Push Pins and Post Its

Throughout my writing career, I have found that what inspires me is all around us. From the colors that already make up our surroundings to how we were taught in school to use a graphic organizer to organize our thoughts, we can reach into the depths of our creativity with using the smaller things in front of us.

Color and creativity: How color can help spark creativity

According to color psychology, there is a direct link between the use of color and creative thinking. It’s hard to think of color when most adults have their worlds turned down, as we surround ourselves with limited colors, from our clothes to furniture in our homes. Color psychology focuses more on four colors: blue, green, yellow, and red. I often combine colorful pushpins and sticky notes to help organize my thoughts on my cork board.

Blue is known to help with creative thinking, as most people associate it with calm and relaxation. This is the same reason that blue is associated with workspaces: it can promote trust, communication, and efficiency.

Green is associated with calm and balance and is said to spark creativity. The color is connected to nature, and there is a positive connection between nature and regrowth which brings contentment and satisfaction. 

Yellow boosts emotional energy and triggers a feeling of excitement, optimism and enthusiasm. In a study, 52% of people associated yellow with joy.

Red is the most effective color for enhancing attention to detail. Red is always associated with caution or danger, which activates a heightened state of vigilance while performing tasks. Using red text, for example, will increase attention to detail. 

Chunking small pieces: How writing smaller pieces around a bigger target can help brainstorm ideas

The secret to big ideas is starting small. Writing in chunks will help you become more productive as a writer. Big ideas can be overwhelming but breaking them into smaller pieces can help. Start by having clear and achievable goals every day and being realistic. Don’t worry about knowing every single detail at first. The unexpected happens when you write in chunks, as small details carry more weight than anticipated. 

Writing in small chunks will help you keep the momentum going because you have permission to start with a tiny piece, and it will keep you from getting hung up in the first line of your story. And realistically, ideas will flow. You can start by having an outline of what needs to be done, and don’t worry about having a perfect draft or limiting yourself to a specific word count; keep going. 

Creating a sense of confidence and accomplishment: How all of this can help build a sense of trust and achievement in your writing

Color can set your mood while writing. Start by having different color palettes and using them to develop ideas. Use them to mark up your work. This will make a difference in your work and inspire you to use more colors to boost your creativity and productivity. 

If you are developing a character, associate each color with a personality as colors have intrinsic meanings. Use individual colors and color schemes to capture the essence of your story without words. Writing in chunks will help as you can visually code each stage to represent the progress. For example, while drafting, use different colors to signify the first draft, another color to signify edits and another for the final draft. This creates a sense of accomplishment when you progress significantly in each stage. 

Incorporating the psychology of color theory and writing in chunks will help you boost productivity and build a sense of accomplishment. It will also boost confidence once you see you are becoming more productive. 

 

~Happy writing!!~