Dream a little dream
Posted by Ariel · Writing

I had a busy morning catching up on all my chores and bills and then it was 2 o'clock and I looked at my list and what's next on it? "Write STD Card* chapter of book." But you know what? I felt about as inspired as a … as a … um, really uninspired person.

So, I defaulted to my favorite Plan B: I took a shower and then a nap. While I was sleeping I had a long circuitous dream about singing. (Tip for those who haven't known me all my life: I used to be an active vocalist, even getting a vocal scholarship for college. I abruptly stopped singing in 1994 and haven't done so much as karaoke since then.) In the dream, I was brainstorming for an album I was going to be recording, trying to compose the songs I would sing. I was forcing it, and nothing was working. Then I stopped and tried just freestyling and scatting and this perfect peal of joy came out of my mouth and the song made perfect sense and the clarity of my voice was surprising even to my own ears. The lyrics were something like 'Baby, my life is un-defeatable …"

That's pretty much the best dream ever in terms of lifting me out of an afternoon creative slump. A vision of finding my own voice? I'll take it! I woke up and started writing immediately. No guarantee it's great writing, but my writing is conversational and my process is all about verbal diarrhea. Once I can get the spigot of written feces flowing, things usually work out just fine. Added bonus: I slept through the hours that are consistently an energetic black hole for me: 3 – 5 p.m.

• STD Card is definitely the best wedding phrase ever!