We have a new visitor to the area and it is one of those visitors that stay too long and you never really wanted to visit in the first place. Hurricane Sandy is here and rain is coming down hard enough that trains and metro have shut down and offices, including my own, are closed. This visitor though has brought me gifts though. I now have the gift of time to write. I am so rarely bored because I instead go and do some writing. That is one of the joys of being a writer. Even when you are not writing you are probably thinking about your next storyline and the next motivations of your characters. Hard to be in a state of ennui when your brain is contantly moving.
So since Sandy is visiting right now I am able to do some more writing and get some of these plots and motivations from inside my head down onto the paper. That means that I have moved on and can announce that I am on chapter nineteen. This is exciting to me because that means I only have about ten more chapters. It is also exciting because I am coming to the cataylst of my story and the real action will start happening. This action will introduce new, interesting characters. When I say interesting that could mean bad and evil or good and heroic. Those determinations will arise within the next chapters. That is what makes writing fun and interesting.
Often our stories and characters take on a life all their own and what you predicted or outlined in the beginning has evolved into something truly real and a surprise even to the writer. The final surprise of course will be the ending but I will discuss that in another blog post soon since I am starting to think of the ending. It is a bit like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and getting closer but not being there quite yet.
Well, Sandy is still visiting and I thank her for the extra time to write but she can leave anytime now. I really do not mind. Since I still have a visitor I am off to hunker down into my warm, dry home with a pen contantly in my hand to finish chapter nineteen.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Beware of the Big Black Hole
I just realized how long it has been since I have been able to jot down a few thoughts in my blog. I can not say I have been overly busy. Although, I did finish another chapter. I am rocking and rolling now into uncharted territory that is for sure. I can say though that the past month has been full of drama and stress and sometimes those are roadblocks to creativity. As I have discovered this past month, once you start putting up those roadblocks it takes a while to get through to the other side again.
Many of you may understand this if you live in the Washington, DC area especially. The city is always under construction. My beautiful morning walk is turning cold but that isn't the worst part of my walk anymore. It is the construction that is going on. There are sidewalks blocked off so you have to walk in the road. The beautiful scenery is instead a giant hole and dirt where there used to be grass. And, to make matters worse, there does not seem to be an end date in sight. Instead it just keeps moving locations and blocking the path.
That is exactly what has to be overcome when you are writing a novel often times. It is easy to say you are too tired or too busy or you just want to relax and play "Words With Friends" instead. In this modern age there are so many distractions to latch onto that it is easy to come up with a reason not to continue on course as planned. I was very focused over the past month but it was mostly a focus on being a vegetable instead of a writer. I relaxed more but got less done.
That is not to say relaxing is a bad thing to do. In fact, it can work to your advantage sometimes when you step away and give yourself a break. Once you return you have a fully operational brain again that is moving fast and thinking clearer instead of the one that was clogged down with too many ideas and responsibilities. The problem arises when relaxing becomes a full time pastime and everything else like writing becomes a memory or an excuse. As I like to call it, "The Black Hole Excuse." The idea of something becomes so big it is like it fell into a black hole. Much like my son's idea of taking out the trash regularly. We end up hating a chore that may only take a small amount of time or can even be enjoyable because we have turned it into a giant black hole.
I have moved onto a new section of my book and I am now in a different time period and a different country. I have to do more research and be a bit more creative with word choice. I normally enjoy this greatly. I love words and have often been teases for reading the dictionary or thesaurus for fun. I love learning new words or big words or obscure words. Yet, over the past month my trepidation has turned into a black hole and I took on too much of the story in my head that I could not jot it down on paper. There it sat for a couple weeks. I still thought of my story line and the characters but it became like the monster under your bed, something so much bigger than it really was.
As a kid I could not sleep with the closet door open because then the monsters inside would escape. Well, I sat down finally and opened that door and no monsters escaped. My closet was just my closet. I put that same memory into play again.
It happened out of necessity. One evening I was commuting home from work on the train and ran into a set of unfortunate events. I had made it almost home and was overjoyed since it was another long day and I was ready to just sit and relax. I did do a lot of sitting but I did not make it home as planned. They found a bag of body parts on my train and five hours later I was able to finally make it home. Of course that was after a train ride, a bus ride and a very nice gentleman finally driving me to my final destination. I do not do well when I have to sit and do nothing for long periods of time. After exhausting the distraction of a crossword puzzle I finally took out my writing that I carry around everywhere. This sitting and waiting finally gave me the chance I needed to write.
Writing is just what I did too. I broke the seal on the big black hole and was once again able to just focus on the one event or action or thought my characters were having at that point in the novel. That black hole got smaller and smaller until I realized I had finished another chapter. I also finally made it home from the impossible train ride. I once again realized that writing is a solace for me through tough times and boredom. That big black hole has been defeated. As the cowboy used to say, "I ride again." Or, in my case, "I write again."
Many of you may understand this if you live in the Washington, DC area especially. The city is always under construction. My beautiful morning walk is turning cold but that isn't the worst part of my walk anymore. It is the construction that is going on. There are sidewalks blocked off so you have to walk in the road. The beautiful scenery is instead a giant hole and dirt where there used to be grass. And, to make matters worse, there does not seem to be an end date in sight. Instead it just keeps moving locations and blocking the path.
That is exactly what has to be overcome when you are writing a novel often times. It is easy to say you are too tired or too busy or you just want to relax and play "Words With Friends" instead. In this modern age there are so many distractions to latch onto that it is easy to come up with a reason not to continue on course as planned. I was very focused over the past month but it was mostly a focus on being a vegetable instead of a writer. I relaxed more but got less done.
That is not to say relaxing is a bad thing to do. In fact, it can work to your advantage sometimes when you step away and give yourself a break. Once you return you have a fully operational brain again that is moving fast and thinking clearer instead of the one that was clogged down with too many ideas and responsibilities. The problem arises when relaxing becomes a full time pastime and everything else like writing becomes a memory or an excuse. As I like to call it, "The Black Hole Excuse." The idea of something becomes so big it is like it fell into a black hole. Much like my son's idea of taking out the trash regularly. We end up hating a chore that may only take a small amount of time or can even be enjoyable because we have turned it into a giant black hole.
I have moved onto a new section of my book and I am now in a different time period and a different country. I have to do more research and be a bit more creative with word choice. I normally enjoy this greatly. I love words and have often been teases for reading the dictionary or thesaurus for fun. I love learning new words or big words or obscure words. Yet, over the past month my trepidation has turned into a black hole and I took on too much of the story in my head that I could not jot it down on paper. There it sat for a couple weeks. I still thought of my story line and the characters but it became like the monster under your bed, something so much bigger than it really was.
As a kid I could not sleep with the closet door open because then the monsters inside would escape. Well, I sat down finally and opened that door and no monsters escaped. My closet was just my closet. I put that same memory into play again.
It happened out of necessity. One evening I was commuting home from work on the train and ran into a set of unfortunate events. I had made it almost home and was overjoyed since it was another long day and I was ready to just sit and relax. I did do a lot of sitting but I did not make it home as planned. They found a bag of body parts on my train and five hours later I was able to finally make it home. Of course that was after a train ride, a bus ride and a very nice gentleman finally driving me to my final destination. I do not do well when I have to sit and do nothing for long periods of time. After exhausting the distraction of a crossword puzzle I finally took out my writing that I carry around everywhere. This sitting and waiting finally gave me the chance I needed to write.
Writing is just what I did too. I broke the seal on the big black hole and was once again able to just focus on the one event or action or thought my characters were having at that point in the novel. That black hole got smaller and smaller until I realized I had finished another chapter. I also finally made it home from the impossible train ride. I once again realized that writing is a solace for me through tough times and boredom. That big black hole has been defeated. As the cowboy used to say, "I ride again." Or, in my case, "I write again."
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Birthday Celebrations and Renewals
Happy Birthday! Not just to me but to my blog as well. I started writing a little over a year ago this blog and my novel. Birthdays are a good way of looking back over your life and your progress. For my writing it has been a year of changing and learning for sure. So what are some of the things I learned over the past year.
1. Writing a novel takes a lot of work.
It is like having another job. So if you are are writer that has a full time job and writes in your free-time you should understand that you have two full time jobs where only one pays you for your time.
