Ep.10 The Power of Rituals

In this post, I will be examining how rituals and rhythms can be used to enhance the creative process. I will also be providing an update on all the writing projects I have planned, sharing my thoughts on Season 1 of Fantasy & Faith coming to a close and providing you with a taste of what’s to come in Season 2.

From ancient traditions to modern practices, rituals and rhythms have always played a key role in human creativity.

What are rituals? Rituals are regular tasks and events that we take part in to the point that the actions and words become formulaic and part of the ‘how we do it’. Rhythms are slightly looser and perhaps not as meaningful as rituals.

Imagine that it is nearly dinner time. Mum is in the kitchen plating the food up. Dad is laying the table, setting down cutlery and glasses in the exact spot that each of you sit at every day. He calls out to you and your siblings to come downstairs for food. These are normal actions with very little meaning. However, because they are repeated on a daily basis, they become routines. Each person knows their role in the interaction, each person knows where the other fits in and even the words used are the same, perhaps even delivered in the same tone. Sometimes someone may change the interactions up. Maybe the kids are laying the table and dad is in the kitchen. Maybe, the kids are surprising the parents with a meal they have prepared. Even these infrequent changes have their own rituals, their own way of doing things. We only realise that they are important when we don’t do them, maybe because someone is away from home, or late from work, or feeling unwell. There is a sense of strangeness and of something missing. The normal rhythms of life have been disrupted.

Rituals are something more than the mundane. For instance, on Eid days we have a bath, dress in our best or new clothes, apply attar, and then head to the masjid. The Imam is delivering a speech which normally ends with instructions on how to the do the Eid prayer. He leads the prayer and then stands on the mimbar (the pulpit) to deliver two sermons in Arabic. After the sermons he will do a collective prayer for the congregation and then everybody gets up to meet everyone else. My family and I tend to stand at the front, shake hands and embrace our neighbours and friends. Then we go over to meet with the elders and the infirm. Each of these things is part of a set of rituals, some sacred because they are part of the religious rituals, and some because we have done these same things every year, twice a year for a couple of decades to the point that they have also become ritualised.

Cultural anthropologists, sociologists and psychologists have been studying rituals for years. The more important the ritual, the more rigid and formulaic the performance of it becomes. Every action takes on significance, and must be performed exactingly in a specific order. In the example of the Eid prayer, the actions of the Imam are meaningful because they are ritualised to protect the way the prayer was performed by the Prophet Muhammad and his Companions. The actions of my family after the prayer are not sacred as the Eid prayer, but are still symbolic and formulaic because of the repetition and the expectations of their performance.

The rituals and rhythms of writing are unique to each writer. For instance, some writers like to go out for a walk in the morning to boost their mood and clear away the fog of sleep. Charles Dickens was known to take walks in the streets of London, perhaps taking inspiration from the normal lives that he would witness transpiring on his daily wanders. Others like to put on a fresh pot of coffee or do the housework before they sit down to write. Hemingway liked to get up really early and write before dawn. He found it to enhance is productivity and improve his mental clarity. Many authors like to set a daily word count that they work towards. Take Stephen King, who writes 2000 words daily and sticks to that principle to produce a regular output of novels.

My writing rituals and rhythms are based around my day job, my prayers and my family commitments. Monday through to Thursday, I write for an hour in the evenings. Friday, Saturday and Sunday mornings are my prime output times. Sometimes I will write on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, though usually if I have missed my morning stint or if there is a deadline coming up. Currently, I am prioritising the completion of amendments to my thesis, so much of my writing time is being take up by that. I like to write my blog and podcast posts on Friday mornings. I’ve also taken to recording my solo podcasts straight after I finish scripting it. I like to try and get any chores I have done before I sit down to write, to prevent myself from procrastinating. Sometimes, when I am distracted, I will put my phone on charge and out of reach. Occasionally, I will pause after a blast of writing or when I am struggling with something to check my socials. After about an hour or two, I get up and go make myself a coffee. Sometimes I’m smarter and make the coffee before I start working. I keep my reading glasses in a box on my desk, near my keyboard. They have an anti-glare coating on them that helps reduce the likelihood of a migraine. I keep a bunch of reference books near at hand too. These include Fowler’s Modern English Usage, Roget’s Thesaurus and various dictionaries (English, Arabic, Persian and Urdu). I have shelves of non-fiction in arms reach too if I want to do deeper research. Recently, I was gifted a Remarkable 2 which has allowed me to write away from my desk.

I normally write first drafts by hand and then type them up or transcribe them. The Remarkable 2 has built-in handwriting recognition software that speeds that process up. My second draft is on my laptop. I have an extra screen setup next to my laptop for previous drafts, notes or my Obsidian vault. The second draft tends to be much bigger than the first draft. I print off my second draft and then edit it on paper, which I will now do on the Remarkable (or will try at least). The third draft is based on these edits and usually shaves off the biggest chunks of any draft. The fourth draft is spelling, grammar, punctuation and some more fine tuning. For previous books, I have sent out this draft to other writers and test readers for feedback. I use their feedback to make changes for draft 5. Draft 6 is a repeat of draft 4, more fine tuning and correcting. This is normally my final draft. That’s my ‘how its done’, the daily rhythms and rituals, as well as the cycles of writing and editing that I go through.

Updates on WIP

I’m hoping to have my thesis amendments done by the end of July. Then, God willing, I will start back on writing Alauddin. I’ve not made much progress on that since my last update. Alauddin is talking to the genie in the cave. Princess Badr-ul-Badour is planning a daring escape from her royal chambers. The Seerah work is also on pause and to be restarted in August, inshallah. That will likely take me a few years to complete. My artist has produced the covers for Alauddin and Ali Baba and is working on Sinbad. I will do a cover reveal in due course. My other novel is on the backburner, its tentatively titled ‘Farmer, Soldier’. I keep adding ideas and lore as and when they occur to me. This is good because I like to have the whole novel mapped out in my head before I start outlining it in detail.

Season 1 of Fantasy and Faith in Review

Season 1 has been as much about learning how to podcast and make the most out of YouTube as it has been about sharing ideas. I’ve used a number of platforms and software packages to produce my podcasts and will likely do a how-to video for anyone who may be interested in starting their own podcast. A lot of the content has been based on recent blog posts, but the last few have been written from scratch. I feel like I’m getting more confident with speaking into a mic and want to thank my small community for their supportive comments and the questions that listeners have asked me. Please do continue doing that. If I can help guide another generation of writers, then I will consider the podcast a success. I did my first podcast guest interview with Heba Hallak. That has been of the more popular episodes in the season. I am thankful to her for agreeing to be my first guest. I am also incredibly grateful to my family, especially my mother who listens to every episode.

Season 2

Season 2 has already been planned and will feature some critically acclaimed and award-winning authors including the Queen of Grimdark, Anna Smith Spark, Adrian Tchaikovsky and James Barclay. Furthermore, the YouTube version of the podcast will be moving to a video-format, so you’ll get to see my annoying face as well as hear my irritating voice. Be share to like, share and subscribe to the channel. If you are watching on YouTube, then hit the notification bell. Season 2 will be launching on 8th August.