The process of thinking outside the box

 

The process of thinking outside of the box takes one on a path that bends, and twist and winds around to places never before acknowledged by the everyday thought process. It's what you would call another reality.  Being so deeply submerged into his or her thought process is referred to as unrestrained and critical thinking; which often leads to creative visualization.  From that union a gestation period forms, thoughts, ideals, and concepts; birthing a “Word-Smith”.  A “word smith” is a special kind of person; one who sits and chisels at a manuscript’s first draft for hours unrelenting, consistent, and determined. 
 Despite the obstacles and challenged along the way she is never wavering from her path.  She is devout in her purpose following her path with all the twist and turns; sometime never knowing where they may lead her.  Enduring frustrations along that road are many for this new born “Word Smith” learning to circumvent or avoid the predators that disguise themselves as friendly well meaning publishing houses with their minions speaking in garbled contractual languages sometimes they themselves don’t understand. 
 The “Word Smith” must also learn to swim in the deep waters of proof reading and editing avoiding the carnivores of typos and grammar, and the ocean of formatting.  Sometimes these horrific waves are over whelming resulting in mistakes; however not life threatening, but these mistakes in the hands of the average hater can cause great distress, and annoyances. Of course along any path taken there will be mistakes made, it is not the end of the world.  The sun will continue to rise and set.  The moon will maintain its orbit as will the earth.  It is being able to acknowledge these mistakes made and regroup from them making one a better Word Smith.  It is what I refer to as the “Re-Birth Process” after crashing and burning one rises up like the Phoenix to something amazingly better.  You have now completed your rights of passage where you can now where the title of “Creative Writer”  As a creative writer I’ve always thought that the thought process and mind set was crucial, not to mention world view, and one's own evolution. 

 The collection of experiences one possesses on this plain of existence is invaluable as a creative

being, and how we view ourselves is of equal importance for our creation process.  To know who you are as a person and where your blood line originates is to know thyself and to be true to ones ethnicity so you may write from the heart, and the spirit.  It is invaluable that positive characters populate our stories, novels, comic books and media in general.  Heroes that  resemble our

ancestors is empowerment of the spirit. Their deeds and actions of courage create the story lines and plots.

It was the late Octavia Butler an African descended female who pioneered this trail for those who would bring our rich culture into the realm of this genre. Her writings has inspired me since my youth, and she is a true hero that deserves all our praise as an honorable ancestor now.  There was a great deal I leaned from this legend as a writer. We birth our characters  and mold them to be strong, nurturing,  powerful, and intelligent that is how they become super heroes, warriors queens, healers in the fine arts of metaphysics, and so much more.  They are not to be anything less, nor disrespected or portrayed in a negative or derogatory roles.  We are more then a sub-culture, we have a rich culture that extends beyond the Diaspora.

As a mid-night writer/ creative writer it is imperative  that I think and write outside of the box, but in order to create in that capacity you have to step outside of what is common place.  You have to leave behind what is familiar and what is comfortable.  You often walk a path that very few walk.  A world perspective takes one outside of his or her comfort zone.  Before I wrote my first Sci- Fi novel 

“Cosmic Beginnings The Chaos Chronicles” I traveled extensively along the West coast of Africa.  From Senegal  to Gambia to Ghana, and Togo briefly stopping thru Nigeria and Namibia.  Those experiences allowed me to expand my horizons, my world view and see and feel the land my ancestors came from.  The slave castles and dungeons were a most intense and emotional experience.  Making that particular pilgrimage was life changing, but witnessing the greatness of our ancestors was an experience that will forever influence my writing.

Not everyone is able to hop on a plane and just take off, but the world wide web is at our disposal  as a learning tool. We need not be locked into only writing of small trivial existences of media exploited misery pertaining to thugs, drugs, and crime ridden communities infested with cultural

amnesia and ignorance.

My mother a venerated ancestor told me as a child grow up finish school and see the world. So I

Did. The military bounced me around the globe, and when they finished my ancestors called me to

return to the beginning allowing me to create Cosmic Beginnings the Chaos Chronicles Vol. 1&2the beginning of a new genre where Africa’s legends, myths, and oral traditions rise up to elevate

those literary concepts, and talents to blend into the new millennium.