Do you experience (in your mind) what you're writing?

Utamee 2021-01-28 23:13:51 UTC #28

That was strong. I do imagine as the main character in my head or Imagine I read it or being as a TV show or movie but not till all five senses feel it. But I do experience some of my idea who ended up just idea, since I mostly only told only to my closest person but never act on it, will appear as movie or TV show in upgraded style in real life. Mostly the main idea story is the same. That's why I called it upgraded style.
Not sure what this is called. But it happened since I was young.
I was once watched this Korean drama, about demon can steal your idea and sell it to other soul. lol
I know its not make sense, but there's a time, I almost convinced.
I do often can guess the story plot of movie/TV show, as what they called de ja vu or simply I watch/read too much story. Lol
@therosesword, you can see all that while being awake right? what I know If it's while sleep, they called it lucid dream.
But you can lucid while being awake. Then, that's one of your strong aptitude, And An artist might really your path. Brava!
when you go places, and feel like you ever been there, I feel that too often. That's more like de ja vu, and I think what you tell us in the first post its more like being vivid while awake. Which much more difficult to do it.

therosesword 2021-01-28 23:31:32 UTC #29

Totally while I'm awake and writing or thinking about a scene that I want to write. It's like the brain is divided in two... one side working on the story the other side doing whatever it is I'm doing, whether it's cooking or even reading sometimes (that gets annoying). It's totally second nature to me.

It's a little like existing in two places at one time.

VibrantFox 2021-01-28 23:44:36 UTC #30

Joining those who are relieved to know they're not the only ones who experience this, I genuinely thought i had my wires crossed or something.

It always varies for me though. Sometimes I can be present in a specific setting able to vaguely sense certain things or it's more like a film being projected in my head. It's far more vivid in dreams so I tend to lucid dream (or let the brain do its thing) when I'm thinking of certain scenes or trying to plot out certain points in a story.

Fully understand the oddness of pain sensations from more violent scenes and I can still vividly recall a would be character death I'd experienced in the first person in a dream

It's kind of strange but also really really cool and it's awesome knowing other folks do this too!

therosesword 2021-01-28 23:58:55 UTC #31

We are Legion! bwahahahahahahah

ar-ninetysix 2021-01-29 00:21:55 UTC #32

I tend to have a general idea, nothing too specific unless I use a real-world reference (which even then, I subconsciously blur out whatever's not mandatory to know about). General streets, buildings, rooms, planted trees, faceless uninteresting crowds in the background.. Stuff like that is purely visual and filtered for practical use.

And in terms of characters interacting, I'd say that's the most vivid part of the writing experience as I prefer to act things out and smooth out dialogue before permanently adding it to script. Emotions and physical sensations are felt out as well.. To the best of my ability, anyways. There's a lot of grave injuries in there that I've never felt and could never possibly just imagine feeling lmao

In short, my mind's eye sees everything like you would for directing a film and comes with the same limitations. Characters matter infinitely more than everything else going on for my process lol

therosesword 2021-01-29 00:30:38 UTC #33

For me, and I think it's because I acted (on stage) for awhile and everything around me was important for my character, from the placement of the props, to the fit of costumes etc. it all factors in for me. I don't put it all into a story, obviously but for me to "step into" my character it all has to be there.

But, that is what works best for me, and a way of working that "is what it is" I've never known any other way. I think it's one of the reasons I really like Ridley Scott's directing, it's so meticulous in the backgrounds. There are stage directors like that too. I remember being an extra in an opera with a director that took an extra night of work just to work with the extras and giving each one a specific character.

So many ways of working, some of them learned, some of them developed over time and some of them foisted upon you without asking. All of them valid and true.

sevenstarsofeightIam 2021-01-29 01:58:11 UTC #34

Hi, therosesword. I think minds work differently, and that's the beauty of the system. My interaction with my writing is limited. I get some imagery, a notion of things, but more so with the feelings of my characters. I have often had to stop and dab a tear from my eye.

I once had a Sunday school teacher who claimed she thought in images and to her, it was all rather instantaneous. She plugged the idea that all people thought that way.

I think exactly the way I speak. That is word for word. I read slowly and speak slowly because I think slowly. It is not all black and white. I build the imagery of my thoughts one brick at a time.

Bokyongyo 2021-01-29 02:05:14 UTC #35

I know this is mostly geared for novels but even for my comic yeah... but more so with the characters

I think making characters that are similar to people you know or even yourself makes it easier for each to become dynamic and feel real in their own way. So more so with just character building, having believable flaws and traits with them I find it essential to go about it that way.

therosesword 2021-01-29 02:21:56 UTC #36

I had to think about this for a minute and I have to admit, I've honestly never made a character like anyone I've known.

Bokyongyo 2021-01-29 02:23:36 UTC #37

In terms of full blown copies of someone, me neither, but pulling few traits here and a few traits there from others I have and still do. I understand why some wouldn't want to fully copy someone they know lmfao, especially when trying to make a individual character that stands on their own

therosesword 2021-01-29 02:37:56 UTC #38

LOL I know enough litigious people I don't dare go there. LOLOL

allenT 2021-01-29 03:30:40 UTC #39

If 'experiencing' means you make yourself becoming into your character's 1st person perspective: then i don't do that to my characters (except on my protagonist, occationally). It really takes brain effort and constant imagination.

