Daily Archives: February 17, 2012

No formal writing last night. My wife- a very talented performer- had the opening of a show in which she’s appearing. (Check out “The Marvelous Wonderettes” if you want some light entertainment and laughs in the next two weeks. Info at Rarely Done Production’s website.) I was at the opening and after getting home and driving the babysitter home, I was too tired to write.

But- I got 150 words of notes related to another idea. Prior to going to the show yesterday, I was at my oldest son’s swim meet. Watching him compete got some ideas flowing. By the time I was at the theater a couple of hours later, another story’s roots had taken hold.

I am a recent owner of a smartphone and it really appeals to my inner geek. I’ve had a lot of fun exploring the Android Market for apps and found some good ones. The IMDB app for Android is particularly cool. I use it a lot when the “where have I seen that actor before” question comes up.

I had been looking for an app that would work as a mobile notepad for my writing. I’m comfortable using my PC to capture and store my brainstorming notes. I’ve got a document folder that houses Word docs for story ideas, my observations, works in progress,etc. but was ready for a newer tool. I was interested in an app that would allow me to capture notes or ideas but would also sync across multiple devices.

I installed Evernote (free!) on my phone the other day. Although I haven’t dug into the features or used the tutorial, the app is pretty intuitive. I started using it right after installation and was able to get going very quickly. I moved some notes from the story I’ve been working on the last few days to the app and was happy with the results.

So last night before the show, ideas for a new story were nibbling at my attention. I grabbed my phone, opened the virtual notepad and started capturing some ideas. Looking at them this morning, I’m happy that I stopped to capture the thoughts.

I’m very happy that I seem to be open to this creative process. I’ve got some strong feelings that I think would help tell an interesting story. Having a tool to help facilitate that process allows me to recognize when I’ve got something going without taking over my focus- a few moments to jot down some ideas and I could return to my original activity.

Here’s my thought for the day: I’m putting in a lot of effort to cultivate this creative process within me. What’s the point of doing that if I’m not able to recognize progress when it happens? Pay attention to yourself. Set yourself up for success by preparing for progress and ensuring you’re able to capitalize on it. For me, that means having a (digital) notepad handy and stopping to capture new ideas.

For whatever it is that you want to accomplish, how can you set up yourself up to capitalize on progress?