It’s widely believed Charles Dickens was paid by the word for his novels. It turns out he was compensated not by the breadth of his prose but by the portions he submitted.
The works of Dickens were published over several weeks, which was a great way of building up anticipation among his anxious readers. Many of his classics like Dombey and Son and Bleak House were introduced in monthly installments.
But regardless of how he wrote, Dickens’s productivity is undeniable. By the time he died in 1870, Dickens had written 15 novels and several short stories.
So how’d he do it?
It turns out Dickens sought inspiration for his classic tales by walking the streets of London. In fact, his walking exploits are celebrated to this day through books and guided tours. Tracing the nearly two-hundred year footsteps of England’s greatest novelist has become quite the pastime.
It’s said, Charles Dickens routinely walked 20 miles a day! Quite a feat on cobblestoned streets and a century or two before the first pair of New Balance shoes were laced up.
What compelled the man whose troubled childhood contributed to the humanity in his stories to amble so far and wide? And is there a connection between walking and creativity?
It turns out there is.
Dickens used the people he encountered and the scenes he witnessed for his stories. The timeless characters that leap from the pages of his novels were just byproducts of his imagination resurfacing the events of his long strolls.
These little “creativity walks” were also important parts of the lives of other prolific artists like Beethoven, Darwin, and Steve Jobs.
These deep thinkers understood the deep intuitive connection between walking, pondering, and writing.
And as it often does, science provides more objective reasoning for why walking is so productive.
When we walk, our heart pumps faster which means it circulates more blood and oxygen to all of our organs, INCLUDING the brain.
Walking on a regular basis also creates new connections between brain cells. The more we move the more we change the very nature of our thoughts.
In my own life, I’ve tried to include an afternoon stroll each day; even if I only have time to walk around the block.
If I can, I’ll leave my iPod at home so I can be alone with my thoughts. And sometimes, when all is quiet, the world offers a rare sense of clarity. I discover the answers to questions I didn’t even know I had. Creativity can thrive if given the chance.
Walking is a good first step.
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