2. Love what you are doing.
Since writing a novel is hard work and you have to take the initiative without any incentive you need to write for the "right" reasons. You have to love writing or feel that you have a story or message you want to convey that you believe in full and feel that others would enjoy reading.
3. It is a you problem not a me problem.
Writing is often done with an audience in mind. However, when you write a novel you often have such a wide range of differences to your audience that you have to consider them and let them pass through your head and out into the atmosphere. Do not get caught up in trying to please everyone that you lose sight of your story and theme. Stick to your ideas and enjoy how they evolve without worrying to heavily about what publishers or readers will think.
4. Let your story Evolve.
When I recently looked at my original outline for my story it was very different that how my story evolved. I believe my story took on a life of its own and went into the direction it should have but when I initially thought and plotted it was different. Change can be good. Do not fear the changes your writing takes. Just like people even our words progress in their own patterns and often that is how your story really was meant to be written.
5. Research....another job requirement.
Where I currently work, every position has certain job requirements you must fulfil. For writers, research can often be part of your job requirement. Research can be interesting and fun and sometimes frustrating. I think that it also legitimizes a story and adds a depth and meaning that would not be there without some research and expertise inserted.
6. Breath.
It is great to set goals but not to hyperventilate when those goals are not met. When you have a full time job and are trying to also write what often happens is that something may get in the way of writing. You may not meet your writing goal. That is okay. Take a breath, relax and let yourself find the time later. Remember as a writer you are your own boss so you can be late on your self-imposed deadline. Remember that it may happen again. Mostly you should remember that you are writing because you love it. If you stress over the missed goal or deadline you may sabotage yourself into not writing again.
I probably learned a lot more over the past year of writing. These are just some of my overall observations that I have taken away with me over the past year. I also am proud to say I am more than half way done with my novel as I progress into chapter seventeen and that I feel that I have a personal relationship with my characters and my story that makes me feel vested to this piece of work I am creating. With that understanding I feel proud of what I have accomplished over the past year and look forward to the next step and chapter as we celebrate its first birthday and my own (age left off purposely) birthday and renew my commitment to my novel with the hope that by this time next year I may be writing...The End.
1. Writing a novel takes a lot of work.
It is like having another job. So if you are are writer that has a full time job and writes in your free-time you should understand that you have two full time jobs where only one pays you for your time.
2. Love what you are doing.
Since writing a novel is hard work and you have to take the initiative without any incentive you need to write for the "right" reasons. You have to love writing or feel that you have a story or message you want to convey that you believe in full and feel that others would enjoy reading.
3. It is a you problem not a me problem.
Writing is often done with an audience in mind. However, when you write a novel you often have such a wide range of differences to your audience that you have to consider them and let them pass through your head and out into the atmosphere. Do not get caught up in trying to please everyone that you lose sight of your story and theme. Stick to your ideas and enjoy how they evolve without worrying to heavily about what publishers or readers will think.
4. Let your story Evolve.
When I recently looked at my original outline for my story it was very different that how my story evolved. I believe my story took on a life of its own and went into the direction it should have but when I initially thought and plotted it was different. Change can be good. Do not fear the changes your writing takes. Just like people even our words progress in their own patterns and often that is how your story really was meant to be written.
5. Research....another job requirement.
Where I currently work, every position has certain job requirements you must fulfil. For writers, research can often be part of your job requirement. Research can be interesting and fun and sometimes frustrating. I think that it also legitimizes a story and adds a depth and meaning that would not be there without some research and expertise inserted.
6. Breath.
It is great to set goals but not to hyperventilate when those goals are not met. When you have a full time job and are trying to also write what often happens is that something may get in the way of writing. You may not meet your writing goal. That is okay. Take a breath, relax and let yourself find the time later. Remember as a writer you are your own boss so you can be late on your self-imposed deadline. Remember that it may happen again. Mostly you should remember that you are writing because you love it. If you stress over the missed goal or deadline you may sabotage yourself into not writing again.
I probably learned a lot more over the past year of writing. These are just some of my overall observations that I have taken away with me over the past year. I also am proud to say I am more than half way done with my novel as I progress into chapter seventeen and that I feel that I have a personal relationship with my characters and my story that makes me feel vested to this piece of work I am creating. With that understanding I feel proud of what I have accomplished over the past year and look forward to the next step and chapter as we celebrate its first birthday and my own (age left off purposely) birthday and renew my commitment to my novel with the hope that by this time next year I may be writing...The End.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Writing is Like a Game of Dodge Ball
I recently read a very interesting post from an author who was discussing the need to "cut the fat" as they called it. This meant that if you felt that a certain section is not necessary to the premise of the story it should be removed. In other words, you can't put every thought, event, connection and idea that your character may have in your head into the story that you are creating because it bogs down the theme of your narrative and the smoothness of the action.
I do agree with that general idea. However, I look at it like a game of dodge ball. Did you ever play dodge ball as a kid on the playground during recess? It was usually brutal and fun at the same time. There were two team leaders selected. Everyone would then stand in front of those two god-like personages and just pray that you would not be the last person picked. Then one by one the line is parsed down to the remaining few. Those few are in a group all their own in a way. They are usually not very athletic by nature or coordinated or even interested in sports. They are just as interested as the others though in belonging. The two team leaders would then fight over who gets the worst player and what they could do with to still win if they got any of those "last picked" players on their teams.
After the selection is done then the game was started. Again, people are picked off one by one by the dodge ball. The dodge ball itself is only the size of a soccer ball and much softer. Our ball was always red and bouncy. When that ball is coming straight toward you at great speed though it looks a lot big and it feels as if there are bricks inside of it. Bam...Bam...Bam...and then you are down to only the best players and the game gets really interesting.
To me, that is exactly how writing can be sometimes, like a game of dodge ball. First you write and write and write all the words and ideas for your character that pop into your head. Then you edit and try to parse down the areas that do not seem to flow as well as others...BAM! You try to take out any secondary characters, useless interactions and conversations or the author being a bit heavy handed because they really are not adding any worth to the storyline...BAM! You finally question whether this person, conversation or idea is really necessary. It sounds good, looks good or seems good. It fits in relatively well but it is really, absolutely necessary...BAM!
And now you have the beginnings of a good piece of fiction because in that first, second and third round of edits you have eliminated the words and ideas that just don't work and now you have the beginnings of a good story. I say beginnings because the game is not done yet. There is still so much more to do and think about and edits to be made. But for now, we have a great teamwork of words to continue to play ball with. This is why writing is often like a game of dodge ball.
I do agree with that general idea. However, I look at it like a game of dodge ball. Did you ever play dodge ball as a kid on the playground during recess? It was usually brutal and fun at the same time. There were two team leaders selected. Everyone would then stand in front of those two god-like personages and just pray that you would not be the last person picked. Then one by one the line is parsed down to the remaining few. Those few are in a group all their own in a way. They are usually not very athletic by nature or coordinated or even interested in sports. They are just as interested as the others though in belonging. The two team leaders would then fight over who gets the worst player and what they could do with to still win if they got any of those "last picked" players on their teams.
After the selection is done then the game was started. Again, people are picked off one by one by the dodge ball. The dodge ball itself is only the size of a soccer ball and much softer. Our ball was always red and bouncy. When that ball is coming straight toward you at great speed though it looks a lot big and it feels as if there are bricks inside of it. Bam...Bam...Bam...and then you are down to only the best players and the game gets really interesting.
To me, that is exactly how writing can be sometimes, like a game of dodge ball. First you write and write and write all the words and ideas for your character that pop into your head. Then you edit and try to parse down the areas that do not seem to flow as well as others...BAM! You try to take out any secondary characters, useless interactions and conversations or the author being a bit heavy handed because they really are not adding any worth to the storyline...BAM! You finally question whether this person, conversation or idea is really necessary. It sounds good, looks good or seems good. It fits in relatively well but it is really, absolutely necessary...BAM!
