Some call it "white noise" -- background sounds that facillitate the production of alpha brain wave levels conducive to creativity. Someone even came up with a special CD especially for writers that, according to the press release, enhances creative output. Uh-huh. Reminds me of the lady who ran out and bought a candle to stimulate wealth. It worked. The moment she bought the candle, the store made money.
I prefer running movies while I write. Nothing too demanding, and preferably something I've seen many times before so I don't actually have to look at it to know what's going on. When I was living in Walla Walla, and writing Headlock: A Jeff Reynolds Mystery, my "office" was in the basement. In front of my desk was an open are facing a Quasar TV with VCR. My son Jordan would come down and "together" we would watch movies while I wrote. We must have watched THE FAN, starring Wesley Snipes and Robert DeNiro 17 times.
I recently was asked "what is your favorite movie?" That is an impossible question to answer. "What are your favorite movies" is another one that I can't answer in full. Right now, while typing this, I'm "watching" LOVE AND DEATH IN LONG ISLAND. Yes, I saw it years ago, and I still find it remarkably clever and endearing.
It is 6:10am, and I've been working on a non-fiction project that is so heartbreaking, I need a break from the hearbreak of inhuman cruelty.
A few years ago, I spent four months learning how to recline on a couch and watch a movie without feeling guilty for being "selfish" and "wasting time" when I "Should" be writing. I'm going to recline on the couch and actually watch this movie before taking my morning nap.
Many people do this kind of thing i wonder how they manage it. I can only do one thing at a time watching movie and doing work are different things. How do you manage them?
Posted by: James Hope | July 02, 2009 at 11:36 PM
This is one of the benefits of ADD -- I usually select films that I already know by heart, or films that are not too engrossing. Any one of the Leprechaun series will do, or Critters (pick a number).
Posted by: Adoraburl | July 07, 2009 at 01:08 AM
I don't actually have to look at it to know what's going on.
Posted by: tv episodes online | July 27, 2009 at 09:29 AM
I love "everything is illuminated" by Zafran Four. Being Russian it gives the whole watching experience another dimension - understanding everything everyone says- I'm not sure I would get that from the book - I should read it though hehe
Posted by: Watch Movies | November 04, 2009 at 08:44 AM