Following up from my previous post, I happened to see this on Austin Kleon’s blog:

“No input, no output”

This is exactly what’s been happening with me and my fiction. I haven’t had enough “input” — whether from other fiction, movies, music, life, poetry, walks outside, whatever. It’s nice to see my theory about how ideas dry up meet some support from Kleon and the various artists he quotes. My problem right now is that I have nothing to share with the world because I haven’t been taking in enough stuff, ruminating on other people’s ideas, and diffusing all of that through my own imagination. I have no creative energy because I haven’t been feeding my creative mind.

I think for me, input is most nourishing when it’s both contemplative and active, meaning time for reading/watching/listening but also time for going outside and taking walks. I’ve been ruminating on the subject of walking lately, and I think one of the biggest changes that has happened since getting married, moving into our current house, and having kids, is that I hardly ever take solitary walks anymore. I go for walks with my husband and our kids — wonderful walks that I treasure — but I don’t take long rambles by myself where I look at the trees and come up with ideas. I used to ramble a lot when I was in my teens and twenties. I was never a hardcore hiker or anything; I just walked through shady subdivisions and quiet streets. But those shady lanes were formative for my creative ideas and imagination. I do think that my lack of solitary walking time has led to a lack of input.

But maybe it’s not the walking so much as it is the quiet time outside by myself. That is something I can do regardless of my state in life. If I wanted to, I could go outside right now while the kids are napping and sit on the deck. I could very easily go outside and hang out for a minute or two any day I choose. The question is: why don’t I? Does it seem like a waste of time? Does it seem indulgent? I do think I’ve been overcome lately by a “productivity mindset” that says every moment must be productive and useful (especially when the kids are napping). If I’m just sitting around outside, then I’m not DOING anything.

But what about doing nothing? Is there value to that? I would say that contemplative time is good; we need moments of rest, to contemplate and let our minds wander. But I’ve been caught in the web of “productivity” for so long now that I’ve forgotten how good it is to simply sit around and think. Sure, I’m thinking while I do the dishes (or whatever), but I’m still doing something; I’m maximizing my time. Bleh.

What I need to rediscover is the ability to just sit around. To not worry about getting anything done. To let a few things go undone. To daydream. To waste time — even when the kids are napping .

In a way, the daydreaming part is where the input gets turned into output. We feed ourselves all the books, poetry, nature, music, etc., but then we need to sit around and daydream, digesting the food. Once we’ve gone through the daydreaming process, then we have something to release. Then we have the output.