Visions During the Mindless

Most of us have chores we do where our minds are free to wander while our bodies do work.  Running, well slow jogging nowadays, has always been a time when my thoughts bounce randomly about.  Especially in the winter when my feet are more likely to be striking the unchanging surface of the treadmill rather than dodging traffic. 

This summer I've been doing most of the mowing on our acre plus lawn with a push mower as our tractor works in fits and spurts.  I love the exercise but I really like the mindless chore where my mind can work over problems in my writing, plan dinner and dream about making it big so I can hire someone to mow the hilly parts of the back lot. 

Two days ago I did some baking while the kids and my husband were all at work.  The house was blessedly quiet and I couldn't resist pulling out some receipes I'd saved to try.  Once everything is mixed together, I realized baking was one of those chores I only needed a part of my mind to do.  Some of my thoughts turned to the grim spector of my laptop sitting all alone in a repair shop but mostly I worked through my writing plans.

Vacuuming, laundry and other household chores are other pursuits I can do with half a thought.  Gardening and washing the car are some other outdoor activities that give me lots of time to think. 

I tell myself these mindless tasks are actually time spent on my writing.  What chores or activities do you do with half a thought for what your muscles are doing? 

Lightning Bolts

If you're a writer, it happens to you.  Some plot issue weighs on your mind.  Perhaps it's a relationship you need to complicate, a character you want to eliminate in a memorable fashion or an event you want to foreshadow in a clever manner.  You think about even when you don't know you are.  Then out of the blue, the solution strikes you like a lightning bolt.  You know it will work.

Driving is a time for me when my mind will dwell subconsciously on my writing.  Those lightning strikes of inspiration often find me behind the wheel.  In the summer one of the times I consciously search for inspiration is when I'm doing mindless activities like mowing the grass.  We have a good-sized property.  It takes over an hour even with a riding mower to clip all the green stuff.  Lots of time to work through the twists and turns needed to keep a reader turning the pages.

The only bad thing about ideas slapping your overburdened minds during those times is the difficulty of writing it down before you forget it.  I usually try to work out the details surrounding the lightning bolt so I don't forget the main part.  I've forgotten a few times like the time I got the tractor stuck in a wet part of the yard. 

I know some people get those flashes of inspiration as they fall asleep or dream about them.  They keep a notepad by the bed so they can write them down.  I almost never think of anything useful for my writing before I fall asleep since it usually takes me about forty seconds to drift into mindless slumber.

What about you?  When do those lightning bolts strike you?  Do you ever forget them before you can write them down?