Word Stealing

Today's Mood: Tired. Today's Music: Foo Fighters--The Color and the Shape. Today's Writing: IFFY--chapter who knows what, but I'm getting closer to the 65,000 word count. Today's Quote:

"Don't talk unless you can improve the silence." -Jorge Luis Borges

*******

I was word stealing with my creative writing students yesterday. I should do this on a regular basis. I had a stack of poetry books that we paged through, finding words that appealed or that we didn't use on a regular basis, and writing them down. We did this we Fleda Brown up at Glen Lake. I looked back at my words from that session, and then added a whole bunch of new ones (from a book of Walt Whitman's poetry)

Today when I was writing I tried to include at least one of those words. It's funny how even just using one word that you don't normally use can take your writing in a different direction. Really cool.

Some of my words: halo, aria, dusky, latent, dallying, mystic, sullen, flock, prong, murmur, swathed, candid, brine, enamoured, ample, capricious, cosmos, inception, glide, mania, prickling, gallant, strut, seething, withered.

How much fun are those? Feel free to steal--I did.

In the world of a writer

Today's Mood: Relieved (read that as TGIF) Today's Music: I'm checking out the Trans-Siberian Orchestra CD a friend lent me. Today's Writing: IFFY. Today's Quote:

"It's not what you do once in a while. It's what you do day in and day out that makes the difference." -Jenny Craig

*******

I dragged my sorry butt out of bed only minutes before 6:00 a.m. That meant I had less time than ever to write this morning. And of course, I was just getting into it, just feeling the first faint stirring of the flow, like the second or third step into the river when the current starts to lap at your legs but isn't yet a constant pull, when the phone shrills and someone needs assistance.

The day progressed, troubleshooting about the building, cataloging books--and deciding that one needed to go to the high school since it was too racy for middle school, picking out books for Monday's classes, teaching my graphic novel class, and then finally, my creative writing class. The sixth graders, all ready to write, and me, excited about some more writing time. But then one needed help using the thesaurus and another wanted a starting line, still another had questions about what I was writing. And before I knew it, the hour was done, kids needed to check out, and a teacher wanted help with his voice enhancement system.

I vow to write this weekend. I want to. I need to. But I also know full-well what happens on weekends. Marisa wants to get her ears pierced having finally screwed up her courage, laundry is overflowing, the house could use a cleaning (really, you have no idea how much it could use a cleaning. We should fire the damn housekeeper--oh wait, that's me), and I suppose we'll have to eat as well.

BUT I WILL WRITE. somehow.

Romancing Reality

Today's Mood: Scattered. Today's Music: Simon & Garfunkel. Today's Writing: Black Dragon. Today's Quote:

"Art does not reproduce the visible; rather, it makes visible." -Paul Klee

*******

How do you romance your characters? Or your subject for those of you without characters. Do you immerse yourself in it? When I was writing Free Lunch I took up running because my main character was a runner. I decided it was much easier to write about running and the love of it than it was to do. My character in IFFY is into yoga. I've joined a yoga class--which I'm happy to say I enjoy much more than running. Wasn't hard to immerse myself in Black Dragon. Dangerous, yes. Hard to un-immerse, yes.

Listening to music is probably one of the best ways for me to romance my character--draw her closer, find out all about him, learn all his little mannerisms, likes and dislikes. I also like to paint or draw the character--or cut out pictures from magazines. I even cut out clothes that I think he/she would wear.

But most of all I need to think about him/her all the time--like if I was (to use my students' term) "crushing" on him/her. I invent conversations, I put him/her into different situations and try to imagine how he/she would react.

It's on my mind right now because I need to get to know Tobin better. He seems a bit shy--either that or I don't want to "ruin" him so I keep him nebulous. Self-defeating behavior, I know, but I'm not sure what to do about it--other than the things listed above. Maybe it really is a bit like my roommates idea of impossible lust. She insisted we all need to have AT LEAST one impossible lust--someone we lusted after who we would never-in-no-possible-way-ever connect with. (For example, one of mine is Johnny Depp) The joy of this was that you would never find out that they snored, had a terrible temper, were racist, or had a flatulence problem--none of that real life stuff. I think maybe I'm doing that a bit with my character. I want him to be perfect, and if I start writing about him, maybe I'll find out he's not.

Hmmm, I started this thinking about romance, and now I'm thinking I need a dose of reality instead of romance. Nobody is perfect. It's okay if my character aren't either.

Anyone else as neurotic as I am? Stand up and wave your hand. Reality--gotta love it.

Keeping the flow

Today's Mood: excited. Today's Music: Was listening to shuffle most of the day--am looking forward to listening to Sting's new album (heard about it at book club last night--the source of many good things). Today's Writing: Black Dragon--1st chapter (again...) Today's Quote:

*******

I've been busy lately. Way busier than I've wanted to be, although maybe that doesn't say much. Sick kids, sick husband, furiously scrubbing the house to prevent sick me, doctors, dentists, work, book club--it all takes time. And being busy and stressed means I don't have much time to write but I really need to write. So I got to thinking about how I can still spend quality time with my novel-in-progress even though we cannot always be together (in the flesh (leer)).

I like to spend some time every day at least thinking about the story or characters. Usually this is in the shower since that may be the only time I don't get interrupted--or at least rarely interrupted. But driving in my car is another place I do deliberate, purposeful daydreaming about my story.

