Respect

    Having stories is a funny thing; sometimes it's a lot like the way we writers are with ideas. One day (usually right after finishing a big manuscript) we don't have a novel-length story to tell, and we're looking high and low to find one; but on other days, when we do have a fabulous story to write, there are a dozen other shiny story ideas, all screaming to be written immediately! And as much as it'd be awesome to dive into writing them (particularly when a severe case of writers' block has struck with the current work), it can't be done because there just isn't enough time.
     Alas, there's no remedy that'll magically enable us to ignore other ideas for just a little while, or grant us super-speed-writing to make the wait for the next project shorter. But there is something that can definitely help us cling to the story we've made a commitment to working on: respect. Having respect for the gift of writing, and respect for the story itself.
    Showing something/someone reverence doesn't just mean to think of something as amazing and wonderful; it can also mean having a deep understanding of how important it is and being unwilling to brush it off as common. Respecting a person means paying close attention to what they're saying and not glancing at your watch to see when you can take your leave. Respecting the gift of storytelling would probably include making quality time for writing and not going about it with a "ho-hum" attitude. And respecting a story (particularly the one currently being worked on) would mean not forgetting what potential it has to be fantastic, giving it time and focus, and sticking with it until it's finished.
    Being able to have this kind of respect is great not only because it helps us keep working on the story to the end, but because the ability to respect something is a really strong character aspect. It makes us better as writers and as people!
    So what are your thoughts? Has respect for writing or the story itself been the vital thing that's ever kept you from giving up?

A Couple Thoughts on Deadlines

    We all know a little bit about deadlines. We've had them in school whenever there was work to do outside of class, but the projects and essays that have later deadlines were always a little more stressful than the regular homework, right? Because even though there's a lot more time to do it, there's a lot more work too, and there's a serious pressure to do that work instead of using that lovely time to do more interesting things. And when a person is prone to procrastinating, and they find themselves working to finish it on the last day, they're pushed into doing something that feels totally uncomfortable: forcing oneself to write something because there's a terrible consequence if they don't.
    But deadlines aren't all bad and stressful; there are a lot of good aspects about them too. Overall, they can help a person be motivated to not be lazy, and it does get a job done by a specific time. But there are also certain upsides to different kinds of deadlines--ones that involve our own writing projects instead of academic work. For example:
    Writing group-related deadlines. Writing groups are awesome! We get to hang out with writer friends, and we can share writings to get feedback; everybody benefits! But of course nobody would want to be waiting a long time to get that precious feedback, so there's doubtlessly always an agreement to have comments/thoughts and new writing ready by the next meeting. But a great thing about having a deadline like this is that the people holding us to it are fellow writers. And fellow writers can understand writer issues that might cause a temporary delay (like severe writer's block or just sudden busyness in life) and be sympathetic. Plus, writing with the knowledge that someone is looking forward to reading the work is an extra pulse of motivation!
    Writing workshops and/or conferences. There's one coming soon in the area I live in, and I'm working like crazy to have something ready to bring. The approaching deadline is definitely a little stressful, and it can't be moved to a later date because it's an official event, but it's not all worrisome and full of pressure because the event is an exciting thing! Writing workshops and conferences are an adventure to look forward to, like going off to college or heading on a dream vacation. And preparing for it is like packing and re-packing a suitcase; you don't want to be sloppy or forget anything important, but it's still fun to prepare for because it's going to be so awesome!
    NaNoWriMo. It's so weird. A wonderful, wonderful, weird. Because NaNoWriMo takes something impossible (writing a whole first draft within thirty days) and manages to make it fun. It's a crazy, coffee/hot chocolate packed dash to make a word count, but the environment NaNo creates is so inspirational and encouraging that the process isn't just a haggard rush. There are tools to track your progress on the novel, a space to write little blurbs as if the book were already published, and there's a whole community to be part of. NaNoWriMo gives a quick, quick deadline, but it's thrilling all the way!
    Personal goals. Like starting a story in January and saying, "I want to have the first draft done by the end of March." This kind of deadline is great because it's one that a person makes for themselves based on a personal understanding. The goal doesn't just come from how fast a person can type in one instance; it's based on past experiences and a knowledgeable approximation of how much time a person would actually have for writing. Plus it's also flexible; if the goal-setter gets really sick or becomes tied up in a monstrously time-consuming project, they can stretch the deadline a little. And in the end, when the goal is met, there's an extra layer of satisfaction because sticking to a goal is an awesome skill, writing-wise and life-wise.
    There are so many deadlines and so many reasons to enjoy them! :) Isn't it cool?

Writer Things I've Learned from a Computer Dilemma

When your computer dies, what's your Plan B:
another computer, or the good old fashioned pen?