And now you have the beginnings of a good piece of fiction because in that first, second and third round of edits you have eliminated the words and ideas that just don't work and now you have the beginnings of a good story. I say beginnings because the game is not done yet. There is still so much more to do and think about and edits to be made. But for now, we have a great teamwork of words to continue to play ball with. This is why writing is often like a game of dodge ball.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Ode to Maeve Binchy - One of My Imaginary Friends
July is never my favorite month. I am usually happy to just get through it. This year was no different. In the beginning of the month my father was in the hospital. It is always a scary thing to see a parent immobilized and whose health has deteriorated which his did overnight it seemed. Then just as I thought he may be getting better he had to go back to the hospital. Luckily that time was not nearly as scary.
So I survived my first real brush with having to care for a parent. I worked through all the thoughts on mortality and loss I had the whole time. Things have finally started to calm down a bit since that first week Dad was admitted. On July 30th I then got the news. My favorite author, although I have several in this category she always ranked at the very top, had passed away.
On July 30, 2012 Maeve Binchy died. I was instantly aggrieved as if I knew the woman personally and had lost my best friend. In a sense though anyone who was a fan of her books did lose a good friend. She was my go to author for rainy days when I just wanted to stay under the covers and read. She was the author whose characters came to life for me and as they continued through her books I got to continue to know. I grieved and cried at times, I laughed out loud (even on a public train embarrassingly enough), I could not get through the pages fast enough and put down the book to sleep until I got through the lives and scandals and stories of all her characters. When she had a new book come out on the shelves I would instantly go and purchase it and I can say there is only one other author who I am willing to pay for the higher priced hard cover copy. I would even count down the days until her book would come out in the stores. Since she was an Irish author it would be out already overseas and I would read the reviews and peeks into the story.
As I write my own first book I am reminded of how close the relationship of reader and writer truly are. That is exactly what I had with Maeve Binchy and any author who touches me or excites me or makes me angry, sad, elated or just question myself. The author is like an imaginary friend who speaks to you in a way that no one else can see. They paint pictures no one else can envision the same. They tell tales that make you feel as if there is a secret between just you and the author. A good author is like the best imaginary friend anyone could have. A good book does not necessarily always make you happy but it does make you feel. It does not always leave you feeling stronger but it often entertains you when life can seem dull. And a good book does not always fix the problems but gives you perspective on the world so that when you close the covers you can go back to life with a little bit of knowledge passed down.
I discovered Maeve Binchy when I was in college I believe so I have had the author/reader relationship with her for twenty years give or take. As the technology world began to take over I followed her on twitter and facebook. I would look up articles or dates for new releases. I have watched movies that they have made from her books, which never were as good as the real thing. She has been a friendship that has lasted and got me through over the years and so I pay homage to an author that touched me and became a great friend. I thank her for her years of entertainment and the trust she passed on to the reader with sharing her characters and their lives.
So this is my ode to Maeve Binchy. As I look back over my shoulder to july and up ahead to August I will miss my new Maeve Binchy books greatly but will aways cherish the ones she created.
So I survived my first real brush with having to care for a parent. I worked through all the thoughts on mortality and loss I had the whole time. Things have finally started to calm down a bit since that first week Dad was admitted. On July 30th I then got the news. My favorite author, although I have several in this category she always ranked at the very top, had passed away.
On July 30, 2012 Maeve Binchy died. I was instantly aggrieved as if I knew the woman personally and had lost my best friend. In a sense though anyone who was a fan of her books did lose a good friend. She was my go to author for rainy days when I just wanted to stay under the covers and read. She was the author whose characters came to life for me and as they continued through her books I got to continue to know. I grieved and cried at times, I laughed out loud (even on a public train embarrassingly enough), I could not get through the pages fast enough and put down the book to sleep until I got through the lives and scandals and stories of all her characters. When she had a new book come out on the shelves I would instantly go and purchase it and I can say there is only one other author who I am willing to pay for the higher priced hard cover copy. I would even count down the days until her book would come out in the stores. Since she was an Irish author it would be out already overseas and I would read the reviews and peeks into the story.
As I write my own first book I am reminded of how close the relationship of reader and writer truly are. That is exactly what I had with Maeve Binchy and any author who touches me or excites me or makes me angry, sad, elated or just question myself. The author is like an imaginary friend who speaks to you in a way that no one else can see. They paint pictures no one else can envision the same. They tell tales that make you feel as if there is a secret between just you and the author. A good author is like the best imaginary friend anyone could have. A good book does not necessarily always make you happy but it does make you feel. It does not always leave you feeling stronger but it often entertains you when life can seem dull. And a good book does not always fix the problems but gives you perspective on the world so that when you close the covers you can go back to life with a little bit of knowledge passed down.
I discovered Maeve Binchy when I was in college I believe so I have had the author/reader relationship with her for twenty years give or take. As the technology world began to take over I followed her on twitter and facebook. I would look up articles or dates for new releases. I have watched movies that they have made from her books, which never were as good as the real thing. She has been a friendship that has lasted and got me through over the years and so I pay homage to an author that touched me and became a great friend. I thank her for her years of entertainment and the trust she passed on to the reader with sharing her characters and their lives.
So this is my ode to Maeve Binchy. As I look back over my shoulder to july and up ahead to August I will miss my new Maeve Binchy books greatly but will aways cherish the ones she created.
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Let's Have Tea and Share A Good Read
I recently started reading a book that I bought over a year ago. It sat on my bookshelf patiently waiting for me to pick it up and read it. It did not yell and scream for attention but just sat and waited knowing that I would need to find solace in it one day. It watch as for the first nine months that I started writing my own book I got caught up in just writing my book. I didn't waver except to do my job and take care of my son. I focused on writing, writing, writing. Then I hit a point where I felt pulled into so many directions and I took a bit of a break. My work load increased which also took up a lot of my time and brainpower. I wasn't able to fit my story into my head when I had politics and meetings and newsletters locking the door to my own creativity.
The time off from my writing was not all bad though. I started to read some of the books on my bookshelf again. In reading the books by other authors who struggle though the same issues, as well as different unimaginable ones in writing their own novels, I finally realized that to be a good writer you first have to be a good reader. I once heard a therapist friend of mine say that the best therapists are the ones that have gone through therapy themselves because they can relate better to how difficult it is to bare your soul to a stranger and share all the bizarre, weird and heart-wrenching details of your life that may be hidden away from the people closest to you. It is the same with writing. In order to be a good writer you also need to be a good reader.
Then one evening I was so mentally drained I could not do anymore work and didn't want to do anymore writing and I walked over and picked up that book that lay on my bookshelf, patiently sitting there. I opened the book and let the words fill my head. I felt my mind instantly relax as the story formed and worked through my mind. After reading for a long while I finally lay down the book feeling relaxed and realized all I wanted to do was write. I got a better sense of my own story. My mind which had been lost without a map suddenly felt as if the navigator was turned back on and the words were indeed there. I could again write what I wanted.
The book I was reading did much also to show me how we as a reader can relate so much to the writer and that is what a writer really wants. We want to entertain of course but we also want to make the story relatable so that it is like hearing a story from a good friend or sitting with someone in comfortable silence where words are not necessary because they are already shared mentally. I know at times I have laughed out loud in my reading or cried over a sad, poignant scene or felt scared by a mystery or angry over an insult or injury. I shared with the writer these emotions on the pages of a book.
Another reason to be a good reader is that when we come to a point in our story that is frustrating or not coming out as we want or need it is often good to sit quietly and read a book and almost be shown another way to look at the problem. Books are teachers and friends and references and spas all rolled into one. They can be exciting when we need a little stimulation and fantasy. They can be relaxing when we no longer want to be the one to think. They can be informational and inspiring and relatable. At the end of reading a book a writer can then go back to their writing with more of an understanding of how they want their work to be perceived by the reader because reading a book is a contract between writer and reader. We all put our own signatures on a book just as much as the writer does with what we come away with in understanding from the story.
The book I had left for so long that I was now enjoying amazed me with how much I related to the story. I felt as if the writer was inside of my head or sitting next to me through my own life experiences and here they were on paper. I found a book that felt like I was sitting having tea with a friend that already knew me so well. So after I finished reading, I smiled, took out my pen, thought about the imagined reader of my own words and started to write again.
