My mind gets f*cked up changes when I fly. I can feel it. Probably a bit more optimistic, definitely reflective. Kinda spacey, expanding. Synapses fire with a distinct (bluish) spark. So, of course, I try to...write. Which is a bit hard when they have on-demand movies (right now I'm half-watching Charlie Wilson's War). But I soldier on. And since I can't quite focus on our next screenplay, my altitudinally shifted mind is somewhat fascinated by its own (sorry) state. So the question of the moment is, is it beneficial to write high?
Francis Crick conceptualized the DNA double helix. For years the story went that he was buzzed on Guinness at the time, turns out he was trippin'. Not only that, he became a lifelong proponent of employing hallucinogens for problem solving. Now when a cat who made arguably the most important discovery of the twentieth century advocates visiting a place where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies - I listen.
Writers are notorious addicts. And to be clear, I'm not personally down with tumbling into the rabbit hole as a lifestyle choice. I have enough demons of my own without scaring more up with a speedball. What I'm talking about is the deliberate, controlled use of mind altering substances to spur creative thinking. And yes, I realize "controlled use of mind altering substances" is probably an oxymoron. Or is it?
So let's (conveniently) put aside moral, legal and logistical concerns for the moment (if you have a problem with that, comment away straight-edge). The challenge, as I see it, is that pure creativity is mad difficult. You have to work your bag off to come up with a scene or a line of dialog that's never existed. Congratulations, now rinse and repeat for an entire script.
Minds work in patterns. And that thing that makes you original is the same thing that makes it hard to break out of your particular expression of originality. So since the dawn of narrative, writers have tried to skip the needle out of the grooves in their minds by way of substance.
Have I tried this...would I tell you if I had? Maybe this post is a convenient way to cover my tracks? Or perhaps it's a clever cross-sell for one of our scripts that deal with drug culture (ask about our TV pilot)? Or, more likely, it's just me on a plane wondering if I can capture this feeling once my feet are on the ground.
Cannabis has definitely been integral to my path as an artist. I can honestly say I would not be the artist I am today had I never grown my own in college. First I was really blazed in my life on some organic Skunk #1 I grew I felt like I had been waiting to get high my whole life. My imagination was unleashed in ways I had never thought possible. It's as if God himself was air mailing ideas directly into my brain, showing me the path to take with an idea and all I had to do was execute it. The last two years of school I hardly had a social life because I would get high and draw/paint/write for 10 hours. As a result I only have like two friends I stay in touch with from school but the benefit is that I awoke my third eye. I've done shrooms, wild ones that grow in Oregon, and that has affected more my ego and general outlook on life but I can't say I was creatively inspired. Never done acid. Check out some of my paintings, all of them were influenced or painted by the sweet chronic. For me, a natural born artist, it works wonders, but for a lot of people it just makes them dumb, probably only because they aren't smoking top quality organic and cured bud. The early years of smoking were definitely more ritualistic, ceremonial. Now I just love gettin high at a party, drivin down I-5, whatever. But the act of getting high to look for inspiration is definitely still there.
I'll be sure to check out your work. Thanks for chatting about your experiences. I can't say substances have had the same influence on my output, but it's fascinating to see how others think artistically.
about half of my posts are probably written high, i think... lol not sure, maybe less, probably less. I think I usually use too much for it to be helpful for creativity. not to mention my anxiety problems. I think I abuse it too much for it to help me be creative, or maybe I'm just to stressed and anxious to begin with. yeah I guess that's it. I mostly abuse it to feel good, as in to alleviate depression, which hardly works (well maybe it does help me pin point my problems?). but my goal is to be happy enough without drugs to be able to use them truly for what i believe they should be used for. creativity and meditation type stuff. I can't even comprehend my own thoughts about this stuff (drugs, medicine, depression, life). but then again i think if i was happy i wouldn't even care to do any drugs. peace
Good insight. To be honest, most people I know who dabble do it for hedonistic or self-medicating purposes. I'm definitely curious about people who are restrained and partake with a sense of purpose. I guess there's fairly big potential for a downward spiral, but there are some interesting payoffs as well.
Everyone gets their "inspiration" in different ways. And creatives sometimes use a method that's wayyyy safer than the soccer moms driving around with their "mommy's little helpers" prescription.
Welcome to the interweb zone's dopest gangsta screenwriting site (whateva that means) - set in Brooklyn, starring me, Silent P and yo mamma. Dig it. <3g
"List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they're not any good, but they must be songs you're really enjoying now, shaping your summer. Post these instructions in your blog along with your 7 songs. Then tag 7 other people to see what they're listening to."
Good topic for conversation.