The art of inspiration midwifery marks a turning point in this blog writing, not lengthy, but profoundly significant.
Turning Inward to Construct#
Recently (March 2022), the pandemic has been quite severe. We have also discovered positive cases nearby. Schools have been closed. A few days ago, when confirmed cases were first discovered, the market could originally sell two to three hundred (in revenue), but that day it suddenly sold over seven hundred (in revenue). (Later, everything was sold out, with two thousand in revenue.) So everyone can see that this wave of the pandemic is indeed quite serious. Coupled with the recent wars and economic issues, the elderly in the village are saying the world is going to end. The online world is also in chaos. Various conflicts are truly frightening. I have been attacked all day long. So I will avoid discussing politics, adopting an ostrich policy. Otherwise, if disaster hasn't come yet, going crazy first would be a loss.
That being said, your political stance does not represent your other aspects. Even Buddha saves those with affinity, and other gods also save those with their own connections, so I won't humiliate myself by meddling in these matters. Regardless of whether the world ends, my world will definitely end. So before my world ends in this life, I will continue to play in the mud and dream! As long as my world does not perish, I will dream every day. The great and just task of making the world better can be set aside for now.
See: “How to Deal with Politics” Issue
Emerging from the Political Dark Forest xlog telegraph
Political Dark Forest xlog telegraph
Methods for Increasing Writing Output#
So I want to try something new, what should I try?
It must be to try to write more, to have more spring dreams. From a hen that lays eggs once a month to a hen that lays eggs several times a week. I don't really like reprinting things; my own writing may be like shit, but at least I won't be disdainful of it. At least what I produce has independent intellectual property rights.
So what hormone do I need to eat to lay so many eggs in a week?
Socratic Midwifery#
Isn't Socrates known for his midwifery? A ruthless debate technique that makes people uncomfortable, also known as the Socratic method.
When Socrates talked, debated, or discussed issues with others, he often adopted a special form. Unlike other wise men who claimed to be knowledgeable, he said he knew nothing and understood nothing about any issue, so he had to ask others for help. But when others answered his questions, Socrates would refute their answers, leaving them in contradictions. Finally, through inspiration, he would lead others to express Socrates' views—Baidu Encyclopedia on Midwifery
I understand it as throwing bricks to attract jade. Regardless of how Socrates said it, let's see how to increase output.
The Pitfalls of Writing Driven by Inspiration#
While inspiration is the soul of writing, a soul without logical navigation is merely a wandering ghost, scattered soldiers, or a runaway horse.
The Unpredictability of Inspiration#
Everything I write is based on feelings, which are the most unpredictable. However, this intense feeling that compels me to write comes once a month at best. If I want to write several pieces a week, then I need to engage the logical thinking part.
The Ambiguity of Recorded Inspiration#
In life, there are often many feelings I want to capture, but those feelings are fleeting. I generally record them for safekeeping. Due to their brevity and abstraction, they often cannot be formed into coherent writing. This causes me great pain. The feelings I originally recorded become incomprehensible after a few days, and I can't recall them.
Writing Driven by Logic#
So this time, we are going to midwife feelings. Extract the subtle feelings using logic.
I find that pulling out what is inside me indeed increases my understanding of myself and the world. It's like having many vague crushes; you always miss the chance to pursue them. Now, we need to catch up with them and engage in some deep communication.
But as Edison said, that 1% of inspiration is crucial; inspiration and logic intertwine to produce smoothly. Each of us is different; we should supplement what we lack. If lacking in logic, focus on the structure of the article, etc.; if lacking in inspiration, pay more attention to the feelings that arise when encountering new things.
The Journey of Inspiration#
The art of inspiration midwifery is not a mechanical increase in output but must adhere to the objective laws of mature thought. Using midwifery as a metaphor for giving birth to babies is appropriate and vivid.
The union of male and female is miraculous. This is akin to the impulse that stimulates the generation of inspiration. After that, the sperm and egg combine to form a fertilized egg, which is even more miraculous. Inspiration is born at this moment. The most important part of the sperm and egg is the DNA information they carry. These two pieces of information, after countless years, meet again, colliding with the knowledge they have accumulated over millennia. This is also the birth of inspiration. There is fundamentally no newness; "the Dao produces one, one produces two," ultimately, they still share the same origin.
Then comes gestation. Inspiration needs flesh and blood to grow. Without the nutrients necessary for the fetus, inspiration cannot develop into a fetus, let alone midwifery? Just like an apple tree, having pollinated flowers is far from enough; it also needs to absorb the essence of heaven and earth, gradually maturing over time, at which point it can be harvested. Inspiration cannot appear just once; the same inspiration lies dormant in the brain, absorbing surrounding information, and during this process, gradually copulating with more information, only then can it break free.
Midwifery is merely a method of ripening and harvesting apples, but ultimately, it is about allowing the apples to receive enough light and nutrients. For inspiration, this means absorbing as much similar information as possible. Then we use logic to pull them out one by one, like pulling radishes. If the radish is not yet mature, pulling it out is also premature.
After pulling out the radishes, the article takes shape. But the article is lifeless; the stories and thoughts within it are not. What we deliver is a living being, not a dead one. Just like human metabolism. The British journal Nature Medicine published a study from Israel that found the human body's cell renewal rate is astonishing, replacing about 33 billion cells daily, with new cells produced at an average rate of over 3.8 million per second. What dies is what can die, and what lives is what is alive. The form of the article, whether it has one more word or one less, or even if it is reshaped, is not important. As long as the thoughts and structure have been transcended, it is rebirth. In other words, the articles we write through the art of inspiration midwifery are lifeless, but what they carry is constantly renewing. It is also like a fetus, continuously receiving nourishment from the mother. After the article is born, its mother is no longer limited to the author's perspective.
An article may seem finished, dead, but in reality, it is also the rebirth of another article. Their cores are the same; who dies and who lives, why rush to harm each other? As Nietzsche said, "My time has not yet come. Some are born after they die." The inspiration of an article may also be born after the article dies.
Postscript on Inspiration Midwifery#
The pandemic has ended, but the economic recession is even more severe, and the clouds of war are thickening.
Today, writing about the value and methods of reading reminds me that one should record inspiration while reading, which brings me back to this piece. After two years, it can be said that the art of inspiration midwifery has triumphed; most of the articles on this blog have since adopted this method, and I am satisfied with it. It should be reset and shared with everyone.
The original text is on telegraph titled "New Attempts," renamed "The Art of Inspiration Midwifery" on 2024-10-17.