Tag Archives: writing through the body workshops

Making the most of fallow writing periods

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We all have something of unique value to offer the world, and the thought of anyone’s vision, wisdom, or story being trapped inside them hurts my heart. But while I’m invested in helping people remove blocks so they can, find and use their voices, and tell their untold stories, I also know there’s real value in quiet periods.

I’ve been through one recently myself. It all started in early October when I was surprisingly ejected from my living space at the time. I immediately moved into a new space that would be, I had hoped, a more medium-term situation so I could begin to feel settled.

Three weeks after moving into that space, which was the downstairs of a house, owned by the woman who lived upstairs, I left for almost three weeks for a conference in Mexico, preceded by some time in Portland. My goal was to come back from the conference all fired up about life and my work and to get back to it all.

What happened was something quite different, and in the past three months, I haven’t written much of anything, aside from a couple of blog posts in December and an email to my list of followers.

I came home to chaos in my living space (both physically and energetically); the newish relationship I had started in September ended. Then started, then ended again; I realized the living space was bad for me on all levels, so I began looking for a new space, found it and recently moved; hustled for work to pay my bills; and tried to make friends in my new town.

I started to have doubts about teaching other people how to move blocks so they can write when I’m not even doing it myself. But then I accepted the fact that fallow times are necessary. It’s all about recharging our subconscious while we tend to other things. To life. And while we’re tending to life, we’re filling our subconscious, which will show up for us time and again when we finally get back to the writing.

I like to think of my writing practice as I would a relationship. Sometimes we need to step back, give it room, let it breathe. Too much attention can stifle, even kill the love, the flow.

When I hit a fallow writing period, like the one I’ve had lately, the hardest part is not knowing when it will end. And experience has shown me that there isn’t much I can do about it.

I’m happy to say I’m coming out of mine now. Even though my new studio is still in a state of chaos, just having my own space lets me think and feel, and when I can do this, I can write.

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When you have a fallow writing period, how do you come out of it?
Do you do something intentional, or does it take care of itself?

Writing can heal your body: The science behind it

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I’ve been saying for a long time that writing can heal us on all levels. I’m guessing this is nothing new to those who write because I’m willing to assume that everyone who writes earnestly, including those who have maintained regular journal entries, have experienced a healing of some sort, whether it be a clearing of psychic debris or emotional weight. It stands to reason, then, that if writing clear our minds and emotions, and lightens our spirits, and that because our thoughts and emotions directly influence our physical health, writing can heal our bodies, too.

In this article by Rachel Grate at Arts.Mic, a group of New Zealand researchers have tracked the healing trajectories of patients with medical biopsy wounds. She also writes, “Even those who suffer from specific diseases can improve their health through writing. Studies have shown that people with asthma who write have fewer attacks than those who don’t; AIDS patients who write have higher T-cell counts. Cancer patients who write have more optimistic perspectives and improved quality of life.”

She also writes that “One study found that blogging might trigger dopamine release, similar to the effect from running or listening to music.” With that in mind, I’ll sign off here and get to work on my next blog post about why people procrastinate writing…

How do the benefits of writing show up in your life?

Sending you mad writing mojo…

Johnnie
XXX

Seventh Chakra – Crown Chakra – Spiritual Power

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Yesterday, I wrote about the Third Eye Chakra and how it is the generator of our intuition and gives us all the wisdom we need to move ourselves to express our higher nature.

Today, I’m writing about the last of the main chakras of the body, the Seventh Chakra, or the Crown Chakra, which connects us to our spiritual essence and our ability to allow spirituality to be an essential part of our lives. It allows us to gain a deep sense of inner awareness through practices like meditation and prayer.

I view the Seventh Chakra as the conduit that connects our bodies to the spiritual world, the portal through which we have mystical experiences. This is the chakra, when open and flowing, prompts us to pursue a relationship with the Divine, which is different from seeking out religion.

Below is a brief explanation of the Crown Chakra and some ways we might integrate its attributes into our writing.

