Writing advice to unlock your unique creative magic
I am a big believer in the power of ritual as a source of and support for creativity.
Recently, I went to Oregon for a retreat for The Council, a coaching program I’ve been in for the past several months. Ritual was the backbone of everything we did. We sat in circle together, set intentions, worked magic, and went for powerful divination walks across the high desert. As always happens on such a walk, I searched for mushrooms (my nickname among the other people on The Council is "mushroom Bailey"). I also found feathers, fallen trees, features of the landscape that whispered new ideas to me. I found a bone sitting on the earth, scoured clean by time, as if waiting for me.
For days afterward, I was a bubbling cauldron of ideas—almost too many to keep track of. I felt filled with creative energy in a way that is profoundly unusual for me at this time of the year, and I filled pages of my journals with story ideas, business ideas, sketches, and paintings. I even befriended a retiree named Penny on my train home from the retreat. We discovered that we both had watercolors with us, so we met up in the viewing car and spent an hour painting together!
I have continued to focus on ritual and creativity since I returned home and settled back into my normal routines. The difference between a ritual and a habit is an important one to point out before we go much further.
Unlike a habit, a ritual is not an automatic action—it is an act undertaken with clear, focused intention. Ritual sets an action or a space apart from the mundane, acknowledges that it is imbued with meaning and power. And yet, something as simple as making a cup of tea can be a ritual action (in fact, tea-making is perhaps the single most common ritual act I perform, given how much of it I drink!). A ritual activity might be regular and repeated, but it is never rote. That’s where the magic is.
Rituals can also be more flexible than habits. Rather than trying to get yourself to write at the same time in the same way, day after day—a practice that doesn’t work for everyone, especially ADHD writers—a personalized writing ritual can help you activate your creativity when you have the capacity. Instead of treating your writing practice like it should operate on autopilot, rituals can help you access focused, mindful creativity in a more intentional way.
Unlike the toxic productivity advice extruded by proponents of hustle culture, rituals also aren’t about relentless optimization and the rush to completion. Within ritual space, each activity matters for its own sake. Each one is intrinsically worth doing. Ritual work is slow and mindful, filled with care. There’s no “move fast and break things.” Instead, ritual invites us to slow down and pay close attention. Rituals have outcomes, and those outcomes range from the simple (a cup of tea, mindfully enjoyed) to the profound (a complete transformation of identity; unexpected magic).
Ritual activities prime our brains to remember what matters to us (connection, creativity, expression) and to keep our intentions front and center. Rather than scroll on my phone as I traveled home, I wrote and created. I sat and looked out the window at the changing landscape and let myself be receptive to whatever thoughts came and went. I allowed myself to settle fully into the surge of creative energy.
Not a bad view from the train
The beauty of ritual is that you can, as radically witchy artist and philosopher Genesis P-Orridge put it in the title of a 2016 show, “Try To Altar Everything” (you can learn more about it in New Moon Magic—affiliate link*). That is “altar” with an “a,” as in, make anything and everything sacred.
You don’t need to travel across the country and back to begin tapping into your intuition, setting intentions, and creating ritual space. You don’t need any fancy supplies, fun though they are. I’m very partial to crystals and candles, but they’re not necessary for accessing creative power. That already lives inside you!
You can create a ritual with nothing more than your own imagination and the intent to make an activity—like writing—symbolically meaningful.
As writers, we’re already practicing magic every time we sit down to tell a story. What is spell-casting but using language to create something out of nothing? The magic of creativity is inherent to us as human beings. It’s our birthright. Think of the study that found 98% of kids would classify as creative geniuses. Think of the fact that the same study found that most adults lose or suppress that capacity, so that only about 2% of us stodgy old grownups can claim access to the same creative wellsprings we played in as children.
Adding ritual elements into our creative practices is a way to honor that creative genius, to summon the magic back in and focus our attention on it. Signaling to our intuitive selves that writing is important produces surprisingly effective results, often in the form of a sudden burst of creative energy, like I experienced during and after my retreat trip.
Rather than approaching writing from a place of discipline, obligation, and pressure, ritual reintroduces a sense of devotion to our creative practices. It can also, especially when we’re feeling stuck or overwhelmed, turn creativity into a form of play, which can help us get unblocked. Incorporating ritual into your writing practice can transform it from something to check off your to do list into an activity that feels intuitively aligned and deeply magical.
But what exactly is a ritual? And how do you build one for your writing?
Boiled down to its simplest essence, a ritual is a deliberately designed action that you perform to change your environment from the everyday into… something else. It is an intent paired with a repeatable action or set of actions.
Lest that still sound too far-out, let’s remember that we participate in rituals all the time, although they don’t always go by that name. A handshake upon meeting someone? Ritual. Weddings, funerals, and graduation ceremonies? Rituals. Singing “Happy Birthday” before someone blows out the candles on their cake? Ritual! Rituals aren’t necessarily witchy—they are actions that indicate we’ve moved from mundane daily life into something more formal, special, ceremonial, or otherwise significant.
Creatives tend to enjoy rituals, and I’d be willing to bet you have a few up your sleeve for your writing already, even if you haven’t thought of them as such.
One writer I know has a specific playlist that she listens to when she’s writing. That’s a ritual! The sound of the music signals to her brain that it’s time to get to work. Starting the playlist enables her to drop into a focused flow state quickly and more consistently.
Like I said, rituals don’t have to be super fancy!
All you need is a clear intention (“I want to create an environment that helps me focus on my writing”) and an action you repeat to activate that intention (“I’m going to turn on this playlist at the start of every writing session.”)
