In the “Story” Zone
Apr 6th, 2008 by Sean
In the fall, I worked on narrated video montage (see earlier entry) for my day job. I am the marketing director of a non-profit. The slide show’s original use was to be shown at a donor appreciation night.
I wanted a short presentation that moved people. Our services help elders so there’s plenty of good material. The story wasn’t going to be a true story, but instead a portrayal that represented the various services that a client could receive.
Not many things come easy to me. Math, science, numbers…not my strength. I’m not a bad writer, however. I was an English major at Tufts and often putting words together comes quickly for me. I count myself fortunate in this regard.
When I write, I usually don’t outline. I choose what I want to write about, often let it percolate in my head for a few nights as I lie in bed, and then get at it. I wrote the script for this 10-minute presentation in a couple of hours. And, I liked it. I was “in the zone” where writing comes easily and the final product is noteworthy.
Many other people liked it also. We decided to see if our general donor base would enjoy the slide show on DVD. We sent out a sample mailing to 200 people. When we called to find out if they liked the show, it was clear that many of our donors (many of whom are elders) didn’t have DVDs. This was unfortunate, but one response that was relayed to me gave me a bit of a lift.
When asked if she enjoyed the show, an elderly woman said that yes, she had found it very interesting. She added that she could follow along well and could easily understand the services that we offered and how they could help an elder. She then added that she was hoping that she could have a friend watch it with her so her friend could explain what was happening on the television.
The elder was blind. The script was successful.
When do you find that you’re in the zone? Is it at work? Is it when you’re playing sports? Is it when you taking care of your children?
Here are some other people who mention being in the zone. Check them out.
Michael Bloch talks about developers in the zone and discusses how Michaelangelo may have been in the zone. Elizabeth Baines and C. Leigh Prutill, both writers themselves, talk about how the zone affects their craft. Robert McHenry, an Olympic purist fan, discusses “athletes” in the zone. Robert’s is a funny article! Speaking of funny, comedian Aparna Nancherla notes how comedians prepare to get in the zone. If you want a more serious discussion of the zone, check out Yoga Zone’s entry.
Get in the comment zone. Please comment!
I’m most ‘in the zone’ at night, esp. late at night into the wee morning hours most likely.
Other times include when I’m really excited about a task, get more freedom or input into a task, and when there’s a time crunch.
Best,
SocialButterfly
If it is something I’m looking forward to doing, it is easy for me to get ‘in the zone.’ If it is something that I’m not looking forward to, I usually don’t get ‘in the zone’ until I’m under pressure to do so. I notice I get the most work done during the last half of the work day.
I thought the video was amazing. It provided a plethora of information in an easy to understand manner. A task that is quite difficult. And one you know you mastered by the comment from the woman who is blind. Too bad videos aren’t as easy to make as DVD’s. Technology is great, but some of us have difficulty keeping up with it all, and we’re not all elderly. But, I do have a DVD; however I have to say I still use my VCR plenty to tape and watch shows. Yes I know I could pay for this with Tivo, etc. but I’m too frugal. I’d rather spend the $15 a month on take out so I don’t have to cook
I wish I could get and stay in a zone at my choosing. It doesn’t seem to work that way for me unlike others like my brother for instance who seems to enter his peak zone at will. In the spirit of McHenry though, I was in the zone once during a three-legged race. Me and a girl named Renelle kicked some serious A against much taller and stronger opponents. And by the way, if I haven’t said it recently, thank you for an exceptional job! You were definitely zoning on that one.
@Socialbutterfly, excitment can help!
@bythesea, you’re an afternoon zone person!
@rabbit, do what makes you happy!
@Soccermama, I don’t think many can enter the zone at will.
Hi Sean, thanks for the link to my blog post. I’m still working on that story, btw…one of the things that helps put me in a zone is an outline – which is the opposite of what you and many other writers do! When I have an outline, I know I always have something I can count on and come back to if I go off track. This frees me to try new things, write new scenes, add new characters – because I can always go back to where I started. It allows me to “zone out” and write and not have to worry about where I’m going with it. Cheers!
@Leigh, Thanks for the comment. Good luck with the story!