I finished going through the papers from long ago that had landed on the floor of my office, but yesterday I tackled another organizing project: office supplies.  Read: journals.  As in unused ones. I've got tons of them.  After my initial foray into sorting them, I told my husband that if I ever uttered the words, "I need to buy a journal," he was under orders to shoot.

Because I've got boxes and boxes of them, enough writing paper to last me nearly a lifetime. (And, you mark my words, I'll be buying another one within the month because I won't be able to find one that feels just right in the moment.  I know myself too well.)  Some of them are inappropriate for my needs and clearly need to be given away, which is the project at hand.  Along the way I'm finding several journals that only have one or two pages filled out.

And that's where today's post comes in.  On one of those pages, I found the following meditation, scrawled down years ago for my coaching clients in a moment of inspiration.  I figured I'd share it with you.  This meditation was written down and forgotten, so its not been tested in real life.  I decided I'd test it on you guys, since I love you so much.

(This meditation was designed to elicit information about a book you might want to write, but you could adapt the process slightly to make it work for anything else, such as an article or a story.)

Here goes:

1. Sit quietly and center yourself.  Take a few deep breaths and then focus on yourself breathing in and out as you quiet your mind.

2. Now allow your mind to settle on an image.  It's you, sitting behind a table at a book store.  The table in front of you is stacked with books.  Your book!  Picture the whole thing in your mind and then zone in closer.  Now notice:

–What your book looks like

–What is the title?

3.  As you hone in on the book, witness yourself opening the book.  And see:

–What is the book about?

–What does the subject matter on the Table of Contents cover?

(It doesn't matter if you don't see it all this time through.  This will give you a starting point, a springboard for further exploration through free writing.)

4.  As your signing ends, a person come out of the crowd that is now leaving, books in hand.  Oh my goodness, she looks just like a fairy godmother.  She is a fairy godmother!  And she has something for you.  She hand it to you.

–Open your hand and describe what she gives you as fully as possible.

This is your touchstone to carry with you as you write this book. 

That's it!  That's the meditation.  Hope it's helpful.  Have fun with it and adapt it any way you see fit.

Create a successful, inspired writing life:  Experiment with meditation,either guided or not,  in your life and see how it affects your writing practice.  Do you see a difference in your writing?  In how you approach it?

Please share your ideas on meditation.  Do you do it regularly?  Once in a while?  Never?  How does it impact your writing?  I'd love to hear your opinions on the subjec. 

Photo by MVWorks.