A ritual for your writing practice can be as uncomplicated as you want. The important thing is signaling to your intuition that you’re present and ready to work. Of course, you can also design a more elaborate ritual if that feels more likely to get your creative juices flowing! Maybe you light a stick of incense, set a creative intention, pull an oracle card, and spend 10 minutes journaling on it before you dive into your primary writing project.
Ritual spaces and objects can also come into the mix. Maybe a corner of your living room is transformed into a sacred writing space, and you use a particular pen and notebook while you’re in it. The sky is the limit when it comes to creating your unique writing ritual.
If your creative practice has been feeling stagnant, playing with ritual might be just what you need to invite some fresh energy back in.
Performing a ritual in a group setting can also be a powerful experience! Think of the examples of rituals listed above—weddings, birthdays, and the like are almost always conducted with a group. Some rituals are personal and private, but there’s a lot of fun to be had with other people, too. You and a critique partner or writing group could adopt shared rituals to mark the start of an event. Even a shared playlist could take on ritual significance!
If starting a writing ritual of your own sounds fun, or if you’re just looking to set aside more time to devote to your creative work, I’d like to invite you to join The Coven, a monthly ceremony focused on ritual and writing.
During The Coven ceremonies, I’ll lead us in a short but powerful ritual—an example of the type you could incorporate into your own practice. We’ll have some reflective writing time, followed by time to focus on our most important writing projects. After that, we’ll have an opportunity to share what we’re working on, and I’ll offer some on-the-spot coaching, so bring your gnarliest writing questions.
The Coven is 90 minutes of writing ritual, time to focus on the craft, and community. Learn more and reserve your spot at the link. A ticket to The Coven is $25.
Find your coven. Join a monthly circle of fellow writers for intuitive, creativity-focused ritual, sacred writing time, community, and group coaching.
The Literary Witch (that’s me!) will lead an opening ceremony to guide you back to your creative intuition. We’ll devote time to our craft, so bring a writing project you’ve been yearning to focus on. The circle will conclude with community sharing and coaching.
The Coven meets on or near the full moon, a time for bringing your creative magic to fruition. Re-enchant your writing practice and experience the power of practicing in community.
We're meeting on Tuesday, March 3 at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT. Space is limited. Tickets are $25.
In addition to writing, I am an avid collage artist!
🌑 New Moon Oracle Cards
This four-card reading focuses on creative energy and priorities for the new moon, waxing moon, full moon, and waning moon.
You can use these cards and their themes as journal prompts, a springboard for your own interpretations, or story inspiration. Keep this reading handy until the next full moon and reflect on what you notice!
These cards are from the Mushroom Spirit Oracle deck
New Moon: Common Puffball. Theme: Let go
What are you holding onto? What needs to be let out?
Are you holding on too tightly—or waiting for the right moment to release something?
What do you need to speak into being? Remember, the guidebook tells us, "Words and intentions are powerful creative forces."
What is at an end? What is beginning?
Waxing Moon: Cordyceps. Theme: Essence
What do you need if you are going to do your most powerful work?
Where in your creative practice do you need outside help and support?
Are you burning yourself out? What, aside from your writing, is occupying your time and attention?
Where are you employing your energy with intention, and where is your energy being taken from you?
Full Moon: Blue Pinkgill. Theme: Rarity
What is your creative purpose?
Have you identified and nurtured your unique creative magic?
How can you use what makes you unique to connect with others and amplify your stories?
Waning Moon: Bamboo Mushroom. Theme: Fertility
What do you need to do to share your creative work?
Who can you enlist to help you in enhancing your writing practice?
What web of relationships can you participate in to ensure mutual creative flourishing?
What creative obstacles do you need help overcoming?
📚 The Book Nook
Here are some of the best books I've read recently! (Affiliate links*)
Ship Wrecked, by Olivia Dade—The third in a series, but readable as a standalone, Ship Wrecked follows two co-stars who spend six years pining for each other in secret. Very sweet, very steamy!
Enshittification, by Cory Doctorow—You know how a lot of the internet… kind of sucks now? Cory Doctorow explains why and lays out exactly what we can do about it.
Great Circle, by Maggie Shipstead—Marian Graves wants to fly planes (a century ago). Hadley Baxter, an actress trying to save her career, wants to play Marian in a film (now). The book follows Marian and Hadley’s journeys as they each pursue their dreams, and the costs they pay for them.
How to Lose a Goblin in Ten Days, by Jessie Sylva—Sweet, cozy fiction about a halfling and a goblin who both think they have the better claim to the same cottage (and secretly think the other is cute but would rather die than admit it).
🗨️ Words from the Wise
Looking for support for your writing? Check out these goodies from around the internet.
Podcast: I was on Savannah Gilbo’s excellent podcast, Fiction Writing Made Easy, talking about the importance of eight specific habits of mind for writers.
Article: Continuing that theme, my latest article on the habits of mind is out on the Writer’s Fun Zone—in it, I discuss flexibility and why writers need it (no yoga required).
Bootcamp: Have you ever wanted to start a creative business? Beth Barany and Gala Russ are running their Find Your Creative Entrepreneur Niche Bootcamp—a four-day online event for writers who want to build a business. (affiliate link*)
*Affiliate Disclaimer: I sometimes include affiliate links to books and products I love. There's no extra cost to you when buying something from an affiliate link; making a purchase helps me keep creating Word to the Wise!
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I do not use generative AI to write my newsletter.
As a writer, I do not believe there is an ethical use case for generative AI in my creative practice or my business. That means everything you read here, from brilliance to BS, comes straight from my actual human brain.
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