Strap on Your Running Shoes

By Shuly Cawood, a blog post reprinted with her kind permission:

This morning, while trying to think of titles to my essay (and coming up with nothing but corny ones), I decided to lace up my running shoes and head out the door. That’s because I do some of my best “writing” when I am not writing at all. Often, ideas come when I am running or walking (or in the middle of a drive or standing in the produce section). I need to be startled into ideas: they come when I least expect them to, or when I start focusing on something else—say, not tripping over a stick. If I stare at the door, they do not knock. I have to look away, even go away, for them to whistle their way in.

Some tips on making this work for you:

1. Always have a notebook and pen. I have a mini-notebook that can fit in my pocket, and a mini-pen, but I never take these running. I keep them in my purse, though, at all times.
2. For walking, running, or sports in general, if you have a cell phone, use the recorder on it. Most phones have them. There are voice-to-text apps, but that is too fancy for me. I just use the basic recorder that came with my phone. I also use a note-taking app that allows me to type my ideas into a note.
3. Try not listening to music when running/walking. This distracts me. Instead, I think about the writing issue, then let my mind wander and notice the maple tree leaves shifting in the breeze, and the sweep of clouds on indigo sky. This way, the writing issue percolates in the background.

So, full disclosure here: While running this morning, I did not in fact think of any new titles to my essay-with-no-name. I did get three miles of (slow) jogging in, but that’s not all. I did figure out what topics to research on a different essay I have been struggling to expand. Not what I expected, but that’s the whole point.