Hypnotic Writing

• “What do I want to learn?”
  Example: To write without Self One interrupting.
  Answering those questions will give you a complete target to
  hand over to Self Two, the Master Writer within you. By describing
  your goal completely, you will be putting your order in and making
  Self Two aware of what you want.
  You’re making a request. You’re asking Self Two to help you cre-
  ate a specific piece of writing. In order to get what you want, you
  must knowwhat you want. So be sure your goal is exact, specific,
  and tangible. If you don’t have a clear goal, you won’t get a clear or
  useful result.
  Self Two takes orders. Your job in this step is to give it a clear
  request.

Step Two: Be Aware of the Moment

All you have is thismoment. The past is gone and the future isn’t

here yet. Thoughts of the past happen in thismoment. Visions of

the future happen in thismoment. Your point of power is now.

This is the secret to keeping Self One, the chatterbox “monkey

mind,” quiet. When you are focused on this moment, you squelch

Mr. Editor. Eastern philosophers have known this for centuries. Be

aware of something in this moment, something that occupies

your mind, and you concentrate all your attention on the moment

at hand.

Gallwey suggests tennis players pay close attention to the ball, to

see its color, seams, movement. What I do in writing is focus on the

pen moving across the page, or on my fingers hitting the keyboard

(I have to see the keys to know what to hit). Though I can still hear

Self One muttering, I ignore him. In a very real way I am in a hyp-

notic trance as I write, what horror-king Stephen King calls “the

writer’s trance.”

When you’re focused on the activity happening right now, you

are open to Self Two’s guiding hand and not vulnerable to Self

One’s editorial voice. If you use a word processor or computer,

turn your screen off. Just concentrate on the writing. Without the

HYPNOTIC WRITING