The time off from my writing was not all bad though. I started to read some of the books on my bookshelf again. In reading the books by other authors who struggle though the same issues, as well as different unimaginable ones in writing their own novels, I finally realized that to be a good writer you first have to be a good reader. I once heard a therapist friend of mine say that the best therapists are the ones that have gone through therapy themselves because they can relate better to how difficult it is to bare your soul to a stranger and share all the bizarre, weird and heart-wrenching details of your life that may be hidden away from the people closest to you. It is the same with writing. In order to be a good writer you also need to be a good reader.
Then one evening I was so mentally drained I could not do anymore work and didn't want to do anymore writing and I walked over and picked up that book that lay on my bookshelf, patiently sitting there. I opened the book and let the words fill my head. I felt my mind instantly relax as the story formed and worked through my mind. After reading for a long while I finally lay down the book feeling relaxed and realized all I wanted to do was write. I got a better sense of my own story. My mind which had been lost without a map suddenly felt as if the navigator was turned back on and the words were indeed there. I could again write what I wanted.
The book I was reading did much also to show me how we as a reader can relate so much to the writer and that is what a writer really wants. We want to entertain of course but we also want to make the story relatable so that it is like hearing a story from a good friend or sitting with someone in comfortable silence where words are not necessary because they are already shared mentally. I know at times I have laughed out loud in my reading or cried over a sad, poignant scene or felt scared by a mystery or angry over an insult or injury. I shared with the writer these emotions on the pages of a book.
Another reason to be a good reader is that when we come to a point in our story that is frustrating or not coming out as we want or need it is often good to sit quietly and read a book and almost be shown another way to look at the problem. Books are teachers and friends and references and spas all rolled into one. They can be exciting when we need a little stimulation and fantasy. They can be relaxing when we no longer want to be the one to think. They can be informational and inspiring and relatable. At the end of reading a book a writer can then go back to their writing with more of an understanding of how they want their work to be perceived by the reader because reading a book is a contract between writer and reader. We all put our own signatures on a book just as much as the writer does with what we come away with in understanding from the story.
The book I had left for so long that I was now enjoying amazed me with how much I related to the story. I felt as if the writer was inside of my head or sitting next to me through my own life experiences and here they were on paper. I found a book that felt like I was sitting having tea with a friend that already knew me so well. So after I finished reading, I smiled, took out my pen, thought about the imagined reader of my own words and started to write again.
Monday, June 18, 2012
The Land of the Ps
There are many Ps to writing...publishing, paper, pen, process. One of the worst Ps to writing though would have to be procrastination. When you have a full time job and you are a single mother, it is often easy to lay the trap of procrastination. It becomes easy to say, "I can't write today I am so busy at work." or "Maybe I will do that tomorrow but today my son has this event or that event." I have found myself the past few months in the land of the Ps.
I was extremely busy at work and with my son finishing up his sixth grade year that it was easy to cling to those reasons and not do as much writing. Writing does take work and a lot of it. It is work I love but it is work and with anything worthwhile it takes time. Often it is hard to find the time when you feel as if you are the rope in a tug of war contest between working your job, being a mother, writing and having time to yourself. It is important then to make the time to write. It is important to organize even thirty minutes a day to doing what you feel is creative and that keeps your mind active in your story. Otherwise, it is easy to lose the story altogether and the steam you had created as it continued to progress. Even trains start out slowly until they gather speed. Writing is the same way. You can not sit down and instantly have a completed novel or play sitting in front of you. It takes you stoking the fires so that it can progress faster and faster down that route.
That is not to say that all procrastination is bad. It can be given a useful purpose where you can plan and plot out the next steps in your manuscript. You can think about your characters motivations more or even get a little research done as you sit and enjoy the leisure of vacant time. However, as nice and magical and colorful as Wonderland was, even Alice had to return to her own time. So, as my big annual meeting has ended months ago and my son is now done with school, done also are my excuses and back to the writing I go.
It can be easy or hard to get back to doing something you enjoy. It may be that you start by writing in a journal again, or you write a piece for work that will go in a newsletter or you simply write a descriptive email to a friend or, as I am doing here, you put a long awaited post on a blog. Once you start writing it reawakens the writer within and you feel the steam start to power your train of creativity and it starts to chug along faster and faster until once again those ideas are pouring out of you. Once again the characters are real and the story needs to be told. You set up your outlines and your goals and you begin writing again...then as you lay your pen down or take your hands from the keyboard after a day of feverishly typing out your new ideas you sigh with relief and say, "Welcome back my old friend." With that you have left the land of the Ps and you are back to writing again.
I was extremely busy at work and with my son finishing up his sixth grade year that it was easy to cling to those reasons and not do as much writing. Writing does take work and a lot of it. It is work I love but it is work and with anything worthwhile it takes time. Often it is hard to find the time when you feel as if you are the rope in a tug of war contest between working your job, being a mother, writing and having time to yourself. It is important then to make the time to write. It is important to organize even thirty minutes a day to doing what you feel is creative and that keeps your mind active in your story. Otherwise, it is easy to lose the story altogether and the steam you had created as it continued to progress. Even trains start out slowly until they gather speed. Writing is the same way. You can not sit down and instantly have a completed novel or play sitting in front of you. It takes you stoking the fires so that it can progress faster and faster down that route.
That is not to say that all procrastination is bad. It can be given a useful purpose where you can plan and plot out the next steps in your manuscript. You can think about your characters motivations more or even get a little research done as you sit and enjoy the leisure of vacant time. However, as nice and magical and colorful as Wonderland was, even Alice had to return to her own time. So, as my big annual meeting has ended months ago and my son is now done with school, done also are my excuses and back to the writing I go.
It can be easy or hard to get back to doing something you enjoy. It may be that you start by writing in a journal again, or you write a piece for work that will go in a newsletter or you simply write a descriptive email to a friend or, as I am doing here, you put a long awaited post on a blog. Once you start writing it reawakens the writer within and you feel the steam start to power your train of creativity and it starts to chug along faster and faster until once again those ideas are pouring out of you. Once again the characters are real and the story needs to be told. You set up your outlines and your goals and you begin writing again...then as you lay your pen down or take your hands from the keyboard after a day of feverishly typing out your new ideas you sigh with relief and say, "Welcome back my old friend." With that you have left the land of the Ps and you are back to writing again.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
The Mount Everest Of Creativity Crisis
I have received a few comments recently that I have not posted anything to my blog in a while. I do apologize to my avid readers, which are mostly family members I am sure given the ease of comments. When Spring comes to the area my life is no longer my own but devoted completely to work and my full time job. This means that my writing has suffered as well. I equate it to having an energy crisis.
An energy crisis physically means you did not get much sleep and fight with all of your strength to get through your day. An energy crisis globally means there is not enough natural resources to furnish a nation. An energy crisis at work could mean that you are stretched beyond your limits with too many projects. I am suffering from a creativity crisis. For me that has meant that I am stretched beyond my limits at work and even in my personal life that my creative tasks and processes have suffered greatly.
I have a major conference approaching, my son's birthday, major work projects with looming deadlines, Easter and Mother's Day and all of this means that my writing has suffered a bit. I am after all a writer with a full-time job as well as being a single mother. It is amazing when you breakdown your existence how much work that a person can fit into a small twenty four hours a day with hopefully at least six of those spent sleeping.
I will say that I am almost finished with Chapter Fourteen. I do have a bit of medical research to do. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I am not a science person. I hate science, always have. I never had to do a science fair project in school. I thank my Dad for that. If we didn't move at key points in my life I would have had to. Yet, here I am with chapter fourteen nearing completion and I am stuck because of SCIENCE. Ironically I am raising a son who absolutely adores science. Unfortunate for me though he is still a bit young and unable to truly help me. That, and he is not a doctor. I probably could have finished the chapter but for the fact that the science of it has left me bereft of interest and in a "creative crisis".
There I go again, worrying about the creative crisis that has invaded. We often create our own crisis. Once I finish chapter fourteen the major action of the story will start to really kick up a notch and the idea of that can be daunting. It is a bit like being a mountain climber standing at the bottom of Mount Everest. I usually give myself small goals so I do not think of the major task of finishing a novel. In my attempts to avoid the medical research I think I have scared myself by making the task more of a mountain that it needs to be and preventing me from continuing to finish my novel. It is a form of self-sabotage of course.
