Art Imitates Life Imitates Art

An alternate title here would be, "How I get so deep into my own head that I can't escape!" 

I'm not sure if art imitates life or the other way around. As I wrote today, I started thinking about my writing process and how to do it better. I confess, that's not something I do too often anymore - think too deep. But it happened and I have to share.

First, some backstory. The other day, I had coffee with a dear friend, who is also part of my writing team. One of the many things we discussed was semi-conscious ideas. Some of my best ideas come, A) when I've hit the snooze button and am in that semi-conscious state, or B) when I'm doing something else, like mowing the lawn, and my mind is in neutral. Some tiny idea sneaks into my brain and then I run with it. Heck, my American Revolution trilogy was born during a monotonous task at work!

Flash forward- I was writing this morning, and my heroes, Gus and Greta, are stumped as to how to proceed with their mystery. So they stop thinking about it and go about their day. She does some work on her computer and he focuses on sailing the boat. Later, they're playing their nightly game of chess, when inspiration hits her. Greta's brain (and Gus') stopped thinking about the one task, but when she did, the real task came into focus. 

Then I went with that concept through the next chapter. And how sailing is a great metaphor for solving mysteries- stuff happens when it happens. For me, that means ideas will strike when they choose. Honestly, when I sit and try to think of great ideas, it never happens. 

Then Gus and Greta started thinking of their adventure like a chess game. Thinking ahead and how one thing leads to another, which is also how my writing works. Then I got hungry and made nachos. 

As I ate my nachos (they were delicious), I started thinking that that's exactly how my brain works. Good. Great. So what? So now I have to figure out how to use that knowledge. Does it mean I take more naps and use that semi-conscious time to my advantage? Or should I do the dishes and see what happens? Or at those just excuses to avoid writing?

Ack! Now you see where my alternate title comes from. I understand why so many writers go insane.