could just get paid enough money to pay my bills and then some, I'd write for a living.

The morning page is a great way to keep the creative juices flowing. With regular use, I have found that ideas for articles spring forth out of nowhere. It is part of my bargain with the Great Creator, a sort of creative spirit that I learned about while reading The Artist's Way:

Oh, Great Creator,
I will provide the quantity,
You will provide the quality.

The morning page also clears my mind so that I'm available to listen to others. This was actually one of the first things I noticed about it. Within a few days of starting the habit of writing the morning page, I began to notice that once I finished writing that page, I had said everything that was on my mind. I was, empty of things to say and I was ready to listen to anyone else I might encounter that day.

Writing the morning page creates space for empathy for others, space that I didn't have before starting this new habit. I've said everything I need to say, so I'm available to listen to others. All that boring stuff, the stuff I worry about, or the arcane knowledge that I carry around in my head, that I like to talk about...well, I've talked about that for the day and that means my mind is open to receiving new information, new opportunities, new tasks to do, new ways to help others.

I setup the morning page with a word processor document. I format the document so that there is plenty of room for my morning purge of words, but not so much that I'm overwhelmed. I use 0.5" margins. I use 12pt fonts, and I prefer sans serif myself. I always put the date and day of the week at the top of each page, too. I insert a page break between each page with control-enter (this is a common keyboard shortcut across operating systems and applications).

But that's just me. You may prefer to write yours on paper. You may prefer to write fewer words and use a bigger font with bigger margins. You may have entirely different ideas about how the morning page should work for you. But if you use it, it will work for you. It's just like any other tool you might use. The more you use the tool, the more familiar you become with it.

An expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made, in a narrow field. --- Niels Bohr, physicist

If you don't think you know enough about anything to write, remember that quote. That quote is by one of the great scientists of history, Niels Bohr. He made very significant contributions to the study of quantum mechanics and the structure of the atom. He is a giant of science and yet he recognizes how important mistakes are to human knowledge. I include this quote here so that aspiring creators who read this article can take solace in knowing that they will learn from their mistakes just as much, or even more, than from when they get it right. If you're reading this, "they" includes you and I.

The morning page is free of judgement. There is no right or wrong way to do your morning page. There is only the writing.

There is one last point about the morning page: brevity. The morning page is limited by space and it is that way for a reason. The morning page is just one page so that you know there is an end if you're learning to write. So that you you know when to stop if you don't know when to stop once you get going. Brevity is what we use to bring only the most salient, urgent or pressing concerns to the top. I use that need for brevity to place a hard limit on my writing in the morning page, because as you know, I tend to write long articles.

With the morning page, you will develop a muscle you might not have known about, the writing muscle. You may feel aches and pains from using it, but after a few days, or even a few weeks, you may find yourself writing, without inhibition, about anything you want. You will be able to write without worrying about mistakes. Your writing will improve because you will learn from your mistakes being free to make them in the morning page. You will know your writing tool better, be it a pen or keyboard, and will work out many of the problems a writer may encounter with regular use of the morning page.

Even if you're not a writer by trade, and prefer other mediums for expression, you will still find liberation of the mind in writing the morning page, as I have. Writing a morning page uncorks the creative power, sorts your thinking and allows your mind to roam free. And if you use the morning page everyday, you may eventually find that you're actually a pretty good writer, even if you didn't believe so before.

Write on.