It is also easy to do when you feel stretched beyond your limits everywhere else. Instead of just plunging head first into the crisis we sometimes think of it in terms of a giant task instead of a small step by step accomplishment. Outlines or even lists are often good ways of preventing the thought of the big task. Yet, here I had been sitting for over a week and my novel had become one of the giants in my life. So yesterday I took a step back and took a few short breaths. After I finished hyperventilating and regained consciousness I knew that I was my own giant and the creative crisis we sometimes come across is really the giant monster of ourselves that lives within.
Everyone has those monsters that sit inside and whisper nasty comments in your ear like little goblins until you are defeated. The real challenge during a creative crisis is gathering the strength to defeat those monsters. That can only be done one word at a time. Putting your pen to paper and simply just writing one word, one line, one paragraph and one page at a time. It doesn't have to be on the novel either. Maybe by putting down the novel and writing a short story or poem or finding a different creative project that keeps the juices flowing so that when you pick that novel back up you have feel more relaxed and with a full supply of creativity.
So, I set down my novel and I plotted out a cute short story. I wrote out this blog. I did some sewing and relaxing with my son. I can say, not too loudly since I do have my big conference approaching, that I may have solved this creativity crisis...for now.
An energy crisis physically means you did not get much sleep and fight with all of your strength to get through your day. An energy crisis globally means there is not enough natural resources to furnish a nation. An energy crisis at work could mean that you are stretched beyond your limits with too many projects. I am suffering from a creativity crisis. For me that has meant that I am stretched beyond my limits at work and even in my personal life that my creative tasks and processes have suffered greatly.
I have a major conference approaching, my son's birthday, major work projects with looming deadlines, Easter and Mother's Day and all of this means that my writing has suffered a bit. I am after all a writer with a full-time job as well as being a single mother. It is amazing when you breakdown your existence how much work that a person can fit into a small twenty four hours a day with hopefully at least six of those spent sleeping.
I will say that I am almost finished with Chapter Fourteen. I do have a bit of medical research to do. Anyone that knows me will tell you that I am not a science person. I hate science, always have. I never had to do a science fair project in school. I thank my Dad for that. If we didn't move at key points in my life I would have had to. Yet, here I am with chapter fourteen nearing completion and I am stuck because of SCIENCE. Ironically I am raising a son who absolutely adores science. Unfortunate for me though he is still a bit young and unable to truly help me. That, and he is not a doctor. I probably could have finished the chapter but for the fact that the science of it has left me bereft of interest and in a "creative crisis".
There I go again, worrying about the creative crisis that has invaded. We often create our own crisis. Once I finish chapter fourteen the major action of the story will start to really kick up a notch and the idea of that can be daunting. It is a bit like being a mountain climber standing at the bottom of Mount Everest. I usually give myself small goals so I do not think of the major task of finishing a novel. In my attempts to avoid the medical research I think I have scared myself by making the task more of a mountain that it needs to be and preventing me from continuing to finish my novel. It is a form of self-sabotage of course.
It is also easy to do when you feel stretched beyond your limits everywhere else. Instead of just plunging head first into the crisis we sometimes think of it in terms of a giant task instead of a small step by step accomplishment. Outlines or even lists are often good ways of preventing the thought of the big task. Yet, here I had been sitting for over a week and my novel had become one of the giants in my life. So yesterday I took a step back and took a few short breaths. After I finished hyperventilating and regained consciousness I knew that I was my own giant and the creative crisis we sometimes come across is really the giant monster of ourselves that lives within.
Everyone has those monsters that sit inside and whisper nasty comments in your ear like little goblins until you are defeated. The real challenge during a creative crisis is gathering the strength to defeat those monsters. That can only be done one word at a time. Putting your pen to paper and simply just writing one word, one line, one paragraph and one page at a time. It doesn't have to be on the novel either. Maybe by putting down the novel and writing a short story or poem or finding a different creative project that keeps the juices flowing so that when you pick that novel back up you have feel more relaxed and with a full supply of creativity.
So, I set down my novel and I plotted out a cute short story. I wrote out this blog. I did some sewing and relaxing with my son. I can say, not too loudly since I do have my big conference approaching, that I may have solved this creativity crisis...for now.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Taxes Are Creative Works of Numbers
It is that time of year again...tax season. Time to think of numbers and finances and planning for the future. Most of my time is taken with words and letters and not numbers but I did go and prepare all my tax forms for filing this past weekend.
My taxes are actually very easy since I live like a single mother who is still a twenty year old. I rent, don't own and I don't itemize anything but just take whatever is said as standard. Of course, the grown up in me has had one job and instead of three or four throughout the year and I have a son who does make a create addition to my taxes and any refund. Yet, I may have forgot to mention that I still have to go to my mother's house just to do my taxes. I say it is a good excuse for Joe to see his grandma but really it is so that I can mooch off of her tax program and get any questions answered, you know, like a teenager filing taxes.
Of course it involves a lot less panic when you see you owe the state $3,000 if you actually entered your state data correctly. Don't worry though, I got that all corrected. While I was at home though it was mentioned that I had not posted a blog recently. This was not the first mention of a lack of a posting unfortunately or the first person to say anything. I have had a few mentions. I love writing and try to do it everyday and I have been progressing in my book so that I am now on Chapter Fourteen. If I could I would write, write, write for eight hours a day. There is just one thing that gets in the way...WORK! Okay, well really work and life itself often intrude on those grand dreams. My job is almost always busy throughout the year but there are times it gets busier than normal and now is one of those times. So though I did writing in my journal and on my novel my blog has been ignored up until now.
There are several things I try to do to be able to keep writing even when I am busy. I sneak away for a few minutes to sit in the sun and watch the people and jot down a few things. I go to bed just a little earlier than normal and spend the extra minutes writing or I simply just hide away to do some writing. This past Friday I took a retro day to do just that. It is a day to return to myself a little bit. Some people call them personal days but for me it was a retro day. I have been so busy and stressed lately that I needed a day to find myself again.
In many respects finding the meaning of ourselves can be done in our writing. When you re-read portions of your writing there will be certain qualities given to a character that seem similar just as there may even be certain events being recalled that meant something to the writer and are now attributed to a character. We as writers put a lot of ourselves in our writing, which is why when a writer decides to take on the task of writing a novel it becomes a very personal task. We dream the characters and their lives and feel as if they are real because to us they are, they are a part of who we really are inside.
Of course there are also those characters who are vastly different than we are or who are more like a neighbor, friend or co-worker because of their extravagance. So as I sat and did my taxes I realized that sometimes we are words and letters and sometimes we are numbers. The story and plot is about the motion and action and feelings and ideas that are being given to you in words and images. There are no boundaries because it is the words that are being painted into our imaginations. So how do we get to the numbers you may wonder? Numbers are very concrete. When you were in first grade you probably learned that 1+1=2. I can almost guarantee you today that 1+1 still equals two and that your own child is learning it that way. We may derive different ideas or see different things when we re-read a story but the structure and boundaries often remain the same.
Are you confused yet? Well, let me try to explain. I once dated a guy who was an engineer who said that the world is all 1s and 0s and that a colorful person like myself tries to change it but that the only truth is the 1 and the 0. I then surprised him when I finally agreed but saw the artistic element of the 1 and the 0. All numbers are just artistic expressions for the one and the zero. The number 4 is just a combination of ones placed in a different way and 8 is two zeros living on top of each other. He was impressed by the idea but books have the same combination of creative and structure. There still needs to be meaning behind the creative idea and that is where structure and numbers come into play. We have page numbers and chapter numbers to give our stories a boundary. The book still has a beginning and an ending and when we describe anything it has definite shape and form put into words. Shape and form are the math and the actual picture is the art.
Of course, it could just be that I was doing my taxes and couldn't understand the numbers and so my mind wandered into the creative....It is number season time once again.
My taxes are actually very easy since I live like a single mother who is still a twenty year old. I rent, don't own and I don't itemize anything but just take whatever is said as standard. Of course, the grown up in me has had one job and instead of three or four throughout the year and I have a son who does make a create addition to my taxes and any refund. Yet, I may have forgot to mention that I still have to go to my mother's house just to do my taxes. I say it is a good excuse for Joe to see his grandma but really it is so that I can mooch off of her tax program and get any questions answered, you know, like a teenager filing taxes.
