Every Friday I’m going to ask a question. The questions I choose might be ambiguous on purpose. The goal is to 
have you answer the question according to your beliefs, where you’re at in life or a circumstance that might have recently impacted you. The only thing I ask is that you provide an explanation for why you answered the way you did.
It is my hope to understand
you better through this and also to gain a greater understanding of humanity and how people make decisions.
have you answer the question according to your beliefs, where you’re at in life or a circumstance that might have recently impacted you. The only thing I ask is that you provide an explanation for why you answered the way you did.It is my hope to understand
you better through this and also to gain a greater understanding of humanity and how people make decisions.What is your theory explaining why writers get flooded with ideas while in the shower.
*photos by flickr
**Congratulations to all the ACFW Genesis finalists, including blogging friends Sarah Forgrave and Jeannie Campbell
I think our minds expand while we are under the comfort of warm water. The constant noise of the water in our ears blocks out distractions and our minds wander into the stories we can't stopy thinking about when we're alone.
ReplyDeleteGreat question I never thought about. . . I think it is because that is the one time in the day that all my kids let me have a little bit of peace. Even if they are yelling my name I can't hear them so my mind is clear to think.
ReplyDeleteOh boy! LOL Well, I don't get ideas in the shower, probably because I'm usually in a rush to get it done with for one reason or another. My ideas come when I'm cleaning or driving.
ReplyDelete:-) So, no theory hear, thought Get Real Girl probably has it right. ;-)
LOL How did you know???? I think because I am totally relaxed then--it's my time to just enjoy the rush of the water and let my mind float away:)
ReplyDeleteHa ha! Probably the same reason an artist might be flooded with ideas in the shower. Because there's really nothing else to do except think. Anything going on outside of the shower is beyond your control while you lather up. So you don't really have the option to worry. It's like a little sancuary from worry. Shower time is you time, and since shampooing yourself does not take much mental effort once you've already done it a million times before. The only thing left to do is let your mind wander while your hands are occupied elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteOh, or maybe all that shampooing massage motion just gets the blood in your head flowing more. :)
How did you KNOW???? It's not just me? I was exfoliating when I had this idea about feelings sluffing off of us like dead skin, like you could exfoliate disappointments and anger away. And like Get real girl, I'm alone for those few minutes.
ReplyDeleteI can't offer you a theory, because this never happens to me! Walking is more likely to do this, my ideas coming while taking a long walk outdoors.
ReplyDeleteI think it's because the hot water relaxes you and you're NOT thinking about writing at the time.
ReplyDeleteOh, my. This happens to me ALL the time, Wendy!
ReplyDeleteWhen we shower, we relax, and there's something about water that lifts the creativity from our hearts to our brains. It's a God thing, water being a type of the Holy Spirit, who is the Helper.
I love your questions, and how your brain works!
I've practically written two books while in the shower. I can almost write off my water bill. I've even gone so far as to buy a pack of those crayons kids use in the bath so I can scribble on the walls.
ReplyDeleteFor me, I think it's the sound more than the water itself. It's a kind of white noise that drowns out everything else and leaves my own voice the only thing to hear.
It's the only time I stop long enough to hear myself think!
ReplyDeleteIt happens to me a lot! I think it's because it's quiet. No one is expecting anything of me, and there are no distractions.
ReplyDeleteA shower is a sensory experience: the warmth of the water; the feel of it flowing over the skin; the sound of it striking different surfaces. And then there are the fragrances of the soap, shower gel, shampoo, and conditioner. This, combined with the escape from the demands of the day, transports me to another place, a place where my mind and creative spirit are free to roam, a place where new ideas and new possibilities flow freely, a place where there's a sense of comfort such as a babe in the womb must feel.
ReplyDeleteI'm just back from the shower where I pondered your question, Wendy. If this comment seems a bit different from others I've left, it's due to the fresh-from-the-shower perspective I gained. :)
Ahhh! Most of my ideas/realizations come in the shower. I think it has to do with a lot of things (for me).
ReplyDelete1. My kids aren't allowed to bother me while I'm in the shower. I'm kid-free.
2. It's relaxing. Hot water, the white noise...
3. There's no TV. No radio. No kids. No noise. My mind is free.
I think that's why I get a lot of inspiration in the shower.
Great question!
Fun question! No kids, of course, and it's relaxing. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteLove that last pic, I love dandelions. I'm with most of the others...it's the only time I'm alone most days! You've also reminded me that I have yet to shower this morning...eek! :) Have a lovely weekend.
ReplyDeleteI love your family picture!! Precious!! :)
ReplyDeleteWe're flooded with ideas in the shower because we're relaxed. It's a daily luxury. And no kids allowed (usually)!
Amy
Ha!Ha! Are you reading my mind missy???? I don't know but as of late they also flood my mind if I wake up in the middle of the night and it doesn't let me get back to sleep. Is it time to purchase a waterproof pen and some plastic sheeting to write on? I need to take notes ASAP.
ReplyDeleteWendy:
ReplyDeleteI sometimes get ideas in the shower,but not all the time. I think it may have to do with the fact we can think better-no distractions.
I think it's the freedom from external distractions. It's time that we have to think, and often let our mind wander.
ReplyDeleteI think we get grand ideas in the shower because we have little to distract us...our minds are safe to wander.
ReplyDelete(and because it's difficult to immediately write those ideas down - lol)
Umm ... because once my kids are awake, the shower is the only quiet moment to relax I'll get til they're all tucked in again?
ReplyDeleteIt's open thinking time. No computer screen in front of you, no dinner to make...
ReplyDeleteHave a blessed weekend,
Karen
I think it's because there are no distractions and our minds roam free.
ReplyDeleteWell, our body IS made up mostly of water....?
ReplyDeleteI think looking at something really bland forces your brain to get busy.
ReplyDeleteI take short showers, so I get more ideas driving around or lying in the dark before I fall asleep.
hello... hapi blogging... have a nice day! just visiting here....
ReplyDeleteThat is hysterical! My husband writes his sermons in the shower! They should invent white board shower cutains!!
ReplyDeletefor me...it's the middle of the night. I'm always in a rush in the shower but in the middle of the night...everyone's asleep...my eyes open and boom...got to grab that pen and paper
ReplyDeleteRelaxing the body, opening the mind.
ReplyDeleteSo true! But why?! Ooh--I like what Warren Baldwin above me wrote: "Relaxing the body, opening the mind." I also think things come to me when I'm just distracted enough. We're trying so hard when we're at our computers, and we get so immersed in our stories; maybe taking a step back helps us access some things better.
ReplyDeleteExercise and showers do it for me. It must be the endorphin release which stimulates those neuroreceptors.
ReplyDeleteSome really good thoughts here! I often go to the shower when I get stuck on something, so I might take more than one shower a day. I'm very clean.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a combination of the sensory and spiritual, a washing of and flowing through. It's recreation that's rhythmic, monotonous, and wordless.
http://thewritepursuit.blogspot.com/2010/03/wordless-recreation-for-writers.html
And usually done alone. No distractions as other said. White noise. Recreation available to most of us right in our own home. Kind of a prayer closet.
I'm so grateful for the new hot water heater my husband got me for my birthday last year! I can stay in there for a long time, many times a day if I like and if I can stand the electric bill.
And for those of you who are wondering about things like white board shower curtains and plastic sheeting and waterproof pens--and Billy with his markers, check out this post on my writing blog on how to capture shower ideas. :D
http://thewritepursuit.blogspot.com/2010/03/how-to-capture-shower-ideas.html
Sorry to push those two posts, but I thought you might find them fun and informative.
I think Wendy's been following me.