    I've had a writer's crisis recently. The "pinwheel of death" appeared on my computer, followed by a complete freeze, and then everything on screen faded to black. Eventually I learned that the hard drive had basically died, which meant that everything I had on my computer was also essentially dead.
    Fortunately, all of my good manuscripts were safe on a flashdrive, so it wasn't a complete writing tragedy (plus, all the half-baked first drafts I'd be ashamed to reread were gone!). But accounting the time I spent trying to fix the computer myself and the short time the repair place took to resolve the problem, I was without my computer for a little over a week. That's not exactly a long time, but since I'm a student who writes on a blog and has a manuscript to finish before a certain date, sitting back and doing nothing writing-related during that whole week wasn't an option. Doing computer (and writer) related things called for jumping through hoops, which wasn't fun. But the whole experience sure did teach me some important lessons for the next time the pinwheel of death appears.
    Be prepared for the worst before it happens. Since system failures happen without warning, it's good to have a well-thought-out plan set up beforehand. And not just an idea of where to go to get at another computer (like to the library, or to a friend/family member), but it's important to think about when you'd use the computer, and for how long. At first when I was computer-less, I borrowed a family member's laptop. However, I hadn't really thought things through, and I failed to consider how the time I would need to use her laptop would stretch beyond its availability. She needed it too, and using it for uninterrupted hours like I usually do on my own would be selfish. So I had to cut back on how much time I gave each task, and skip working on a few things completely.
    Have a backup computer that will be available. Fortunately though, there was another computer in the house with far more availability. It was a very old one that we used a lot about a decade ago, but nobody was using it when I needed a computer. Now since this thing was so old and worn down from years and years of daily use, it had a couple tiny problems (like a broken A key; that complicated things a bit). And since I was unfamiliar with the laptop, my hands kept brushing the mousepad and moving the cursor to another line (which got annoying very quickly). But considering how it gave me internet access, a word processor, and all the time I needed to work, it was a very good thing to have ready.
    Always have a backup of your files. As I mentioned before, all my precious manuscripts had been saved on a flashdrive before the problems started. But once I actually had to completely start over when I got my computer back (the damage was so severe that they had to wipe it), I realized that there actually were a couple files I hadn't saved but probably should have. Like my study notes from the past three months, my photos, and the sketches I'd done with Paint. It'll definitely take some time to replace the most important things, and some of them can't be replaced at all. And if my computer had crashed while a major essay was due soon, and I lost the essay . . . it would be very, very, very unfortunate. So from now on, all good/important documents will go into a flashdrive ASAP!
    Keep writing; on paper when necessary. When I was still trying to use my family member's computer and not rudely take up too much time, it was very tempting to take a backseat on writing until I had my own computer back. But one or two days with zeroes in my word count log was a guilty reminder that it isn't good to choose not to write when you still can. And even without a computer, there is a way to keep writing; it's with a pencil and paper. Writing something by hand takes longer, and the quality might not be as good for the first draft, but anything is better than nothing. And even a short, lower-quality piece of writing can be useful when one can type again.
    Computer problems really stink. But at least lessons can be learned from them, and those lessons can give us measures to take in order to prevent problems the next time dilemmas like that happen.
    Have you ever had serious computer problems? How did you handle it as a writer?

Running Out of Time?

    Does anyone else sometimes feel really, really rushed? Not just in a particular activity, but in everything? Like there's always a clock ticking down, draining away time to accomplish things that you really, really, really want to get done? Like time will run out at any moment?
    I'm talking about the fear that the Rapture will come before a person has done all the things the Lord has called them to do; be it a project, or another kind of goal in life. I've been having this kind of worry recently, particularly when I consider how much time I spend procrastinating or investing precious time on less important things. The idea that all this wasted time will accumulate to the point where I no longer have enough time to finish the work before the Rapture tangles me--and surely a lot of others--up inside in knots of nervousness and guilt. And it's really a conflict in the mind too, since we know that fear and worry aren't of God.
    But when one really thinks about it, oversights aren't of the Lord either.
    And in that, there's hope! God doesn't notice anything too late; He's all-knowing and infinite. Before He created any of us, He knew us and our lives inside-out. He knew exactly how much time it would take us to complete a work, even accounting all the time we might spend procrastinating from that work. From the very beginning, He's known just how many hours it'll take for the jobs to be finished, so surely He must have things planned out so that even with occasional bouts of procrastination, the good, fruitful work will be completed in time.
    Not to say that it's okay to be lazy, having the mindset that we have all the time in the world; but the fact that God's gracious enough to grant us all the time we need in spite of our lapses in focus is a real comfort. It's motivating, calming, and it gives a real hope that it's never pointless to keep working on the work God has given us to do. It puts away the fear that time is going to run out and there's nothing we can do about it.
    What do you think? Do you ever worry about the clock striking twelve too soon? Does this idea about God's foreknowledge granting us enough time, wasted hours and all, sound right?

Deviating from the Schedule; the Solution?