Of course it involves a lot less panic when you see you owe the state $3,000 if you actually entered your state data correctly. Don't worry though, I got that all corrected. While I was at home though it was mentioned that I had not posted a blog recently. This was not the first mention of a lack of a posting unfortunately or the first person to say anything. I have had a few mentions. I love writing and try to do it everyday and I have been progressing in my book so that I am now on Chapter Fourteen. If I could I would write, write, write for eight hours a day. There is just one thing that gets in the way...WORK! Okay, well really work and life itself often intrude on those grand dreams. My job is almost always busy throughout the year but there are times it gets busier than normal and now is one of those times. So though I did writing in my journal and on my novel my blog has been ignored up until now.
There are several things I try to do to be able to keep writing even when I am busy. I sneak away for a few minutes to sit in the sun and watch the people and jot down a few things. I go to bed just a little earlier than normal and spend the extra minutes writing or I simply just hide away to do some writing. This past Friday I took a retro day to do just that. It is a day to return to myself a little bit. Some people call them personal days but for me it was a retro day. I have been so busy and stressed lately that I needed a day to find myself again.
In many respects finding the meaning of ourselves can be done in our writing. When you re-read portions of your writing there will be certain qualities given to a character that seem similar just as there may even be certain events being recalled that meant something to the writer and are now attributed to a character. We as writers put a lot of ourselves in our writing, which is why when a writer decides to take on the task of writing a novel it becomes a very personal task. We dream the characters and their lives and feel as if they are real because to us they are, they are a part of who we really are inside.
Of course there are also those characters who are vastly different than we are or who are more like a neighbor, friend or co-worker because of their extravagance. So as I sat and did my taxes I realized that sometimes we are words and letters and sometimes we are numbers. The story and plot is about the motion and action and feelings and ideas that are being given to you in words and images. There are no boundaries because it is the words that are being painted into our imaginations. So how do we get to the numbers you may wonder? Numbers are very concrete. When you were in first grade you probably learned that 1+1=2. I can almost guarantee you today that 1+1 still equals two and that your own child is learning it that way. We may derive different ideas or see different things when we re-read a story but the structure and boundaries often remain the same.
Are you confused yet? Well, let me try to explain. I once dated a guy who was an engineer who said that the world is all 1s and 0s and that a colorful person like myself tries to change it but that the only truth is the 1 and the 0. I then surprised him when I finally agreed but saw the artistic element of the 1 and the 0. All numbers are just artistic expressions for the one and the zero. The number 4 is just a combination of ones placed in a different way and 8 is two zeros living on top of each other. He was impressed by the idea but books have the same combination of creative and structure. There still needs to be meaning behind the creative idea and that is where structure and numbers come into play. We have page numbers and chapter numbers to give our stories a boundary. The book still has a beginning and an ending and when we describe anything it has definite shape and form put into words. Shape and form are the math and the actual picture is the art.
Of course, it could just be that I was doing my taxes and couldn't understand the numbers and so my mind wandered into the creative....It is number season time once again.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Even Ink Pens Like The Warmer Weather
I have been writing away and am almost done with chapter thirteen. I have been busily writing and my pen and paper are happy but my hand was a little tired and cramping up on the train the other day. I guess it is a no pain, no gain type of scenario or even a suffering for my art situation, although hand cramps are not necessarily suffering too badly. I haven't removed an ear or not eaten for days so it is pretty minor suffering, at least so far.
I have started reaching the point where research is necessary to finish the chapter. Research can be a lot of fun in my opinion but it can also slow down the fast writing process a bit. It is also exciting because I will be heading to another part of the story and the action that I have been anxiously awaiting to get to. It also means I am almost in the middle of my book . I am very ready to do the research and then head into the past and overseas, at least in my imagination.
I have watched a few movies set in the past lately. I did not really do this intentionally but simply for pleasure but I realized as I was watching them that I was also paying attention to the language and cadence of the speech of the characters. It is quite fascinating to observe the differences. Of course that made me start to think about all my observations that I have not noted here in this blog about writing and my novel.
I really started to think of the differences this past week when I slipped out for a little break from work to do a bit of writing and saw my "dancer boy" again that afternoon. I have not introduced "dancer boy" to you yet. He is not really a boy but a man. He is an African American male probably in his thirties, who is always in sweat suits and no coat, even on frigid days. His sweat suits are also very bright in color and design and you wouldn't be able to miss him normally. Yet, it isn't his attire that draws your attention. People pass him and look back at him and laugh or smile. Others stand on the corners and miss their walk signs as they watch him. This is not because of his clothing choice. It is because he also has earphones in his ears and he is lost in his own world. In our world he is dancing and singing out loud. His dancing is a bit energetic and like watching an excited fan gesture and jump in excitement at a baseball game but if you watch him he is in his own little world and lost to the people observing him.
I know though if he did finally notice he would see that people smile, and of course laugh, at him. It made me realize how much we may miss in what we observe and how it can affect, or in his case, not affect us until later. Below are some of my writing observations that are not overall outstanding but have invaded my life:
1. People often look over at you when you are writing in a notebook or journal. They have an insatiable desire to know what you are writing. They will sit down next to you on the train or on the bench at the museum and finally gather the courage to ask you what you are doing. Then are amazed and will either cheer you on for taking on the task of writing a novel or simply stare and say "Really" in a manner that suggests you are more crazy than sane to do that.
2. Many, many people dream of being writers and after asking about your own writing will give you the plot and scenario of a book idea that they always wanted to write but just haven't...yet. Yet, is a big word with people. I think many individuals who work full time have the grand scheme to write when they retire. I also suspect many won't actually do it. I also think that the people who want to be writers often have quite a romantic view about writing and the idea that one book would set them up for life. As any one-hit-wonder singer from the 80's will tell you it doesn't really work like that, nor should it. I doubt Bobby McFerrin continued to "Don't Worry Be Happy" when he realized that was the only popular song he would have or Nena's "99 Balloons" should have released maybe a few more songs than balloons.
3. Many of those same people who dream of writing a book have a very magical idea about writing and usually don't do it or only do a portion of it and stop because they then discovered that writing a book is work. It takes time and work to write a book. It is also often solitary work and it doesn't get done at night by fairies who also make your shoes and cook you breakfast in the morning. There is no blue bird that sits on your shoulder talking to you as you write or helping you with ideas.
4. Many writers live in their head. This is an obvious observation really about most creative people. I feel it just needs to be stated because for someone to create whole worlds out of pen and ink is quite amazing to me. To feel as if the characters and places were real is outstanding. To understand people that can do that is also frustrating and difficult for many. I have learned that one a lot over my life.
5. Many of you may not realize this observation but ink pens do not write very well when you are sitting outside in the cold. My son can explain the science of it to you. He tried to explain it to me and lost me after the first sciency sentence. My eyes glazed over and I looked like an apt listener but let's just say I am so glad he wasn't giving me a quiz later. This is a weird observation but over the winter has come to mean a lot to me when I am writing outside and can barely read what I have written.
Those are five observations I have had over the past few months. I have had others but I will share those another time and let you absorb all that I have shared with you thus far. Plus, chapter thirteen is calling again and as I have "observed" that is a call I can not easily ignore for very long.
I have started reaching the point where research is necessary to finish the chapter. Research can be a lot of fun in my opinion but it can also slow down the fast writing process a bit. It is also exciting because I will be heading to another part of the story and the action that I have been anxiously awaiting to get to. It also means I am almost in the middle of my book . I am very ready to do the research and then head into the past and overseas, at least in my imagination.
I have watched a few movies set in the past lately. I did not really do this intentionally but simply for pleasure but I realized as I was watching them that I was also paying attention to the language and cadence of the speech of the characters. It is quite fascinating to observe the differences. Of course that made me start to think about all my observations that I have not noted here in this blog about writing and my novel.