I can't shift myself to think AS they do as they are their own individuals (I suck at pretending i have another personality). When they think or talk i only see it as a creator/director not them. When they're angry or sad i don't experience them, only to feel a small fractions of their emotions, just empathy.

I mostly imagine my story atmosphere/surroundings without a body (like 'spectator mode' in a game) This is much more easy and relaxing: the coolness of the wind, the touch of the soil on my feet, the warming sun on my skin. (sometimes the smells too)

Lahin 2021-01-29 04:57:49 UTC #40

I can't really 'imagine' stuff, to be honest. That's why I can't write fantasy. If it's places I have seen or been to in real life, like the barn, village and the sort, then yes. I can see the surroundings but I haven't smelled flowers yet
But I build my chapters around the dialogue, so I focus on it more. It comes more naturally. Then, when I need the descriptions, I switch it on and the sceneries come bursting in.
To be honest, a bit of both is what I do most of the time. It saves a lot of brain cells from doing overtime.

rajillustration 2021-01-29 05:20:59 UTC #41

I'm hella visual in my head so I do see like colors and landscapes as I read, often beyond what the writer said--which sometimes is to my detriment because then the author will declare a detail like the colors of the walls being red or something and I'll be like ...oh no...I thought this was wallpaper!

But when I'm reading books, I love well worded and lovely descriptions, me being visual doesn't make me like reading description any less. Although I read books on the other end that aren't very descriptive as well.

therosesword 2021-01-29 05:25:54 UTC #42

My Bright Morn series is the first I've ventured into fantasy everything else has been reality based (except a few scary things) around reality. I can reel off descriptions of anyplace with just a one-word prompt... it gets annoying when someone tells me they went to the beach and I see the whole scene right down to the dog taking a poop in someone's sandal.

therosesword 2021-01-29 05:26:36 UTC #43

Been there all too often!

AmysGames 2021-01-29 06:43:37 UTC #44

I don't think I experience the whole scene quite that vividly, but I can definitely get pretty absorbed into how a specific character is feeling. For example, if I'm writing about a character who's short of breath, I'll feel myself start breathing more shallowly.

Also, super emotional scenes are exhausting to write, lol. But oh I love them so.

julipow 2021-01-29 07:42:44 UTC #45

Oh my. I honestly thought I was alone with this. I always had a very vivid "imagination", it was amazing as a kid to be able to feel like you are directly in the world you are reading about. (I was quite the bookworm in my early years, I would read every minute of my free time ) To get to the point, if you think something is wrong with you for such a vivid experience when writing/acting/reading etc, I guess sonething is wrong with me as well. I might not see it as extremely vivid as you do, but I do feel, see and sometimes even smell when I'm connected to my writing/world and in the "writing headspace" how I like to call it.
I would explain it like a slightly grainy movie in front of my inner eyes, sometimes it's more blurry and sometimes it's perfectly clear and everything feels like I am present and experiencing everything through my main character's eyes. I do rarely get smells as well but one time I remember literally being stunned when smelling the brewing coffee in one scene of my novel, I believed the smell was real for a moment so I even went and checked if someone made coffee in my apartment. I think this experience is a special amazing thing both as a writer and reader.

Though I do have to say, at first everything I experienced was in German (my native language) but some years ago it switched to English, like the conversations of the characters etc. Now that I think about it, it's quite astonishing how my mind switched the "imagination" language to what I prefer more.

Either way though, as much as I love this "ability" (can you even call it that?), personally it gives me some troubles with writing. I can feel the pain, sorrow, emotions as well as see everything in front of my eyes, but when it comes to putting it down to paper in a way that does the experience justice is hard. Very hard. For some reason, sometimes I find myself staring at a blank document trying to find the right words to describe what I "imagined" but no matter what I write it ends up not feeling right or not fitting well enough for my taste. That might just be me though. It's frustrating but I hope with more practice and experience in writing, I will be able to ease down that struggle in the future.

Kaydreamer 2021-01-29 07:57:56 UTC #46

I imagine very vividly as well! For me, it's the case for all five senses, but especially sound. I can hear things with such clarity in my mind that sometimes I'm not sure whether I actually heard a sound, or just imagined hearing it.

For sensations, I don't actually feel pain or anything, but I can imagine what it does feel like and get a kind of ghost sensation of that. Right now, I'm imagining crisp, cold grass under my feet, and I can feel it pricking my toes, crunching under me, the cool wetness of it on my soles - but I can also feel my feet right where they are, tucked up under me on the couch.

It's like a ghost of me goes to wander in the land of imagination. I see and hear and feel and taste and smell everything that ghost does, but it's separate from my actual, physical body.

I also tend to visualise better with my eyes open, unless I'm very sleepy. It always baffled me as a kid when people would say "close your eyes and imagine" because I needed my eyes open to look around the environment I was imagining!

cookieroach 2021-01-29 13:10:04 UTC #47

When writing I usually prefer to focus on the words (how they sound), instead of visualising. And I also dislike reading novels with too many visual descriptions, I usually skip those because it feels like filler to me. But I have a bad habit of daydreaming where it feels like I’m watching a movie, it’s really a time sink for me and something I’ve always been embarrassed of My favorite thing is feeling what the characters are thinking/feeling, especially when you do it with multiple characters at once (because that’s not possible in real life). I hope I’m not the only one doing that!