I have never felt so unsettled and unfocused and tried to write fiction! It is like drinking a gallon of coffee, hopping on a stationery bicycle, and trying to pedal and compose. Jee-ayng-llling. Still, I managed to type about 10 minutes worth of something that may purport to be the first chapter. It's something, and the good related news is that I have made even more progress on getting a grip on the personal environs and my work schedule and job. I'm definitely not waiting for life to be perfect to be able to write, but I do need some more calm and centeredness to really produce.
In the meantime, other 'Fessers provide much inspiration and knowlege. (I'm working on a way to set up a better system so we can track each others' progress...just give me a little time...)
This is from Ms. Litlove, who brings the perspective of being an academic writer and a fiction writer:
Fiction is the place where readers explore all kinds of powerful dimensions of experience but they need to be held by the writer while they do so. There are lots of ways to hold the reader – the desire to know what happens next, the sheer beauty of an author’s prose, the clever use of metaphor to talk about difficult things in indirect ways, the promise of meaning and closure. But when it goes wrong, I think, it’s because something has bled out of the author’s mind that is raw in a threatening way, or depressing or a bit desperate. And after all, that’s why creative writing is so damn hard; it requires mastery and discipline way beyond the normal levels.
And the dear Smithereens is making progress! Despite what she calls "cheating." I call it getting on a schedule (and I will cheat by stealing her work habits):
I write mostly on Thursdays and Fridays, when I know I’ll be reporting soon. It feels as if I’m back to that university stage where I gave all my essays at the last possible moment. Oh, I’d thought I’d gotten beyond that stage and matured somehow. Guess not.
I don't know...writing to a deadline is as good as anything else, if it gets you going...
Toujours Jacques has been considering starting a private, writing-dedicated blog:
I’m seriously considering starting another blog, maybe private for now–I’m not sure. I want a space to write daily–mostly about Iris Murdoch, but also about writing itself. I know many of you have a second blog where you focus on your writing or your writing process.
I'll be interested in seeing if that works for you, TJ.
Okay, let's brace up. We have another chance to unfurl some glorious ribbons of mellifluous prosody this week....
8 comments:
I love litlove's ideas about holding the reader and things coming out raw and threatening when unprocessed. There is so much to think about in that little blurb.
I enjoyed litlove's comment, too. Much wisdom there.
I did well this week rough drafting my novel-in-progress. Around 10K more words; hovering around 81K. I'd been writing chapters from my protagonist's point of view, and this week I finished the storyline as she sees it, and I've started peppering the storyline with chapters from other characters' points of view. I'm having fun, making progress... so far, so good.
The rough draft will be quite lengthy; much of my revision will involve trimming it.
Good luck with your writing, LK. And thanks again for starting this - like Ms Smithereens, I did most of my writing on Thursday, but I did it. Little steps ...
It's great that you are getting some work done given the circumstances -- the perfect time for writing never does come, does it? Best of luck for the upcoming week!
hi LK, interested in your comment about writing when you're not completely settled. I like the idea about writing then, maybe especially then, and trying to work through that anxiety, or be aware of it and keep going. I just have to write PR stories at the moment but keep putting them off for as long as possible. The only way to finally get there is to block off time and not get up from the desk for that period. Good luck with the week's prose.
I think creativity only ever comes out of confusion. I'm confused a lot, so it has to ;) But seriously, what better to do with nervous tension? I do hope you can make some headway with finding space, LK, because the more space I have, the better I do. The very best of luck for next week.
You need calm to produce? It seems we're opposites then. I always seem to get more done when just this side of total breakdown. Not that it's fun.
I hope everyone reads Litlove's full post...it's very enlightening!
Bottom line is I think we all have to consider the process that works for us and respect it. To be productive and creative, I require a blend of stimulation with reflection time -- and a structured routine for sitting down at the computer.
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