I really started to think of the differences this past week when I slipped out for a little break from work to do a bit of writing and saw my "dancer boy" again that afternoon. I have not introduced "dancer boy" to you yet. He is not really a boy but a man. He is an African American male probably in his thirties, who is always in sweat suits and no coat, even on frigid days. His sweat suits are also very bright in color and design and you wouldn't be able to miss him normally. Yet, it isn't his attire that draws your attention. People pass him and look back at him and laugh or smile. Others stand on the corners and miss their walk signs as they watch him. This is not because of his clothing choice. It is because he also has earphones in his ears and he is lost in his own world. In our world he is dancing and singing out loud. His dancing is a bit energetic and like watching an excited fan gesture and jump in excitement at a baseball game but if you watch him he is in his own little world and lost to the people observing him.
I know though if he did finally notice he would see that people smile, and of course laugh, at him. It made me realize how much we may miss in what we observe and how it can affect, or in his case, not affect us until later. Below are some of my writing observations that are not overall outstanding but have invaded my life:
1. People often look over at you when you are writing in a notebook or journal. They have an insatiable desire to know what you are writing. They will sit down next to you on the train or on the bench at the museum and finally gather the courage to ask you what you are doing. Then are amazed and will either cheer you on for taking on the task of writing a novel or simply stare and say "Really" in a manner that suggests you are more crazy than sane to do that.
2. Many, many people dream of being writers and after asking about your own writing will give you the plot and scenario of a book idea that they always wanted to write but just haven't...yet. Yet, is a big word with people. I think many individuals who work full time have the grand scheme to write when they retire. I also suspect many won't actually do it. I also think that the people who want to be writers often have quite a romantic view about writing and the idea that one book would set them up for life. As any one-hit-wonder singer from the 80's will tell you it doesn't really work like that, nor should it. I doubt Bobby McFerrin continued to "Don't Worry Be Happy" when he realized that was the only popular song he would have or Nena's "99 Balloons" should have released maybe a few more songs than balloons.
3. Many of those same people who dream of writing a book have a very magical idea about writing and usually don't do it or only do a portion of it and stop because they then discovered that writing a book is work. It takes time and work to write a book. It is also often solitary work and it doesn't get done at night by fairies who also make your shoes and cook you breakfast in the morning. There is no blue bird that sits on your shoulder talking to you as you write or helping you with ideas.
4. Many writers live in their head. This is an obvious observation really about most creative people. I feel it just needs to be stated because for someone to create whole worlds out of pen and ink is quite amazing to me. To feel as if the characters and places were real is outstanding. To understand people that can do that is also frustrating and difficult for many. I have learned that one a lot over my life.
5. Many of you may not realize this observation but ink pens do not write very well when you are sitting outside in the cold. My son can explain the science of it to you. He tried to explain it to me and lost me after the first sciency sentence. My eyes glazed over and I looked like an apt listener but let's just say I am so glad he wasn't giving me a quiz later. This is a weird observation but over the winter has come to mean a lot to me when I am writing outside and can barely read what I have written.
Those are five observations I have had over the past few months. I have had others but I will share those another time and let you absorb all that I have shared with you thus far. Plus, chapter thirteen is calling again and as I have "observed" that is a call I can not easily ignore for very long.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
My Novel is a Teenager!
It is Wednesday, which means we are halfway through the standard full-time work week. Of course, if you are a writer, or a single mom, there is nothing standard about a work week. I get the fortunate task of being a normal working adult with a 9-5 type job and then I add in that I am also a single mother to an 11-year old who is often smarter than me and always moving, it is a bit like trying to pin down a cloud, and if that made you think I was bored, let's add that I also am a writer who is writing her first novel. Whew! I need a nap after typing all that out and just thinking of it.
The fun part of all of that is that it is always changing. Oh, the job is the same, the kid is the same and the writing is still getting written but the movements and tasks and feelings are changing. For my job in politics and fundraising you can imagine the changes that I can experience from one day to the next. All the interesting projects, creative campaigns and issue tracking that gets done. Then, if you have kids you will understand all the movements and changes that happen with them to keep a parent on their toes. Just watching them grow day to day is amazing. An 11 year old has school and guitar lessons and doctor appointments and science projects and interests that may not be yours that you have to learn to keep up with....well it gets pretty exciting. I have never known as much about mythology in my life and I credit all that to my son.
My son is also at the point where he is changing and almost a teenager but still a kid. His thinking is becoming deeper and his opinions stronger, his actions more aware and his desires heavier. He is on the edge of becoming a teenager but still looking back and liking the protection of being a little kid. He is almost ready to cut through the ropes and be independent but not quite. As a parent it is fascinating to watch the transition, and a little scary.
My writing is also at the cusp of being on a new point. The action is about to change. The location is about to cross waters and travel back in time. In a sense all the changes make me think it is like having a constantly moving job or a constantly moving kid. It also experiences changes and fluctuations. It grows up just as your child does.
I am in the middle of my novel now and as I was doing a little research for it found my original outline and creative plan for the whole novel. I had been on the phone with my mother later that day and laughed when I told her that it is not the same book almost. Oh, the premise is the same but the actions and sequences have progressed in a much different manner. Even, my characters are different than envisioned. My astute mother was quick to point out that characters become like real people and people are unpredictable and do their own things so why shouldn't a character.
I thought about what she said after that call and she will be so happy to hear but she is right. She doesn't realize how right she is. I dream about my characters as if they are real people with real lives. As I write this book I feel as if I am following along with their lives as well and have at times felt as if I were writing their memoirs than a fictional story. I can predict what my characters will do but until I start to write the story I really can give no guarantees.
So, I sit at my table looking at my old outline and I give a bit of a chuckle to myself. I feel that the story has progressed in a different direction but it is a better story. The characters have grown more than I had originally planned but they are more realistic and grown up. I was not upset by the changes in my story but rather revelled in them. My story is progressing and growing and that is when it hit me. My story is a teenager. I am in the middle of my novel now and the true action is going to start to take place within a couple more chapters. A teenager often feels that their lives start the moment they leave home and head out on their own as if this action packed life will suddenly befall them and be exciting and exhilarating. Well, my story is a teenager.
I am close to the point where the action will increase and change. The location will change. The characters will have to adjust. The story will have to move to incorporate these differences. The story itself is growing and revolving and moving. As I stared down at my writing last night I gave a small smile to myself because my novel is growing up. I welcome being in the middle of the novel and all the changes and will not forget where my story initiated but I welcome the teenager factor of my novel. Wish me luck, I have a pre-teen son at home and now a budding teenager novel. Life is exciting.
The fun part of all of that is that it is always changing. Oh, the job is the same, the kid is the same and the writing is still getting written but the movements and tasks and feelings are changing. For my job in politics and fundraising you can imagine the changes that I can experience from one day to the next. All the interesting projects, creative campaigns and issue tracking that gets done. Then, if you have kids you will understand all the movements and changes that happen with them to keep a parent on their toes. Just watching them grow day to day is amazing. An 11 year old has school and guitar lessons and doctor appointments and science projects and interests that may not be yours that you have to learn to keep up with....well it gets pretty exciting. I have never known as much about mythology in my life and I credit all that to my son.
My son is also at the point where he is changing and almost a teenager but still a kid. His thinking is becoming deeper and his opinions stronger, his actions more aware and his desires heavier. He is on the edge of becoming a teenager but still looking back and liking the protection of being a little kid. He is almost ready to cut through the ropes and be independent but not quite. As a parent it is fascinating to watch the transition, and a little scary.
My writing is also at the cusp of being on a new point. The action is about to change. The location is about to cross waters and travel back in time. In a sense all the changes make me think it is like having a constantly moving job or a constantly moving kid. It also experiences changes and fluctuations. It grows up just as your child does.
I am in the middle of my novel now and as I was doing a little research for it found my original outline and creative plan for the whole novel. I had been on the phone with my mother later that day and laughed when I told her that it is not the same book almost. Oh, the premise is the same but the actions and sequences have progressed in a much different manner. Even, my characters are different than envisioned. My astute mother was quick to point out that characters become like real people and people are unpredictable and do their own things so why shouldn't a character.
I thought about what she said after that call and she will be so happy to hear but she is right. She doesn't realize how right she is. I dream about my characters as if they are real people with real lives. As I write this book I feel as if I am following along with their lives as well and have at times felt as if I were writing their memoirs than a fictional story. I can predict what my characters will do but until I start to write the story I really can give no guarantees.
