Wes Mack's Brain Cues: Where Music, Acting, and Writing Collide on Freewrite

Whether he's acting, writing music, or writing books, Wesley MacInnes finds a starting point for each creative project in freewriting.

Wesley MacInnes, aka Wes Mack after seeing his birth name get butchered on a marquee, is a singer-songwriter, actor, and budding writer who creates and releases new work at an impressive pace.

We reached him at his home base in a tiny town of about 800 people in the mountains of interior British Columbia to chat about his music, acting career, and how Freewrite fits into it all.

ANNIE COSBY: You do all kinds of creative work in different industries, right?

WESLEY MACINNES: I have a hand in quite a few things these days across the music and film industries.

Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of songwriting for myself and for other artists and have been really fortunate to have a number songs do fairly well commercially, giving me a career in that world. My road from writing music to writing film and TV is a bit of a journey.

I started to be hired by friends and bands to direct music videos, as well as doing all of my own. And with each one I would try to really carve out interesting narrative pieces, that were not common in the genres I was working in. It kind of became the thing I would get hired for.

Between writing music videos and acting I started working on longer pieces … film and TV scripts. Now it’s just kind of a mix of everything.

AC: You've shared with me that Freewrite fits into your creative process across all those different industries. Can you share how?

WM: Inherently, film scripts and that kind of work is going to have a ton of revision, and the Freewrite is not designed for revision, and I love that. I embrace that. Revision will be later. That takes the pressure off. And, that frees me up to just let it rip and draft.

I treat my work for film and TV development on Freewrite as a place to make all the ingredients. Maybe it’s a section of a pitch deck. Maybe a scene in a screenplay. I know I’m going to revise these 100 times later, so on the Freewrite I just let myself write, with no formatting, because that’s easy once the words are there.

Then when I have all the pieces I can sit down and put it all together and then format. I find, once you have all the ingredients, making the final “cake” is easy.

Inherently, film scripts and that kind of work is going to have a ton of revision, and the Freewrite is not designed for revision, and I love that... That takes the pressure off.

AC: That's exactly how I draft, too. Do you struggle with distractions at all?

WM: Yeah, this saves me from my laptop. I think we often think of distractions as just frivolous stuff. But the distractions for me are other real things that need to be done:

Pay that bill. Log that accounting. Reply to that email.

By the time I’m done with all that a day has passed and I’ve not written anything.

The frustrating part is that the actual core of the business for me is writing (be it songs or scripts) not admin. But it’s easy to forget and lose the forest for the trees. You do all the peripheral maintenance tasks but then the core engine breaks down.

The Freewrite helps avoid that, and I really believe creates a pattern the brain can recognize: “We are on the Freewrite … it is creative time now.”

I think that is essential. Devices with a million functions like phones and laptops cannot create than mental pattern. I put on running shoes and I know I’m going running. I pull out my guitar, and I know writing a song. I pull out my laptop? Who knows what might happen. But I pull out my Freewrite? I’m writing.

I put on running shoes, and I know I’m going running. I pull out my guitar, and I know I'm writing a song. I pull out my laptop? Who knows what might happen. But I pull out my Freewrite? I’m writing.

AC: So for you it's all about that brain pattern.

WM: Create a vibe that signals to your subconscious “it’s creative time.” I think it requires a bit of craftiness in re-programming your brain. I think as a society we have prioritized convenience and multitasking to such an extreme that we now have one or two devices (I’m looking at you smart phone and laptop!) that can do the tasks that would have been spread across 20 in the past.

Convenient? Perhaps. But we are fairly simple pattern recognition creatures, and I think it is confusing for our brains that were not so long ago hunting and gathering. We pick up a device that can do anything. That’s too many options! It does not send a clear signal.

So, in order to clear up that signal I think you need to create new patterns. Simple things. I turn on ambient music. Make a drink I like. Turn on the ol lava lamp. Little things that make something fun and subconsciously start up the creative engine.

I use my Freewrite as one of those cues to my brain. It creates a subconscious promise that writing is about to happen. The promise of fun … of play. And I think we as a society often underestimate how important that is.

...we are fairly simple pattern recognition creatures, and I think it is confusing for our brains that were not so long ago hunting and gathering. We pick up a device that can do anything. That’s too many options! It does not send a clear signal.

AC: I couldn't agree more. Now let's talk about a rarer use of Freewrite, one we don't hear about very often. You're in front of the camera, too? You're an actor?

WM: I am! I think my favorite role to date was playing this misguided and somewhat foolish drug thief in the Liam Neeson film Cold Pursuit.

Working with Liam was a lot of fun on a few levels. He was kind and is a man of very small ego, despite the success of his career. He hung out with the cast and crew and was very welcoming to everyone. But then between action and cut he really was a force.

It's always a privilege when you're working with someone who is both very talented and very interested in what they are doing, so every day filming on that one was a blast. We were up on the top of Fortress Mountain in a blizzard and the whole project glowed with that sense of immersive movie magic. There’s something in location shoots like that … it really bonds everyone together in the cast and crew.

And, actually, upon getting my Freewrite, I moved all of my acting prep work over to it. I have a fairly repetitive system for character work that's based on the instruction of a wonderful acting instructor named Nadine Wright, at ACT2.

For every role, I answer a set of questions that helps me to find character and tone. I also like to do a little stream of consciousness writing from the character’s perspective. Even just a paragraph I find can be a helpful entrance point.

I do this for every character. And I’ve got all of these for the last couple years in one Freewrite draft with dates. It’s handy when I book a role, I can look back and see what I was thinking in the audition, or even look at what I did for one character and apply it to a different one when it feels right.

For every role, I answer a set of questions that helps me to find character and tone. I also like to do a little stream of consciousness writing from the character’s perspective. Even just a paragraph I find can be a helpful entrance point.

AC: That's really interesting. Sometimes writers do that for book characters, too. You're doing some long-form writing now, too, right?

WM: I am working on a book, and wow, there is a BIG difference! When I am working on writing a song, I’m thinking in hours to days. When I’m working on a script it’s weeks to months. But a book?! It’s a lot longer!

For me personally the challenge there is not in finding inspiration, but rather in silencing inner criticism. The longer I sit with an incomplete project, the more time my brain has to tell me it is absolute junk. So, writing a book is a new challenge for me in consistently shutting down that inner voice.

Once again, the Freewrite is helpful there. I find the fastest way I crash out is re-reading and editing my work before the draft is done. It’s like a pipeline to self-loathing. Because the Freewrite is not designed for review it pushes me to just keep moving forward. I think it’s very helpful in that sense.

For me personally the challenge there is not in finding inspiration, but rather in silencing inner criticism. The longer I sit with an incomplete project, the more time my brain has to tell me it is absolute junk.

AC: Which Freewrite do you have?

WM: Traveler. Another big thing for me comes from the fact that I get fairly bad migraines.

Bright lights and screens are a no-go for me when I'm having a migraine, and in the past, it meant that it was extremely hard to do anything during those times. But with a Freewrite there is no glowing screen so I can type away and not feel like I'm driving my brain to the edge. I can't stress enough how big of a deal that is for me.

I also admit I just find it fun to write on. It makes me want to pick it up. The more I use it for creative work, the more it re-enforces that positive pattern in my brain. I find there is sometimes a hesitance in people to admit that is why they like something. It’s just fun to use. Productive? Absolutely! But the fact that it makes me happy is my favorite part.

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Follow Wes Mack on Instagram or YouTube, and find his music on all streaming platforms.