Seventh Chakra – Crown ChakraPurple Sphere1

Location
Top of the head

Primary strengths
Faith in the existence of the Divine, including inner guidance, insight into healing, and trust that overrides fears

Primary fears
Loss of identity, loss of connection with material world, spiritual crisis

Positive manifestations
Mystical and intuitive connections, practice of a personally chosen spiritual belief system

Negative manifestations
Inability to let go of past regrets, disassociation, ‘holier-than-thou’ attitude, difficulty thinking for oneself

Lesson
To live in Divine union

Aspects we might consider for our characters or ourselves
Faith in a Higher Power or inner guidance, mystical connections, fears around loss of identity and an inability to let go of the past


Feel free to post it below this post, or email me at:  johnnie@johnniemazzocco.com.

 

Meditation
Close your eyes and do a short visualization of the Crown Chakra: A purple, pulsating at the top of your head. Imagine it expanding and contracting and spreading out over the top of your head. Sit with this pulsating, reverent and giving energy for as long as you can, breathing deeply, for 5-10 breaths. Count to ten slowly on both the inhale and the exhale for each one. When you’re ready, let the energy begin to recede and return to its original size. Maintain its presence in your body as you open your eyes and begin the following writing exercise.

Writing Exercise
Fiction Writers
Think about the characters you’ve been working with. Do they understand the reasons for their motivations, or are they clueless? How much does the reader know compared to what the characters know? How much do the characters know about each other that they don’t know about themselves? Are the characters cut off from or tuned in to reality? How does this show up in their words and/or behaviors? Continue their conversation/situation with each other considering these questions.

Creative Non-fiction Writers / Memoirists
Are you spiritually aware? Do you experience a union with a higher consciousness in any form? How do you define this? If not, do you desire it but fear it? Why?

Do you put what you believe to be spiritual truths in action in your life? How so? If not, why not?

Do you have an awareness of your lower/higher selves? How and when do they each show up in your life?

Do you understand the reasons and motivations for your behaviors and reactions to life?

 

Sending you mad writing mojo…

 

Johnnie
XXXX

 

Fifth Chakra – Throat Chakra – Will Power

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Yesterday, I wrote about the Heart Chakra and how it serves as a negotiator, of sorts, between our body and our spirit and how understanding it can

Today, I’m writing about the Fifth Chakra – the Throat Chakra, which is located in the lower throat, in the hollow of the collarbone. In essence, this chakra is about surrendering to our higher power, which means different things to different people: God, angels, Universe, inner strength, or a personal higher form of knowing, which comes from our higher selves. This chakra bridges the gap between our heart and our mind.

Caroline Myss says that ALL illness has a connection to the fifth chakra, because choice is involved in every detail of our lives and therefore in every illness. This is HUGE. This chakra relates to the struggles – on both mental and emotional levels – involved with learning about our immense power of choice.

Below is a brief explanation of the Throat Chakra and some ways we might integrate its attributes into our writing.


Fifth Chakra – Throat Chakra Blue Sphere1

Location
Lower throat, in the hollow of the collarbone

Primary strengths
Faith, self-knowledge, and personal authority.

Primary fears
Having no authority or power of choice or control with tribe, relationships, ourselves, substances, money, power, and another’s emotions

Positive manifestations
Ability to speak one’s truth with clarity, to believe in love and courage

Negative manifestations
Fear of death and making fear-based decisions based on attachment to outcomes

Lesson
Recognizing free will and self-expression in ourselves and others and accepting it with love and compassion

Aspects we might consider for our characters or ourselves
Faith and self-knowledge, ability to speak one’s truth, fears around money, power, and the emotions of others

Feel free to post it below this post, or email me at:  johnnie@johnniemazzocco.com.


Meditation
Close your eyes and do a short visualization of the Throat Chakra: A blue, pulsating orb in your throat, in the hollow of the collarbone. Imagine it expanding and contracting and spreading out to the sides of your neck and around the back. Sit with this pulsating, benevolent and calm energy for as long as you can, breathing deeply, for 5-10 breaths. Count to ten slowly on both the inhale and the exhale for each one. When you’re ready, let the energy begin to recede and return to its original size. Maintain its presence in your body as you open your eyes and begin the following writing exercise.

Writing Exercise
Fiction Writers
Feel free to use the same two characters you’ve been working with, or create two new ones. Assess your characters, then put them in dialogue with each other about a topic that matters to them, or at least to the protagonist. What are their voices like? What do they sound like? How talkative are they? How loud or quiet are they? Is their word choice similar or vastly different? Do either or both of them have a voice in society? Are they people others look up to and/or follow because they speak the truth? Does either of them sing? Do they speak up for themselves, express their feelings? With each other? With other people?