So, I sit at my table looking at my old outline and I give a bit of a chuckle to myself. I feel that the story has progressed in a different direction but it is a better story. The characters have grown more than I had originally planned but they are more realistic and grown up. I was not upset by the changes in my story but rather revelled in them. My story is progressing and growing and that is when it hit me. My story is a teenager. I am in the middle of my novel now and the true action is going to start to take place within a couple more chapters. A teenager often feels that their lives start the moment they leave home and head out on their own as if this action packed life will suddenly befall them and be exciting and exhilarating. Well, my story is a teenager.
I am close to the point where the action will increase and change. The location will change. The characters will have to adjust. The story will have to move to incorporate these differences. The story itself is growing and revolving and moving. As I stared down at my writing last night I gave a small smile to myself because my novel is growing up. I welcome being in the middle of the novel and all the changes and will not forget where my story initiated but I welcome the teenager factor of my novel. Wish me luck, I have a pre-teen son at home and now a budding teenager novel. Life is exciting.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Warning: Writer With Realization
Happy New Year to everyone and thank goodness the holidays are done. We can all return to normal routines again. Of course, it is fun celebrating and people are nicer during the holidays but it is a stressful time also. Now of course, when you go to the gym it is packed full of New Year's resolutioners. I personally do not make resolutions during the New Year but try to make them throughout the year always to try and be happy or better my situation or even just get by.
In fact, as I looked back over 2011 that is why I started to write my first novel. Last year was a rather rough year for many people and I would be included in that list. I remember it was the end of July and I had already had the idea for my novel for a long while. Actually, I have ideas for many novels but I thought about this one idea the most. Sometimes it is easy to have a dream but the hard part is actually making it happen. I am sure many of the New Year's resolution people find that statement very true because usually by the end of January the gym is back down to the regulars and those that made their resolutions have gone back to their usual routines or have even forgotten they made a resolution. The hard part is doing the work.
For a writer like myself who wrote poems and short stories the idea of a novel was daunting. I had the idea but to actually start writing was a whole other issue. That is where the first word comes in handy. It was the end of July and it was very hot outside and I had the doldrums one day. I sat on my porch that evening and wondered what would make me happy when there is stress and frustration all around me. I went back inside and found a notebook. Luckily I keep notebooks and pens and paper always on hand. I went back outside and sat down at my porch table. My son was asleep inside and this was the time I usually took for myself. Of course if you sit there just thinking that can be dangerous.
Well, this night there was a light breeze for the first time all week and the stars were shining in the sky real bright. I opened my notebook and just started writing. I realized what I was writing was my novel and have not stopped since. It was starting the work of writing and making it part of my routine that helped get me through 2011 and made me realize another of my dreams in life. If you read my last blog you will see that I am also a single mother and I have a full time job so some of the hard part in writing is just finding a spare moment to do that. I have gotten a little better about finding those moments because I resolutely decided not to give up on this dream.
When you start to write your first novel it is exciting. One of the things I have noticed though is that most people encourage you and the ones that don't or try to make you face reality often ask, "So what kind of writer do you want to be?" Well, even if they are trying to throw ice cold water on your warm blanket dream it is an important question to ask yourself. So as I reviewed last year and my writing recently I thought about that very question:
"What type of writer did I really want to be?" or "Why do I really write?"
For me the simple answer was easy. I write because I have to. When you dig deeper into that though...ok I feel like I need a couch and Dr. Freud sitting over me with a notebook right now...but the answer may make you a better writer. At the end of the day we can not all be a Danielle Steele or J.K. Rowling. I use those examples because they too were single mothers fighting to pay bills and sat down and wrote and are now world renowned. In an ideal world we can all write one novel and then quit our job and become famous and rich and just spend our time writing and going to book readings of our own material. For me fame was not the end goal or why I write. Not that it would not be nice but really I write to entertain people. I do want people to read my work so I would like to be published. Some people write and have no intention or care for being published. I will admit I would like to be published and would love to be sitting on the train commuting into work one day and look over and see someone reading my novel. I realistically have kept that full time job but I also continue to write and love that I get to share it with a fellow commuter into work.
So the answer is that I write because it makes me happy and is a large part of myself and my personality and character but also because I would like to entertain and tell a story. I may not sell a million novels or get printed overseas or even make a lot of money but maybe there is at least one person out there who will read what I write and be entertained. I am a storyteller with a pen. I may not be as big as Paul Bunyan in the writing world and may ever only be as small as The Littles (one of my favorite cartoons when I was little about a family of mice) but I am writing and getting my stories out and now I know what kind of writer I want to be.
Warning: Writer has reached realization...prepare to be entertained. At least that is my wish. If you are not, well, don't worry I will continue to write and may win you over eventually. So, grab a comfortable chair, a warm cup of tea, and enjoy because I have a story for you to read.
In fact, as I looked back over 2011 that is why I started to write my first novel. Last year was a rather rough year for many people and I would be included in that list. I remember it was the end of July and I had already had the idea for my novel for a long while. Actually, I have ideas for many novels but I thought about this one idea the most. Sometimes it is easy to have a dream but the hard part is actually making it happen. I am sure many of the New Year's resolution people find that statement very true because usually by the end of January the gym is back down to the regulars and those that made their resolutions have gone back to their usual routines or have even forgotten they made a resolution. The hard part is doing the work.
For a writer like myself who wrote poems and short stories the idea of a novel was daunting. I had the idea but to actually start writing was a whole other issue. That is where the first word comes in handy. It was the end of July and it was very hot outside and I had the doldrums one day. I sat on my porch that evening and wondered what would make me happy when there is stress and frustration all around me. I went back inside and found a notebook. Luckily I keep notebooks and pens and paper always on hand. I went back outside and sat down at my porch table. My son was asleep inside and this was the time I usually took for myself. Of course if you sit there just thinking that can be dangerous.
Well, this night there was a light breeze for the first time all week and the stars were shining in the sky real bright. I opened my notebook and just started writing. I realized what I was writing was my novel and have not stopped since. It was starting the work of writing and making it part of my routine that helped get me through 2011 and made me realize another of my dreams in life. If you read my last blog you will see that I am also a single mother and I have a full time job so some of the hard part in writing is just finding a spare moment to do that. I have gotten a little better about finding those moments because I resolutely decided not to give up on this dream.
When you start to write your first novel it is exciting. One of the things I have noticed though is that most people encourage you and the ones that don't or try to make you face reality often ask, "So what kind of writer do you want to be?" Well, even if they are trying to throw ice cold water on your warm blanket dream it is an important question to ask yourself. So as I reviewed last year and my writing recently I thought about that very question:
"What type of writer did I really want to be?" or "Why do I really write?"
For me the simple answer was easy. I write because I have to. When you dig deeper into that though...ok I feel like I need a couch and Dr. Freud sitting over me with a notebook right now...but the answer may make you a better writer. At the end of the day we can not all be a Danielle Steele or J.K. Rowling. I use those examples because they too were single mothers fighting to pay bills and sat down and wrote and are now world renowned. In an ideal world we can all write one novel and then quit our job and become famous and rich and just spend our time writing and going to book readings of our own material. For me fame was not the end goal or why I write. Not that it would not be nice but really I write to entertain people. I do want people to read my work so I would like to be published. Some people write and have no intention or care for being published. I will admit I would like to be published and would love to be sitting on the train commuting into work one day and look over and see someone reading my novel. I realistically have kept that full time job but I also continue to write and love that I get to share it with a fellow commuter into work.
So the answer is that I write because it makes me happy and is a large part of myself and my personality and character but also because I would like to entertain and tell a story. I may not sell a million novels or get printed overseas or even make a lot of money but maybe there is at least one person out there who will read what I write and be entertained. I am a storyteller with a pen. I may not be as big as Paul Bunyan in the writing world and may ever only be as small as The Littles (one of my favorite cartoons when I was little about a family of mice) but I am writing and getting my stories out and now I know what kind of writer I want to be.
Warning: Writer has reached realization...prepare to be entertained. At least that is my wish. If you are not, well, don't worry I will continue to write and may win you over eventually. So, grab a comfortable chair, a warm cup of tea, and enjoy because I have a story for you to read.
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