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Use Awe to Spark Creativity

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Awe is Integral to Creativity

Unless you’re a full-time author, finding time and/or motivation to write can be challenging. So, finding time to boost your creativity at the expense of your writing time…crazy talk.

But…

What if I told you that staring at a dark sky full of stars was integral to your creativity?

What if I told you that watching a video celebrating human ingenuity was as important as getting words on the page?

What if I told you that you absolutely should listen to that amazing album by your favorite band and not write?

What if doing all these things made you more creatively productive?

I know. Crazy.

Or is it?

The Science Behind Awe

Awe is defined as “an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like.”

Researchers have long believed in the power of positive feelings to impact creativity, however a study by Jia Wei Zhang proves that simply having positive emotions isn’t the biggest influence on creativity.

In order to significantly bolster our creativity, we need to experience awe.

Zhang found that “the experience of awe can lead to an open mindset, orient people to explore, and approach experiences with unconventional perspectives—all of which are processes critical to creativity.” (Zhang, 2017)

Even more interesting is the study found that experiencing awe is more impactful on creativity than amusement. Zhang references another study conducted in 2007 that concluded that people who relived a memory of awe, as opposed to one of happiness, “reported being more willing to engage in a creative activity in the next hour.” (Shiota et al., 2007)

So, there you have it. Scientific proof that experiencing awe will inspire you to write in the next hour.

If you need a short-cut to getting motivated to write…this is it.

Habitualize Experiencing Awe

So how do you make a habit of something that seems spontaneous or uncontrollable?

Awe can be intentional.

gold beach sunset.JPG

We’ve all noticed a beautiful sunset. But there is a significant difference in noticing a beautiful sunset versus allowing yourself to sink into why that sunset is beautiful, to ponder all the factors that had to happen to not only create that fleeting masterpiece, but to also place you in that moment so you could experience it, and to understand that this moment will never be replicated. That you’ve experienced a once-in-a-lifetime sunset.

You do have the ability to turn simple moments into moments of awe.

In the beginning, set reminders on your phone to search for these moments. Or start your writing session with an intentional moment of awe.

Fortunately, habitualizing awe is fun, and once you get started, it’s easy to continue.

Your Awe Starter Kit

If you’re someone who has a difficult time being awed, here’s a starter kit for you. Once you start making awe a normal part of your day, you’ll find your own moments and be able to create your own ‘playlist of awe’ in order to kickstart your writing sessions.

  1. Nature
    1. Sunsets/Sunrises
    2. Starry nights
    3. Leaves blowing in the street
    4. A flower blooming
    5. Wind blowing through the trees
  2. Family
    1. A child’s laughter
    2. A sleeping child (which can be many different levels of awe)
    3. Reliving their childhood through photos
    4. The love you hold for your SO and/or children
    5. Your own parent’s or parental figure’s love and sacrifice for you
  3. The Arts
    1. Videos of your favorite type of dance (ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop)
    2. Poetry
    3. A beautifully written line in a book
    4. A painting that moves something within you
    5. Music – particularly a song that allows you to listen on a deeper level
  4. Travel
    1. New-to-you sights
    2. Stained glass windows in churches
    3. A place steeped in history, which you’ve read about
    4. Walk in the footsteps of your ancestors
    5. Engage with people who don’t speak your language or share your culture
  5. Humans
    1. New inventions
    2. New discoveries
    3. Theories about ancient civilizations
    4. Videos of the deepest parts of the ocean
    5. Stories about people who overcome great odds

What about you? Do you have a moment of awe you’d like to share?

Work Cited:
Zhang, Jia Wei. Trait and State Based Experience of Awe Promotes Creativity. 2017, UC Berkeley.
EScholarship.org, https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9k10094r.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Dennis says

    Has anyone said, “Aw shucks.”? Come on. It’s an ‘e’ away. Cut us some slack! . . . ? . . .

  2. Abigail says

    As an ostensibly full-time writer, I can assure you that finding the motivation (or sometimes courage) to write is still hard 😂 Thank you for this!

  4. Andie says

    Your Awe Starter Kit has have left out that most awe-inspiring magic of all – that which is able to invoke the most grand, sublime, extremely powerful experience: music. For some it may be the driving beat of a rock band: for me is classical music. Nothing inspires me with more stirring emotions than a full orchestra, belting out the noisier bits of Beethoven or Tchaikovsky. For emotions of love, YoYoMa on the cello can pluck my heart-strings, or the plangent tones of a single oboe can evoke loneliness or even despair. In search or inspiration for a story, I turned to an aria from Carmen, and I was off. For a winter tale, Vivaldi’s Winter from the 4 Seasons set the scene for me, creating a mental picture of a steam train speeding across a snowy Russian landscape. Oh yes, my muse, Thalia, does her bit, but sometimes she won’t co-operate. .And that’s when I turn to music.

    • Christina Delay says

      Hi Andie! I did include music! Because I completely agree – music, so often, is what lights the fire for my muse. And I love so much that you know the Muse Thalia :).

  6. Karen says

    I just got myself a VR system. Looking at some of the 360 videos of places I have never been is awe-inspiring! Going to the top of mountains I probably will never climb, or depths of the ocean I may never get to is like being transported into a whole other world!

    It has definitely upped my awe-factor!

    PS. This morning the sky was that deep red as the sun came up. I was going to run and get my camera, but instead, I just stood there and enjoyed it. I knew I could never capture that exact moment the same way and I wanted to enjoy it as it lasted.

    • Christina Delay says

      What a wonderful idea!! I never even considered this option. Go you!!

      And I think we run to those cameras far too often. Enjoy the moment with your eyes instead of through a lens :).

  7. Dave Williams says

    Wonderful advice here to not only seek moments of awe, but a starter kit for specifics. I aim to include experiences of awe in my life, such as walks in the woods (light through leaves awes me) and listening to music (I’m a fan of “post-rock” instrumental music, for example the band Explosions in the Sky). Others can be reading a book by an author I admire and going to art museums.

  8. Jemima Pett says

    I see I’m well up to speed on my awe-factor!
    I’ve shared one thing I found awesome on my blog today, in the Frozen Lake flash fiction. Planets with frozen surfaces and fluid oceans underneath, even if they are methane, not water. Wow. The possibilities for an sf writer 🙂

    Jemima

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