Write Awake: Inspiration from The Elements (Part 4 ~ Water)

Welcome to the final installment of Write Awake: Inspiration from The Elements, a 4-part conscious writing series.

---

In time and with water, everything changes. ~ Leonardo da Vinci

Have you noticed that writing is like the ocean waves? It’s always ebbing and flowing—either a high tide full of joy or a low tide of despair.

One day I got angry about pretty much everything. Since the element of Water governs our emotions, I added a few drops of anger-relieving flower essence into my drinking water, then consulted my Water Alchemy pocket oracle for guidance. “What do I need to know about “going with the flow?” I asked.

The message I received was Undertow:

“Just as an undertow can quietly shift a swimmer’s direction, this theme invites you to trust your intuition and explore deeper aspects of your circumstances. This theme serves as a reminder to stay grounded, aware, and confident in your ability to navigate whatever comes your way.”

We depend upon Water for bathing, hydrating, growing our gardens, and cleaning our spaces. It’s essential for our livelihood. For writers, Water can be a power source of inspiration, a fluid messenger of change.

One of my favorite quotes about Water is attributed to the late and great martial arts master, Bruce Lee:

“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.

Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”

Just as Water transforms an object, words transform our stories. To keep mine afloat, I like to play the “What if?” game. It’s when I look at a character and keep asking myself questions about their backstory or actions.

I did this when I was writing Inn Lak’ech. For instance:

What if Elm goes to Scotland and…

What if she meets the Loch Ness Monster and…

What if they go to a party together and…

What if one of the party guests is an old friend and…

What if that guest gives her a new perspective about her life?

It’s like bouncing ideas from one wave to another. If I change the plot or add this subplot, what will happen? Will it destroy my original vision? And if it does, can I live with that change if it makes my story more engaging to my readers?

Water’s message is to be adaptable and be prepared to adjust the sails when navigating through stormy writing seas.

Exercises:

• Write a list of ways you can get back on course when your writing drifts.

• Write about the most difficult obstacle you have faced this year and how you handled it.

• Make a major change in your current writing project. How do you feel about it?

---

For more tips on conscious writing, read Write Awake: A Conscious Path to Creativity and Change by Eleyne-Mari Sharp.