Transitions

Today's Mood: On Edge. (more bad news on the cancer front.) Today's Music: Viva la Vida- Coldplay. Today's Writing: IFFY chapter something. Today's Quote:

The important thing is that there should be a space of time, say four hours a day at least, when a professional writer doesn't do anything else but write. He doesn't have to write, and if he doesn't feel like it, he shouldn't try. He can look out of the window or stand on his head or writhe on the floor. But he is not to do any other positive thing, not read, write letters, glance at magazines, or write checks. Write or nothing.[....] Two very simple rules, a. you don't have to write. B. you can't do anything else. The rest comes of itself." Letter to Alex Barris, an interview by mail 18 March 1949

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I struggle with transitions--both in the real world and in the writing world. As far as the real world goes, you'd think after 16 years I'd get used to the switch from work (in a school) to summer vacation, but every year I go through a strange phase of not knowing what to do. I make lists--lots of lists--and then lose them or stack them in a pile somewhere and never find them until one or two weeks after school as started again.

And I find transitions in my writing just as hard to accomplish. Characters get stuck in endless conversations or enter a room full of people and then I can't get them out. I tried making lists for that too: bomb goes off, MC blacks out, MC bolts out the door, it's past every one's bedtime, the cops show up and everybody runs..... The black out idea appealed the most. Then the MC could just up in a new room and I'd start from there. But how many times can a person black out?

Any advice? Comments? Snarky insights about life?

The Real World?

Today's Mood: Relaxed. Today's Music: none yet--but I can't wait to go buy the new Coldplay CD! Today's Writing: only the blog so far. (have plans to write for my hour after the girls go to bed.) Today's Quote:

"Start from a foundation of your own fantasies and feelings. Because the character you can't fantasize and feel with will fail." -Dwight V. Swain, in Creating Characters: How to Build Story People.

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Coming home from Glen Lake is always a strange mix of bitter and sweet. My youngest only partially lived up to her promise to be mean to me--because I left. My eldest was glad to see me, but spent the whole rest of the day up in her room playing. It was good to see the garden and what was blooming, good to talk and have dinner with my family, good to sleep in my own bed. But at the same time I missed talk of writing, missed sitting down at my computer and thinking 'okay, what happens next?', missed the feeling the spending time writing was not only okay, but expected.

I feel cut adrift, not quite sure of what I should be doing. Oh, there's plenty to do, but it all involves choices and prioritizing and planning. Up at Glen Lake, there really is only one priority: to write. Granted, I choose to do other things at times--swim, paddleboard, eat, talk--but writing is always there, running in my mind. When I'm at home, there are so many other things that the hum of the story can grow very faint.

SO, my resolution (for what it's worth) is to write EVERY day, even if it is only for 10 minutes. That way, the song of my story will still be audible. And when I do have more time to write, it won't take as long for me to tune into it.

Writing Schedule

Unlike you, Sarah, I finally have a bit more time in the summer to write. I walk more (and take a pad of paper with me) and find beach time or home time to just sit, quiet my mind, and write. I LOVE it.

Change in Writing Schedule

Today's Mood: Relaxed. Today's Music: Muse--Invincible. Today's Writing: Blog. Today's Quote:

"Writing is like getting married. One should never commit oneself until one is amazed at one's luck." -Iris Murdoch , in The Black Prince

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It's summer! Summer, summer, summer! Summer indicates a lot of changes in my household: later to bed, later to rise, lots of swimming, biking, eating salads and grilled food. And biggest of all for the writer in me--a change in my writing schedule. Now instead of getting up and going to work early, I have to find some other place to squeeze in an hour or so of writing.

[short lapse--day or so] Sorry about the delay getting this up on the blog. We had some big storms and evidently that knocked out my charter signal. And then I had to reconfigure the router. Of course, I didn't have time to even look at it until the birthday madness cleared up. Not my birthday--my daughter's. 6 screaming kids. Boy, oh boy, I can't wait for Glen Lake!

So what have you all been up to?