tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post3016165082755849590..comments2024-03-25T09:56:16.164+00:00Comments on An Awfully Big Blog Adventure: Journey Into Space - Nicola MorganUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-31108678388075379052010-04-19T09:18:09.776+01:002010-04-19T09:18:09.776+01:00I wholeheartedly concur with the research - walkin...I wholeheartedly concur with the research - walking the dog never let's me down - as long as there are no other people - I just keep going until something works loose. Yep, fascinating, thank you.Kathryn Evanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16439670363289229014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-58669175430384848312009-04-19T11:20:00.000+01:002009-04-19T11:20:00.000+01:00Interesting responses, everyone. Philip - I pers...Interesting responses, everyone. Philip - I personally can't vouch for the exercise/breathless bit (!) but I'll take your word for it. It would most likely be the endorphins that are responsible for that, though.<br /><br />And yes, we probably need to cover ourselves legally by saying that anyone planning to take unusual exercise should consult a doctor first!!Nicola Morganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12189894289540344094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-9331008834030378092009-04-19T08:25:00.000+01:002009-04-19T08:25:00.000+01:00That's absolutely fascinating, Nicola. I get lots ...That's absolutely fascinating, Nicola. I get lots of ideas walking and cycling, which tends to be through at least some green spaces. <br /><br />At home, I have one downstairs space which looks out onto trees and fields, and one with a higher ceiling where I often work on picture books (but hadn't realised the height might be an issue - it's a room I rarely use otherwise). In my upstairs office the ceiling is lower but there is an adjacent roof garden which I use all the time in the summer - again overlooking garden and fields. <br /><br />Last summer I rented a house in the hills north of Rome to write in but spent the *whole* fortnight sitting in the garden of an old monastery writing - outside, green, *big* ceiling (93 million miles). And I always work best in the Reading Room of the University Library, which has a ceiling about 40 feet high!Stroppy Authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16560035800075465845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-91542198908022374582009-04-18T23:46:00.000+01:002009-04-18T23:46:00.000+01:00I've become a little lazy recently, but in the...I've become a little lazy recently, but in the past I would always go running when I found literary ideas or inspiration lacking. It almost always did the trick. On the other hand, ambling rarely worked as well. So I think the physical exercise involved in outdoor activity probaby plays a role, as well as the environment. Somehow being breathless seems to free the imagination. Something to do with depressing the higher 'critical' brain functions, I've heard it said.<br />(Will we see scores of creatively blocked but rather unfit writers keeling over with heart attacks as a result of this discussion? I hope not. The country's A&E departments are clogged up enough as it is.)Philip Singtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10395386990829014579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-7501040434680953562009-04-18T17:33:00.000+01:002009-04-18T17:33:00.000+01:00As someone who stays frittering at the desk for fa...As someone who stays frittering at the desk for far too long, I feel I can now officially experiment by taking thinking walks! But I do so agree about needing space overhead. I'm always glad about living in an old high-ceilinged house.Penny Dolanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16386668303428008498noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-37752802183885414052009-04-18T01:27:00.000+01:002009-04-18T01:27:00.000+01:00I walk the dog most days. I am not aware of thinki...I walk the dog most days. I am not aware of thinking about anything but it keeps me sane (ish) and plot problems do seem to resolve themselves by the time I return to my desk :)Nickyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15442269757463713048noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-49354789837870645432009-04-17T23:08:00.000+01:002009-04-17T23:08:00.000+01:00Sorry this is my first time to comment - didn't re...Sorry this is my first time to comment - didn't realise it wouldn't print my name!Hope this works now!<br /><br />I couldn't agree more Nicola. Whenever my plot is stuck in a rut I go for a walk and almost always come back with at least one, usually more, fresh ideas for how to rework it. And there's the added benefit of having had a break from the screen! Nice to know the science behind it now!Sue Barrownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-75815904056494234062009-04-17T23:02:00.000+01:002009-04-17T23:02:00.000+01:00I couldn't agree more Nicola. Whenever my plot is ...I couldn't agree more Nicola. Whenever my plot is stuck in a rut I go for a walk and almost always come back with at least one, usually more, fresh ideas for how to rework it. And there's the added benefit of having had a break from the screen! Nice to know the science behind it now!RubySuehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01742147807835679801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7780182174577095197.post-5418690364840540732009-04-17T09:21:00.000+01:002009-04-17T09:21:00.000+01:00That is fan-tas-tic-ally fascinating! It rings so ...That is fan-tas-tic-ally fascinating! It rings so true, too. It explains so much. It suggests a reason why we build sacred buildings with high ceilings, why Wordsworth was so into mountains... even horrible cliches like 'blue sky thinking'. It even explains why almost all my new ideas come to me when I go on holiday, into a new environment.<br /><br />I wonder if the 'greater space, greater imagination' rule has this evolutionary basis: we instinctively know that in a bigger space, a greater variety of random events can happen, so our brain has to raise its game to prepare for more possibilities (opportunities and threats). But in the confines of a hut or a cave, we know that comparatively little can happen, so our brain powers down its imaginative faculty to conserve energy. Nice theory?Nick Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11307045090887391553noreply@blogger.com