Does anyone else have any great ideas on how to stay in touch with your writing project when you don't have time to actually write?

Promises, promises

Today's Mood: Hmmm, tired but relaxed. Today's Music: Coldplay--Parachutes. Today's Writing: IFFY. Today's Quote:

*******

Let's talk about the promise of the first page or the first paragraph. At the SCBWI conference, one of the speakers talked about the promise that the first page--paragraph--made to the reader. Stories can start in many, many different ways, but they all make some sort of promise to the reader. As writers we need to be aware of what promises our stories are making. Does the book fulfill those promises?

So maybe the way you start your story promises it will be dark and scary, or maybe it promises it will be educational, or funny. The agent who critiqued my novel thought the first chapter promised that it was going to be a fantasy--and it really isn't. As a writer, I need to do something with that chapter to make sure it makes a promise it can fulfill. I need to change the chapter to make it clear it is realistic fiction story or problem/solution.

But I do wonder where the line is. I mean, don't you want to leave a little mystery? A little I- wonder-what-this-is-about-so-I'd-better-keep-reading-to-find-out? So it's a matter of setting it up but not giving it all away. Guess I've got a little work to do.

What promise does you first page/paragraph make?

Today's Mood: Tired. Today's Music: Jazz--thanks to Mike S. Today's Writing: IFFY. Today's Quote:

*******

I've managed to get up at 5:30 in order to write every morning. Now I just wish I had more to show for it! It's driving me crazy; I'm so overthinking things, but I don't know how to stop. My poor characters are dang sick of hanging out in the parking lot, but I just can't seem to get them to go in. They're going to be late to class--serves them right for being contrary.

Doesn't help that my brain is shifting through way too much crap. Start of school is always cluttered up with open houses and stuff that isn't working, problems that need solving yesterday, and tired kids. Oh yeah, and tired me too. Really tired. Deep down, disintegrate my bones tired. Snap at the kids when I have to tell them to do something 5 times--oh wait, I do that normally. Anyway, I'm tired.

End of next week I head up to Glen Lake to write. Glorious wonderful days of writing. Granted I might have to kill off a few characters if they don't manage to head into the building, but at least I get to spend more than 1/2 hour at a time, coaxing them along.

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE

So that was a month ago, and I never managed to get back to finish it until now. How sad is that? I did get my characters out of the parking lot (yea!), although now they seem to be stuck in the stairwell. Still overthinking things.

The SCBWI conference was ... awesome, tiring, fun, helpful, inspiring... It is so different than PW. Much, MUCH more focused on getting published. I think it's really good to have both. I'd certainly get depressed if I didn't have PW to help balance out, help remind me of why I like to write--and it isn't because of publishing.

Very interesting critique I had with an agent. She talked about what the first page/chapter promised and how it seemed different than what the synopsis said the book was going to be about. Then We had another speaker who talked about the promise of the first few pages. Every book, every bit of writing really, makes a promise to the reader. As writers, we need to be aware of what promise is being made, and be sure that what follows fulfills that promise.

So I'm revising Black Dragon again. Not huge things, but first chapter things. Promises made.

Hope that all you out there reading this (or not) are writing. Comment if you get a chance. Tell me to do a better job posting on this blog. I will definitely try. Sometimes there just doesn't seem to be enough time/energy/motivation in the day.

Perceive, believe

Today's Mood: Harried. Today's Music: Rilo Kiley - Better Son/Daughter. Today's Writing: IFFY. Today's Quote:

"I've been reading accident reports of various kinds for thirty or more years. Call me callous, but to me they're like silent comedy movies. People do the strangest things and get themselves into the most amazing predicaments. You want to go wake up Tolstoy and Dostoevsky and say: Hey, you think your characters are crazy...." - Laurence Gonzales

*******

Man, oh man, getting up at 5:30 a.m. when you are used to 9:00 a.m. is harder than a one-legged lady dancing a jig--on her missing leg! And writing at 6:30 a.m. is just as hard--but sorta awesome too. Back to the routine. Back to the chaos. Back to the not-so-creative writing process that occasionally churns out some pretty creative stuff.

So okay, we were talking about survival (which does seem relevant given the chaos of the first day of school in a middle school). Laurence Gonzales in his book Deep Survival talks about a certain uniformity in survival cases. He comes up with 12 points that seem to "stand out concerning how survivors think and behave in the clutch of mortal danger."

First off, survivors perceive and believe. In other words, even in a crisis, survivors perceptions and thought processes keep working. They pay attention to details and even find humor or beauty in the situation. But they are aware of and accept reality. Gonzales says they "move through denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance very rapidly." (Kubler-Ross stages of grief.)

I think in order to survive as a writer, one definitely needs to be able to perceive the reality that few get rich at this job--in fact, one might never even manage to get published--and yet one still has to believe it is worth trying. Rejections used to rock me a lot more than they do now. Not that I like them, but I have come to an acceptance that they are part of the situation, the job.

Think about the jokes and one-liners that get thrown around at the PW conferences. It's all a way of using humor to deal with the stress of the job (so to speak). Those that survive accept that writing is hard and often has little public/monetary reward, but they also believe it is worth writing.

I have to think about this a bit more. Maybe the perceive/believe fits with revision as well. Right now I perceive that I have to go to bed or I won't be able to do the one-legged jig tomorrow morning at 5:30 a.m. Happy Writing!