Reasons Why You Should Write a Little Bit Everyday

I'm taking a creative writing course this year which, although it has been regrettably adapted due to the coronavirus lockdown, has improved the course my quarantine considerably.

One of the first and most valuable lessons I've learned from the course has been what my teacher calls 'alpha waving.'

Back in January, he explained the scientific theory behind the electrical signals, or 'waves' that pass between the neurons in our brains. There are five commonly recognized frequencies of brainwaves, each of which play distinct yet equally crucial roles in our lives.

Take delta waves for instance- the slow, shallow waves that we experience during a state of deep, dreamless sleep. Or gamma waves- the fast, rhythmic waves that our brains produce when actively involved in concentrated problem-solving.

Alpha waves fall in the middle of the brainwave spectrum. They're in those rare moments when you're conscious but not concentrated on anything in particular. Those few minutes early in the morning when you lie down and stare at the ceiling in that half-awake, half-asleep bliss. Or the brief moments after finishing a chapter of a good book before you've reintegrated yourself into the real world.

A 2015 HealthLine study found substantial evidence proving that rises in creativity and productivity could be triggered by enhancing a state of consistent alpha waves. So before our lessons, my teacher starts each class with designated time for 'alpha waving'- silent reading, listening to music, meditating, or anything that will get us as close to that inventive head space as possible.

One way I've been trying to keep my quarantine productive is by starting off my mornings with a bit of alpha waving of my own accord. I'll set a timer and spend 20 minutes writing unfiltered, unrefined, and unpolished pieces.

And while taking time to tune into my alpha waves has certainly improved my productivity throughout the day, I also think it's helped broaden my creative writing. I think it's innate to 'edit as we go' in everything we do. And as refined as this makes our work, it also largely limits its potential.

As my dad always says, we should "write drunk, edit sober."

If you wait around for the perfect idea to come, it could take years to write your first sentence. And sometimes a few minutes of alpha waving with an 'all ideas are good ideas' mindset is all it takes for inspiration to strike.

I'll usually start writing with no direction and  no destination, but often by the time my alarm goes off 20 minutes later, I'll have come up with at least a couple compelling ideas among the nonsense. And a lot of these ideas end up recycled and polished up for future pieces.

Behind every brilliant composition, there are hundreds of rejected words that- before they can be set aside- need the chance to come onto the page.

And that's why you should write a little bit everyday.