Does anyone else daydream?

[Alexandrea]

These have been the main inspiration for my writing. When I was a kid I was a maladaptive daydreamer, which has lessened since I became an adult and my life became more stable. But these intense daydreams are the inspiration of my works. I was wondering if anyone else has done this?

 

[CupofJoe]

I get ideas from dreams. I am lucky, that once in a while I can enter a lucid dream and play almost the entire story through before I wake up. The trouble is remembering the specifics afterwards. Even keeping a digital recorder by the bed and trying a stream of consciousness recitation as soon as I get up doesn't seem to work. I try not to sweat it and let the ideas and sensations float back to me over the next few days.
Right now I've got the "memory" of a sunny hillside and cloud busting with not a care in the world. And no idea where it fits in a story...

 

[Alexandrea]

I get ideas from dreams. I am lucky, that once in a while i can enter a lucid dream and play almost the entire story through before i wake up. The trouble is remembering the specifics afterwards. Even keeping a digital recorder by the bed and trying a stream of consciousness recitation as soon as i get up doesn't seem to work. I try not to sweat it and let the ideas and sensations float back to me over the next few days.
right now I've got the "memory" of a sunny hillside and cloud busting with not a care in the world. And no idea where it fits in a story...

oooooooh that could be a dream maybe? Maybe after a particularly chaotic scene the character has a dream that helps them calm down? either way, cool dream scenario, there's a lot you can do with that

 

[CupofJoe]

oooooooh that could be a dream maybe? Maybe after a particularly chaotic scene the character has a dream that helps them calm down? either way, cool dream scenario, there's a lot you can do with that

That is what I am kind of hoping will happen.
It usually takes a few days to either come to me where it fits in to a story or the whole thing floats away, like mist.
I wish I could daydream but the word "maladaptive" makes me think it is not all kittens, hugs, and ice cream [not all at the same time, mind you ].

 

[pmmg]

I almost never remember my dreams. And certainly not long enough for them to become a story. I day dream on purpose. When i younger i did that whenever i could. As an adult its more focused. When in writing mode, i imagine the story and scene well before writing it. Dreams matter my characters better appreciate them.

 

[Maker of Things Not Kings]

My childhood was comprised of worlds only I could see. I had friends, if only a few, but preferred to spend the majority of my time alone and in realms and spaces of my own creation for hours on end.

They remain a major part of my world today and are, without a doubt, the inspiration for most all of my creative work. Even now, I need time, daily, to dissolve into those spaces, just as some require socializing/connections/distractions etc. And I always find myself drifting there before writing each morning or as the last place I visit before sleep.

There was time when I thought it best to rid myself of them. To abandon them in service of becoming an adult. Silliest and most detrimental thing I've ever attempted. I was incomplete without them and miserable trying to be what others expected me to be. I'll never turn my back on them again.

 

[Prince of Spires]

Wait, there are people who don't daydream?

 

[Ned Marcus]

Teachers tried to stop me from daydreaming. Thankfully, it didn't work. Nowadays, daydreams are often the visualisations of my ideas or stories.

 

[babarupa]

I also doubt that there are many among us who don't daydream! But perhaps its becomming rarer. I for example sometimes realize during a long distance bus ride that I'm browsing the web while ten years ago I would have been staring out of the window, daydreaming and watching the world outside.

 

[BearBear]

I have hyperphantasia which just means my imagination is nearly realistic and often memories of my "daydreams" are nearly indistinguishable from real life stuff. There have been some strange memories as a result. So daydreaming? Yes often, maybe even moreso with age. The way I write books is something like daydreaming and writing down what happens.

I often wondered how much talent I really have when I'm not sure where this writing is coming from or really how I'm doing it. I'm just having fun and writing it all down. The thoughts just flow, I'm definitely just an observer, and without going into cognitive philosophy, that's the experience anyway.

 

[OutsidersEyes]

I work retail, and love to worldbuild in my head whenever I get to work away from customers.

 

[Babayaga321]

Frequently... from the moment I wake up! If I have a project I'm working on, it tends to fill my mind whatever I'm doing until its completed!

 

[GracefulBlue]

This looks like an older post, but I'll hop in. I was a fairly avid daydreamer as a kid. I grew out of some things, but others I've kept. Sometimes it helps me cope in moments of boredom or fear. While a passenger in a car I occasionally daydream up a creature that is running to keep up, or at the dentist I'll visualize them giving me borg implants. Silly yes, but distracting and enjoyable.

 

[Babayaga321]

I used to do all my plotting for stories while driving for hours between home and customer sites, recording my thoughts into my phone. Best thinking time ever.

 

[Finchbearer]

I think daydreaming and the desire to become a storyteller go hand in hand, and I’m certainly someone who likes getting lost in my own thoughts. I have quite a strong imagination which I think also goes hand in hand with being visually creative, and I like to visualise my characters and the world they live in. Listening to music can also heighten the experience.

 

[Babayaga321]

Listening to music can also heighten the experience.

As long as it's: a) instrumental only (i.e. no lyrics) and b) the correct genre - when I'm writing in my current world of elves, men and dwarves, it's hardly surprising that the music of Howard Shore works best for me...

 

[Finchbearer]

As long as it's: a) instrumental only (i.e. no lyrics) and b) the correct genre - when I'm writing in my current world of elves, men and dwarves, it's hardly surprising that the music of Howard Shore works best for me...

Yes, instrumental always

 

[SkaldAndRaven]

I find that daydreaming is a powerful tool in writing and world building. I've been daydreaming since I was a child, I would daydream of being in a different world entirely of my creation. When the daydream becomes focused it helps to visualize my worlds quite well. I can often daydream and entire scene long before I write it. I try to take a pause from writing and do this when I become stuck or if I question weather or not to bother including a particular scene.

 

[Babayaga321]

I can often daydream and entire scene long before I write it. I try to take a pause from writing and do this when I become stuck or if I question weather or not to bother including a particular scene.

Similar to the way I work. I try and write sequentially, but will often come up with a scene idea which is totally out of sequence. I note the basic idea down into a Scrivener file (which I started to use for the worldbuilding of my universe of Numenol), but often totally forgot it was there. I'm now moving my worldbuilding into Campfire Pro as I write and develop the scenes. It helps me visualise the idea further and helps me spot any clashes / errors which might otherwise be left for the full edit, and I deal with them there and then.