In this place
Love is a dangerous game
Played handcuffed and blindfolded
On the dark edge of gray.
In this place
Where Suspense is King,
And Romance is Queen,
The Paranormal
Is the Pawn
Which holds the balance.
Research is enthralling, especially with all the information available on the Internet. You can find out so much about so much. But how much about so much is worth much?
Not much.
Come back to it later when Inspiration has ducked off for a nice reviving triple-shot latte, or--even better--an ice pack for her fist.
Learn from other writers, sure. But don't try and be another writer.
Be yourself. The only good thing you can do with a mould is to use it to set a raspberry jelly.
the fire and join a nunnery in the Himalayas.
The truth is that a good book is a good book regardless of either the current popularity of its genre or the temperature of the market. Explore other possibilities by all means, but don't get discouraged by alleged market trends.
Inspiration, like a good blacksmith, strikes when the iron is hot, and the writer's iron is hottest when she's actually writing. What she happens to be writing is immaterial. That she happens to be writing is the key.
Whatever is stopping me from writing doesn't matter. The fact I'm letting myself be stopped does matter.
Our choices--either made by selection or by default--are the things that guide our life's direction. At the very least, the choice to turn up to work and sit down at the computer puts a writer within range of Inspiration's solid right should she choose to slug him
We're never going to be thin enough, organized enough, open enough, or thoughtful enough for ourselves never mind anyone else. And it won't matter how much we don't smoke or don't drink if we're unhappy with who we are inside.
The only real Resolution--New Year's or any other time's--is to learn to be at peace with who we are today. To do what we can do to encourage that internal tranquillity today.
Forget about tomorrow. We don't live 365 days at one time. We live one day. Today. We live this heartbeat, this breath, this touch, this choice, this kiss, this hug...
We live this moment. That's all we have.
It might make us feel safe to plan out a year in advance, but it's a false sense of security, and--in my view--not entirely rational.
So, what do we do? Well, my plan is to take steps to learn to be at peace with who I am as a person and as a writer, in order to live a fulfilling life one day at a time.
That's my Resolution. What's yours?
31 January, 2010
New Year Sanity Check Step Five:
Research is a means to an end, not an end in itself
"A man will turn over half a library to make one book." Samuel Johnson
If you're writing and you suddenly need the name of a well known and expensive dining room china service available in London in the mid 1800's, do not repeat do not derail your train of thought to find it.
In the middle of your sentence write [appropriate dinner service] and keep on going.
27 January, 2010
New Year Sanity Check Step Four:
Stand alone. Don't be a clone
"Everywhere I go I'm asked if I think the university stifles writers. My opinion is that they don't stifle enough of them. There's many a bestseller that could have been prevented by a good teacher." Flannery O'Connor
A writer has to be a learner, but she should also be discerning about who she allows to teach her.
Good writing courses and perceptive critique partners should encourage you towards independence and give you confidence to make wise choices as you grow in your craft.
24 January, 2010
New Year Sanity Check Step Three:
Write for yourself, not the market
"The market is a place set apart where men may deceive each other." Diogenes Laertius
In order to be true to herself and content in her work a writer must write her book--her reality--as she sees it.
This means that if your voice lends itself to chick lit and someone "in the know" comes along and says that sub-genre is at its last gasp, you don't toss your manuscript into
17 January, 2010
New Year Sanity Check Step Two:
Get words on the screen.
"You can fix anything but a blank page." Nora Roberts
Allow yourself the freedom to write crap. If you're anything like me you're going to edit it into a paper bag later anyway, so don't get sidetracked by trying to make each word perfect first time round.
10 January, 2010
New Year Sanity Check Step One:
Make a regular time to write
"I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately, it strikes every morning at nine o'clock sharp." Somerset Maugham
This quotation has been a major eye-opener for me in the last few weeks. Why is it so difficult to actually sit down and do something you love? To have difficulty doing something you hate is understandable. But with something you love?
Is it guilt? Is it fear? Is it the pile of shirts in the ironing basket? What?
1 January, 2010
Choosing Sanity
So, we've taken the first step into a New Year, and everyone is trotting out their myriad Old Year Resolutions for a New Year polish before they spend another 365 days gathering cobwebs and dust on the mantelpiece.
The trouble with this whole mind set is that it's self-defeating.
On one hand we're going to lose weight, stop smoking, or stop drinking. On the other hand we're determined to stop obsessing about our health.
This is the year we're going to finally get organized. It's also the year where we take steps not let our environment rule us.
At work we're going to institute a closed door policy, but keep an open mind about our fellow workers.
At home we plan to think more about others and their needs while learning to say no.
In our community it's time to give our personal life priority--when we're not spending more time with our friends...
Look. Let's be honest here. If we take our success with last year's assortment and extrapolate that puppy out into the New Year's selection, it's not looking good.
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