Comments on: Walk Your Way to Better Writing http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing Writing tips for the real world. Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:57:50 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: AlecGold http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-727 AlecGold Sun, 17 Aug 2008 11:08:16 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-727 Walking is the way to get relaxed and recharged for me too! I just let my mind/body decide at which speed I walk. It is hard to describe for a non-native writer, but when you go shopping, you walk at a good pace, just get you shopping done. But when I walk in the fields and forests, I let my body/mind decide what is the right pace. Sometimes it is a really fanatically fast pace, but more often I just start strolling and without any effort you start wandering and without giving it any thought the miles go by, the scenery enfolds, you see animals around enjoying their evening snack, people rushing home to their meals and on a rare occasion you'll see another wandering fellow that is absorbing the surroundings. Do others also experience the relation between mood and pace? What I often do, is after a business meeting in the afternoon I go to a restaurant or bring my own doggy bag from home, have a light dinner, put on some jeans, sweater and my walking boots, get my small backpack out of the back of the car and take the car to a nice location. Then I just start wandering, often I start in a high tempo, fast paced, but when the miles go by I tend to start walking slower, see and feel more of the surroundings, breath the quietness. And when I'm done I get my little GPS and plan a route back to the waypoint that I made of my car when I parked it. This way I have several advantages: I can walk and relax and after some time sit down and make some notes. Second is I don't need to worry about where my car was, and how to get back to it. I really can just walk where I like. Last thing (which started it all) is the point that I avoid the evening traffic, wich in my case often is over 100 miles of frustration. Walking is the way to get relaxed and recharged for me too! I just let my mind/body decide at which speed I walk. It is hard to describe for a non-native writer, but when you go shopping, you walk at a good pace, just get you shopping done.
But when I walk in the fields and forests, I let my body/mind decide what is the right pace. Sometimes it is a really fanatically fast pace, but more often I just start strolling and without any effort you start wandering and without giving it any thought the miles go by, the scenery enfolds, you see animals around enjoying their evening snack, people rushing home to their meals and on a rare occasion you’ll see another wandering fellow that is absorbing the surroundings.
Do others also experience the relation between mood and pace?

What I often do, is after a business meeting in the afternoon I go to a restaurant or bring my own doggy bag from home, have a light dinner, put on some jeans, sweater and my walking boots, get my small backpack out of the back of the car and take the car to a nice location.
Then I just start wandering, often I start in a high tempo, fast paced, but when the miles go by I tend to start walking slower, see and feel more of the surroundings, breath the quietness. And when I’m done I get my little GPS and plan a route back to the waypoint that I made of my car when I parked it.
This way I have several advantages: I can walk and relax and after some time sit down and make some notes. Second is I don’t need to worry about where my car was, and how to get back to it. I really can just walk where I like. Last thing (which started it all) is the point that I avoid the evening traffic, wich in my case often is over 100 miles of frustration.

]]> By: Blog Carnivals | Mixed Metaphor.net http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-675 Blog Carnivals | Mixed Metaphor.net Mon, 11 Aug 2008 06:05:52 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-675 [...] Osborne presents Walk Your Way to Better Writing posted at The Writers Bag [...] [...] Osborne presents Walk Your Way to Better Writing posted at The Writers Bag [...]

]]> By: | The Blogging Life http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-670 | The Blogging Life Sun, 10 Aug 2008 19:53:42 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-670 [...] Osborne presents Walk Your Way to Better Writing posted at The Writers Bag [...] [...] Osborne presents Walk Your Way to Better Writing posted at The Writers Bag [...]

]]> By: Erin Straza http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-659 Erin Straza Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:42:08 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-659 Walking does it for me too! I think it is the body's natural rhythm to walk and wander about. Some mornings I run (jog? shuffle?) for 15 minutes before my walk, and I've found that my mind does not wander and cannot concentrate when I am running (likely b/c I am too wrapped up in forcing myself to keep moving!). When I walk, I don't have to think about my body's movements; all energy and concentration feels free to focus on other things. So fascinating! Great read. Walking does it for me too! I think it is the body’s natural rhythm to walk and wander about. Some mornings I run (jog? shuffle?) for 15 minutes before my walk, and I’ve found that my mind does not wander and cannot concentrate when I am running (likely b/c I am too wrapped up in forcing myself to keep moving!). When I walk, I don’t have to think about my body’s movements; all energy and concentration feels free to focus on other things. So fascinating! Great read.

]]> By: Van Flicke http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-607 Van Flicke Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:40:01 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-607 I feel that I know Ben Franklin said something along the lines that no problem couldn't be solved without a little walk. But I can't find it. Stephen King would walk to work out the stories of his books, and it almost killed him. In his book, On Writing, he describes the event on Route 5 in Maine. Great post. I feel that I know Ben Franklin said something along the lines that no problem couldn’t be solved without a little walk. But I can’t find it.

Stephen King would walk to work out the stories of his books, and it almost killed him. In his book, On Writing, he describes the event on Route 5 in Maine.

Great post.

]]> By: Chris http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-594 Chris Tue, 29 Jul 2008 13:30:29 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-594 What a great post! Not only does walking get the creative juices flowing, but walking and contemplation sure can solve a lot of problems. What a great post! Not only does walking get the creative juices flowing, but walking and contemplation sure can solve a lot of problems.

]]> By: Steve Osborne http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-587 Steve Osborne Tue, 29 Jul 2008 04:20:19 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-587 If it works for you, great. Some of the same things are at play when you cycle as when you walk. However, cycling injects a machine into the experience and that changes the experience itself somewhat. Our human physiology has not changed considerably since the time, before mechanical contrivances, when walking was the way people moved around. I believe there is something very organic and deep about walking that takes us back to our roots as humans. If it works for you, great. Some of the same things are at play when you cycle as when you walk. However, cycling injects a machine into the experience and that changes the experience itself somewhat. Our human physiology has not changed considerably since the time, before mechanical contrivances, when walking was the way people moved around. I believe there is something very organic and deep about walking that takes us back to our roots as humans.

]]> By: Daniel Alcantara http://thewritersbag.com/writing-strategies/walk-your-way-to-better-writing/comment-page-1#comment-584 Daniel Alcantara Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:31:23 +0000 http://thewritersbag.com/?p=244#comment-584 What about cycling your way to better writing? What about cycling your way to better writing?

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