I love that word: Free. It may just be my favorite word in the English language – and FREE writing is one of my favorite activities as a writer.

Free writing is simple in theory. All you do is sit down and write, letting your mind take you wherever it wants to go. Yet, it can sometimes be hard to surrender. Often we have a finite quantity of time and infinite number of things to do. We bring our agenda to the notepad or computer when we want to write and often this pressure to be productive may choke out thoughtful creativity. Or, there is something on our mind that is pestering us like a gnat, flying around, distracting our focus from the writing at hand. The goal of free writing is to get all these worries, to-do-lists, and distractions out on the page – first – before even stressing over what comes next.

Creative writing frequently faces challenges of left-brain logic. Free writing lets you process all these practical concerns on the page so that you can break through into a fun space of ideas that flow through the once clogged orifice.

Then, with all this jumble out of the way, free writing allows the right side of your brain to dance – and you may actually be surprised what comes out of you.

When I have a scene I want to craft, either from real life or fiction, I simply sit down and write without filtering myself. This is my brand of free writing. I don’t judge my word choice or sentence structure in this stage. I don’t edit. It is simply a free flowing process. My favorite place to free write is in a program called Write or Die. I set the time and the word count and get started. I write till I am done and aim to get every detail out of me, forgoing every perfectionistic tendency. Free writing has helped me be a free spirit. Plus, its fun.

Have you ever tried free writing?

Did you ever write anything during free writing that surprised you?

If you have never tried free writing, don’t psych yourself out. Give it a go!