Rest as a Creative Tool

why rest is essential, & not a hindrance, to creativity

A reminder: REASONS FOR LIVING with Esmé Weijun Wang is a newsletter that comes out every other week and is free, featuring a guest essay, poem, piece of visual art, and journal prompt. These things all hang together in one singular edition.

On the days when REASONS FOR LIVING is not sharing those things, I share a personal essay that is indeed paywalled. This is for a number of reasons: some of my personal essays are quite personal, and I like the idea of a bit of protection; also, it was promised near the beginning of the year that paying subscribers would receive a paywalled personal essay every other week, and I am trying to keep that promise. Paying members also get to participate in my monthly Fireside Chats, which explore some aspects of creativity and life.

We are currently in a strange time over here, which is why the newsletter has taken a different shape—right now, I’m mostly consumed with thinking about C and what is going on with his health. I plan to return to our regularly scheduled program soon.

Also: I do provide comped subscriptions for people who are financially unable to afford the $7/month for a paid subscription. No evidence is required (I trust y’all!). DM me with your request for a comped subscription email address in this format: name [at] gmail [dot] com, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

This morning, I asked my Tarot cards: What should I keep in mind for the day?

I received the Four of Swords. Take a nap, it said. Have a breather. The card depicts a napping pilot with a cup of boba (!) next to them. Their plane is in the background, getting gassed up.

While checking my Daily Assignments (a process made possible by my ace assistant, Dan), I read his newest pep talk, which concluded with: “Also, I hope you get time to rest.”

But I need to write the newsletter going out on Monday, I thought and clicked over to my Drafts; I had a vague sense of having begun a draft of the newsletter and clicked over to it. The title: Rest as a Creative Tool.

(Okay, Universe. I’m getting the message.)

Although living with multiple fatigue-causing chronic illnesses has meant that I do, in fact, spend plenty of time resting, I often fight the need in favor of work. There’s endless heaps of work to do, some of which I enjoy and some of which I don’t—but either way, my container of work expands to as much space as I give it. And if you’re anything like me, you give it a lot—because of the capitalist society that persistently makes us anxious about money and makes us need money to live; because of the idea of the Protestant work ethic that means working ourselves to the bone is the most wonderful thing that a person can do.

But what if rest can be seen as a creative tool?

Sleep might be the most widely considered form of rest. Einstein used to solve problems by instructing his brain before bed to work on the knotty issue in his dreams. James Watson of “Watson and Crick,” one of the scientists who figured out the structure of DNA, was stumped by the problem until he dreamt one night of a spiral staircase.

I’ve had dreams that were so wild and vivid that I dropped them wholesale into stories and books. Like many writers, I’ve also jotted down the wispy remnants of dream thoughts upon waking, thinking them to be brilliant in the moment. Most of the time, they’re nonsensical when I check them later. Once in a while, they make enough sense for me to keep.

Take, for example, this line that I’ve saved in my notes; I doubt I’ll ever use it, but I enjoy its verve:

“Mrs. Wu, please put the gun down. It simply assures that one of us will be using it.”

Or take this: a brain overwhelmed by piles of thought won’t be clear enough for deeper insight. Creative acts yearn to make meaning, and meaning comes not from what’s on the surface, but from reflection. To rest without doing a million things at once is a gift to the psyche, which may then dig down further and unearth creative gold. Have you ever played a game like Tetris for hours, only to see dropping blocks in your mind’s eye once your head hits the pillow? Your mind reflects on whatever it is you’ve been doing, even while you’re resting.

And if you are constantly doing a million things at once, you’re far more likely to burn out, which will fritz out your creative synapses and force you to rest in a way that’s far more unpleasant than if you were otherwise integrating rest into your schedule.

Nor does resting always mean sleep! Most activities that set your heart rate at a lower beat count as resting in my book. Perhaps reading is your form of rest, or knitting, or sifting through Pinterest while lying in bed. Meditation chills out the nervous system, allowing your brain to move out of stress-and-survival mode into one that enables a more florid imagination.

I’ll sometimes complain to my BFF, “I haven’t worked on my book in days.” And she’ll gently remind me that actually, I’m working on my book even when I’m not looking at an open file. It’s there on the back burner, simmering away in my moments of drawing birds or watching Season 6 of ‘Vanderpump Rules.” The sensory input of rest—yes, even including watching Jax cheat on Brittany—feeds what I call the compost heap of creativity, dumping it all in a messy stew that will one day sprout a bloom. As someone with POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome), taking a walk isn’t one of my favorite activities, but I know that when I do embark upon a perambulation, all of my senses are alight. Outdoors, I’m gathering material without needing to think about it.

But how can I get rest?

Right now you may be thinking, “Esmé, how do I get rest? I literally have no time for it.”

Dude, I hear you! Maybe you’re working three jobs and have two kids and a vibrant life of volunteering. Maybe you’re a high-powered CEO and in your spare time, you… go to the bathroom (and grab a drink of water if you’re lucky).

For those of you who can’t fathom having any amount of rest in your fully packed life, perhaps, instead of a fully-fledged nap, you can use smaller pockets of pausing—five minutes of waiting for your kid at after-school pickup spent closing your eyes and doing a brief meditation instead of fretting about your latest stressor, or a few deep breaths while you’re in the bathroom stall at work. Remember that you don’t have to earn rest. Rest is essential to life; it’s essential to being alive.

As for me? Today I need to get some lab work done and pick up a prescription, but I’m also planning to read a good lesbian romance and nap.

What rest can you fit into your schedule? How does rest enable your creative spark?

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ANNOUNCEMENT

I’m now taking submissions for my newsletter, REASONS FOR LIVING, for the Reason for Living editions. Entries should be essays about a reason for living and can be as short or long as you want. Please read at least a few Reason for Living editions before submitting. 10% of the income from the edition goes to an organization of the author’s choice. Submissions should be sent to submissions@esmewang.com.

A reminder: REASONS FOR LIVING with Esmé Weijun Wang is a newsletter that comes out every other week and is free, featuring a guest essay, poem, piece of visual art, and journal prompt. These things all hang together in one singular edition.

On the days when REASONS FOR LIVING is not sharing those things, I share a personal essay that is indeed paywalled. This is for a number of reasons: some of my personal essays are quite personal, and I like the idea of a bit of protection; also, it was promised near the beginning of the year that paying subscribers would receive a paywalled personal essay every other week, and I am trying to keep that promise. Paying members also get to participate in my monthly Fireside Chats, which explore some aspects of creativity and life.

We are currently in a strange time over here, which is why the newsletter has taken a different shape—right now, I’m mostly consumed with thinking about C and what is going on with his health. I plan to return to our regularly scheduled program soon.

Also: I do provide comped subscriptions for people who are financially unable to afford the $7/month for a paid subscription. No evidence is required (I trust y’all!). DM me with your request for a comped subscription email address in this format: name [at] gmail [dot] com, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.