The Moon Calls me | No point fighting it

Call me Nokomis

Nokomis is the daughter that fell from the Moon in the Ojibwe legends. I don’t know what is about the allure of the night sky and the moon & stars that holds me enthralled. But for as long as I have known, I have been a child of the night. I come alive and my energy becomes reanimated just as the sun starts waning in that magical part of the day called Dusk.

For the past few months I have been trying to retrain my clock into working creatively in the morning. It has not worked. Instead whenever the alarm goes off in the morning I wake up resentful and definitely without any creative inclination. I do practice my Morning Pages but my brain still feels asleep. I also find that I tend to procrastinate when I write – or should that be attempt to – in the mornings.

So in the past few weeks I have decided there is just no fighting genetic disposition. I am a night owl. I do not understand morning larks and have no desire to. When I hear someone tell me they are able to get up at 5am and work, my mouth drops open and I wonder how??? Likewise I know that morning larks in my own circle think me totally barking-mad to be able to work at 2am in the morning.

No…I am a daughter of the moon and the night sky. There is no point in even trying to go to bed early to wake earlier because invariably my muse drags me out of dreamland at 3am every morning without fail. Between 12am and 2am is when I get most of my inspiration.  I have tried changing this but not even sleeping tablets quietens my imagination in the early hours of the morning/late hours of night.

There is something mystical and magical about the night. The air holds a pensive aura of anticipation. Creatures with bright eyes come out to hunt or play. The night has an air of possibility that is ripe for imagination. It is possible to believe that everything and anything can exist at night. That is what stirs my imagination when the sky is dark and the stars are bright. It is as if a deeper part of my brain is awakened at night. 

Perhaps it is because everyone else is usually asleep at this time of night and there are fewer distractions. Perhaps it is a strange magic of the moon’s influence. But there is definitely something that awakens the creativity in me in the middle of the night. Perhaps this is also why I am drawn to writing in the genre / style that I do. My style of writing is definitely darker and I am drawn to the surreal. Perhaps this is also determined by one’s natural body clock. It is an interesting concept. One that I will have to ponder on some more.

Have you ever tried actively changing yourself from a night owl into a morning lark or vice versa?

Many psychologists believe that you are either a night owl or morning lark and that this is determined by your natural circadian rhythms or internal body clock. So apparently though you may be able to retrain your system, if you choose a complete opposite you will find your life to be more stressful.

Identify your internal body clock via Psychology Today. Interestingly enough, I took this test and scored an 8 which makes me a very definite owl.

So I am proudly standing up for the rights of Night Owls everywhere. No point in fighting your inherent nature. I will answer the call of the moon. My muse and characters should be happy with that.

What’s your best time of day for creativity?

Related articles

• Are You a Night Owl? (fitsugar.com)
• Resetting Your Internal Clock for Better Sleep (everydayhealth.com)
• Night Owl Transition (itsnobullshit.com)
• Writing Pitfalls – Sleeping on the Job (bardicblogger.wordpress.com)
• Yep, That’s My Excuse (newauthors.wordpress.com)
• What Time of Day Do You Write Letters? (ayearofletters.wordpress.com)
• Laura Schocker: The Great Wake-Up Program: Do You Have A Bedtime Routine? (Plus a GIVEAWAY) (huffingtonpost.com)
• Productivity – 5 tips for capturing your writing mojo (barbaratyler.wordpress.com)