Ink + Alchemy

Monthly missives to help you access your creative magic and build a writing practice you love.

In this issue:

• Hello from Japan!
• Our main topic: Ritual and flow states
• A poll
• An oracle card pull
• An invitation to the November Ceremony
• Book recs and writing resources

By the time this email hits your inbox, I will be in Japan! I'm visiting my sister for a few weeks and having some international adventures. This newsletter has been scheduled in advance. So—hello from Japan!

Our main topic today was the winner of the poll in last month’s New Moon Missive, which won by quite a lot. Today we’re talking about the Practice part of the Elements of Writing Alchemy, and focusing on using ritual to access a flow state more quickly.

Let’s get into it!

What is the flow state?

You likely already know a bit about what the flow state is from experiencing it—that glorious sensation of deep focus and timelessness you reach sometimes when writing. The words are rushing out of you, the story seems to be all but writing itself, the inner critic has shut up for once, and the whole rest of the world around you falls away.

Getting into the zone feels like real magic, and accessing that state is a major goal for writers.

The flow state is characterized by a few elements:

• A task that is challenging but doable (you’re stretching your writing skills, not putting them on the rack)
• The activity is rewarding and intrinsically meaningful (you’re in it for the love of the game vs. external validation)
• You’re spending some real time working on the task (you’re probably not going to hit the flow state during 10-minute freewriting sessions—those are valuable for other reasons!)

Figuring out how to get into this zone, though, is tricky. It sometimes feels like you can only reach the flow state by passing through some sort of interdimensional portal, and it’s not like those are easy to find! I’ve looked!

Fortunately, researchers like Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi have shown that we can take steps to make a flow state more likely (no portal required).

• Let go of expectations. If you’re asking “Am I in flow?” every 5 minutes, you’re… not. You won’t always be able to hit the flow state and that is okay! You can still create the conditions for it, and those will have benefits whether you reach a flow state or not.
• Give yourself enough time. Reaching flow state isn’t going to happen when you’re in a rush or crunched for time. Those beautiful, all-too-rare big blocks of writing time? That’s when you might be able to make some magic happen—so protect those blocks when you have them!
• Turn off your notifications. Constant buzzing and distraction will absolutely kill the flow state vibe. Do whatever you can to minimize the likelihood that you’ll be interrupted by devices and distractions (noise-canceling headphones can be your friends here).
• Work on your ability to focus. A mindfulness practice or meditation habit has a lot of benefits, and one of them is enhancing focus and making it easier to get into flow. Building mindfulness into your daily routine can help you access flow more quickly when it’s time to write.

How are ritual and flow related?

Now that we know what the flow state is and some of the practical things you can do to make it more likely, let’s turn our attention to another, more magical element you can introduce: ritual.

A ritual is a symbolic action repeated in the same way across time. Rituals can be used to mark specific occasions (think: coming of age, marriage, graduation) or to create a particular mental/emotional state in participants.

It’s that latter aspect that I’m most interested in as we use ritual to help us access a flow state more readily. Rituals, as we practice them over and over again, create mental shortcuts for our subconscious that allow us to access a specific way of being or acting more quickly.

Imagine you’re a runner (couldn’t be me, but we’re imagining here). Maybe you have a playlist that accompanies your runs. Starting that playlist signals to your brain that it’s time to run, which can help you get into the groove more quickly. Over time, your body and mind will associate certain songs with running. Your energy and actions will change when you hear them.

We can do the same thing with a writing ritual.

Designing a personalized writing ritual—and then practicing it when you get ready to write—is a way of signaling to your brain and body that it’s time to get into a creative mode. Over time, your ritual can be another tool for helping you create the right mental and emotional conditions to access a flow state and get there more quickly.

What goes into a writing ritual?

That all sounds great, but what exactly is required for a ritual? The short answer is kind of annoying—it can be anything you want, really. The longer answer is that you want to design something that is meaningful to you, that gets you into a creative zone, and that you can repeat across time.

Some common elements of rituals include things like:

• Gestures and movement
• Music and singing or chanting
• Words or invocations
• Specific items of clothing
• Symbolic objects
• Food and drink

You might choose a couple of elements from that list that call to you and build a ritual from there. You can also modify and experiment with parts of your ritual as you figure out what works and what doesn’t.

I’ve included a couple examples of rituals below that mix and match some of these elements, and that require different amounts of time.

A short ritual might look like:

• Lighting a particular candle
• Starting your creativity playlist
• Setting an intention for your writing session

A slightly longer ritual might include:

• Setting up your writing space with specific tools (that fancy notebook and pen you’ve been saving, maybe!)
• Making a cup of tea or coffee and stirring an intention into it
• Reading a short poem aloud
• Pulling a tarot or oracle card (or a small spread) to spark reflection or ideas

You can also use ritual activities to close out a period of writing and signal to your body/mind that it’s time to transition back into other everyday activities. Tying the closing ritual to the opening ritual (i.e., blowing out a candle, turning off a playlist) can bring everything full circle and help you feel as though you have closed the loop on your writing.

Moving through rituals in community with other people is another way to experiment with these practices. Shared experiences can deepen the power of a ritual, and writing with other people has added bonuses of camaraderie and accountability.

My group program, The Coven, offers just that—and doors open for the January-June 2027 Coven next month. Now is a great time to get on the wait list!

Ritual does not have to be a super serious activity. Letting the magical elements of your writing practice be fun and playful can be part of what makes them work! We can all use a bit more whimsy in our lives—a writing ritual is an easy way to add just a bit more magic into your day. And if it helps you achieve a flow state, so much the better!

I’d love to hear from you: Do you already have writing rituals? What are they? If they don’t, what elements of ritual do you want to experiment with?

Do you already have a writing ritual? I have a ritual to open and/or close my writing practice and it works well I have some writing rituals, but I don't use them consistently I've never tried a writing ritual, but now I want to Eh, writing rituals sound like too much extra work

New Moon Oracle Card Pull

The new moon is a time to set intentions and reflect on our creative practices. I pulled an oracle card to see what aspect of creativity might need attention during this moon cycle.

The reishi mushroom card invites us to reflect on spirit medicine. As we journey into the darkest months of the year, now is a good time to turn inward and reflect on what our spirits need.

Here are some questions you can journal on or use as the basis for another card pull.

• What are you searching for, creatively speaking?
• What nourishes your creativity, and are you getting enough of it?
• How can you ground yourself and nurture your writing practice?
• When are you making time for rest?