Creative Non-fiction Writers / Memoirists
Think about your voice. Your speaking voice.

What does your voice sound like both within and outside of your tribe? Write about the actual sound of your voice. Be as descriptive as possible.

How do you use your voice, both in life and in your tribe? Write about what kinds of issues and subjects you get vocal about.

What makes you lose control of your voice or willpower within and outside of your tribe?

 

Sending you mad writing mojo…

 

Johnnie
XXXX

 

Second Chakra – Sacral Chakra – Partnership Power

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Yesterday, I wrote about the Root Chakra and how it can inform our writing in terms of our own or our characters’ identities in relation to the concept of tribe. Today, I’m writing about the second chakra, the Sacral Chakra, which is about partnership power and our power to create.

The Sacral Chakra relates to our ability to go with the flow, so while all the chakras are important, this one is especially important when it comes to creative flow. Creative flow can mean a lot of things. It can mean artistic flow and creating in that way, or it can mean actually creating life. This chakra is about self-expression in a very deep sense, and it also aligns with partnership, sexuality, pleasure, and relationships. So, while the Root Chakra was about our relationship to our tribe and our place in it, the Sacral Chakra is about our relationship with another.

I’ve observed that, oftentimes, creative people have a difficult time finding that balance between honoring their creative impulses and their relationships, and all too often, their writing practice takes a back seat. While the Sacral Chakra is about creating, as mentioned above, it’s also about creating ourselves, and if we’re to successfully create ourselves, it means we means we have to find balance in our relationships so we don’t get lost in them.

Below is a brief explanation of the Sacral Chakra and some ways we might integrate its attributes into our writing.

Second Chakra – Sacral Chakra Orange Sphere1

Location
Lower abdomen, slightly below the navel

Primary strengths
Ability to take risks, to protect oneself and survive financially and physically, to recover from loss, and to recreate oneself

Primary fears
Loss of control at the hands of another (rape, impotence, abandonment, betrayal, addiction, financial) and loss of physical body due to death or illness

Positive manifestations
Creativity, confident self-expression, adaptability, flexibility, bringing forth new life (literally and figuratively), setting healthy psychological boundaries and creating a sense of personal identity

Negative manifestations
Anger, jealousy, killing of creativity due to fear

Lesson
Accepting that we cannot be in control

Aspects we might consider for our characters or ourselves
Ability to protect oneself, creativity and self-expression, fears around loss of control, anger and jealousy

As with yesterday, below you’ll find a meditation specific to the Sacral Chakra, and some prompts to help you think about how to use the Sacral Chakra to deepen your writing and your understanding of yourself.

Try the following meditation and exercise, and let me know what you come up with.
Feel free to post it below this post, or email me at:  johnnie@johnniemazzocco.com.

Meditation
Close your eyes and do a short visualization of the Sacral Chakra: An orange, pulsating orb in your abdomen, just below your navel. Imagine it expanding and contracting and spreading out to each hip. Sit with this pulsating, enthusiastic and creative energy for as long as you can, breathing deeply, for 5-10 breaths. Count to ten slowly on both the inhale and the exhale for each one. When you’re ready, let the energy begin to recede and return to its original size. Maintain its presence in your body as you open your eyes and begin the following writing exercise.

Writing Exercise
Fiction Writers
Think of a character you’ve created, maybe one you’ve been working with recently. It can be a new one, or it can be the one you used yesterday. Imagine a relationship for your character with one other person. This can be any sort of relationship (intimate, familial, platonic, work-related). The characters can be any gender or age. Feel free to build on the exercise from yesterday, if you like. Is this other person a family member your character is on her way to visit and you’ll just continue on with the story you set up yesterday, or is this other person a stranger on the train? What is the overarching tone of the relationship? How do these two characters relate to each other? Do they speak, or is their entire interaction internal for them both, or for only your initial character? What do they think about or say to each other? What happens between them?

Creative Non-fiction Writers / Memoirists
Pick a relationship from your life. This can be any sort of relationship (intimate, familial, platonic, work-related).
What’s the overarching tone of this relationship?
How do creativity, sexuality, and/or abundance (or lack of) figure in to this relationship? Are you generally on the same energetic plane with each other? If so, how? If not, does the energy of one of you overshadow the other and drive the relationship somehow?

Sending you mad writing mojo…

Johnnie
XXXX