It's usually not a good sign when one's working by lamplight instead
of daylight by the time they get to work on the most important
item on the To-Do List . . .

    Schedules are great! They put the events of a day in order, they keep a person from forgetting important tasks, and good schedules ensure that there's enough time to get everything done that needs to be done.
    But when one has this fantastic schedule that gives just enough time to get all the work done, and one ends up not getting to anything on time because they chose to deviate from the plan . . . everything on the schedule gets shifted time-wise, and it's definitely not great. Things that are supposed to be done around evening-time can become a late-night task, or something to quickly attempt to finish in the morning. Not getting to work at the right time also crams up the day even more, taking from minutes of "breathers" that could have been had the schedule not been altered.
    On top of those things, not doing something scheduled when it's scheduled to be done devours time, it's succumbing to distractions (not the small things like sharpening a pencil, but larger jobs like sharpening every pencil one has), and when one finds themselves scrambling around to finish the important stuff at the last minute, stress and guilt usually join forces to make a person feel really, really crummy (and tired).
    It's yet another form of procrastination, along with a few other things. Hesitation for fear of messing up the task (I think I posted about that in September), and having a sudden thought to do something else (a decidedly more interesting work than the scheduled activity) can also contribute to the frustrating and guilt-prompting choice to not get to work when one really needs to.
    So let's see; what are the solutions? Prioritizing, remembering the reasons why tasks need to be completed ASAP, remembering what happened the last time the planned schedule was shifted; all of these are good, but it seems sometimes that they can be easily forgotten when one's caught up in an unplanned task.
    So maybe involving other people would strengthen these solutions. Requesting that a friend ask about the progress of something major on the To-Do List, asking a family member to point it out when they notice you surfing the Web for a while. It's hard to forget the importance of a task when someone else is talking about it, right? What do you think?

Blah! Distractions!

The view outside the window . . .

    Everywhere! Distractions are everywhere!    In the house, at school, at work, by the sidewalks. No matter where I go, there's always something to keep me from doing what I should be doing, or something that's more interesting to think about than the thing I need to be planning for. Even when there's nothing in the room, zoning out or daydreaming happens in an instant, and the minutes get eaten up like crazy!
     And it's not just stuff like that or the Internet or snacking or having a sudden interest in the fish tank in the other room. Distractions tend to involve good things too, like other forms of work; "fun" projects and skill-developing things. Like, for example, designing decorations for an event instead of studying, or reading a great book on writing instead of finishing required reading for class. It's still work, but work that can be put off, and work that keeps a person from doing something that needs to be completed now.

Pets . . .

    But the worst kind of distraction's got to be the kind that one thinks is useful while they're spending time on it, but really isn't. I stopped and began to read a book recently, spent precious hours doing so, thinking "This book has great material! It'll be so useful!" but really I was just enjoying the book for myself, and when the book was finished, I found that I didn't have anything to apply to other kinds of work. And then came that guilty feeling.

And even the way the light shines onto
the wall can be a distraction!

    The guilty feeling that marks the end of the distraction cycle. After the time's been spent, and the distraction's gone, when one thinks about what they have left--which is sometimes really nothing. Guilt, shame, and even anger can come, because it's not just our time that's wasted on distractions, but God's time. He's given us a certain amount of hours, and the thought of some of those precious hours being gone forever because of a thoughtless decision . . . it's really crummy.
    Distractions . . . (cue the long sigh). They'll always be a part of life, which means fighting it is a regular thing too. I guess the only way to really resist distractions and get down to work is to be determined, and to pray (especially the prayer part).
    How do you deal with distractions? Do you put yourself in a place where they're minimal? Or do you have the grit to ignore them and just get the work done?

Wow, Drawing Can Actually Sometimes Be a Distraction

This is one of my sketches (sorry for the blurriness). Drawing characters
or potential characters is both fun and useful!

    Lots of writers love to draw, and love to find ways to use this gift to contribute to their writing. I'm one of them, and while I'm definitely no Picasso, drawing characters, outfits, gadgets, and settings is helpful and extremely satisfying! It's added some flavor to the stories they're based on, and given ideas for new writing pieces.
    But I've noticed that sometimes when I'm drawing, it's not for a story. And it's not a setting, character, or object that's found in my usual genres. It's not something I'd likely ever use in writing, and as I sketch it, I'm not even learning a new strategy for drawing. I'm just sketching because the subject looks nice; an entirely recreational act. That's not a bad thing, but when I could--and should--be using that time for writing, homework, or other important responsibilities . . . well, it would seem that in this situation, drawing is a serious distraction. A distraction made even more dangerous in the fact that it's easy to justify as "creative work."
    It makes one wonder--if drawing (a creative, constructive practice) can have a detrimental affect, what other activities can easily be distractions? What other artistic skill has to be used with caution?
    Maybe that's the wrong way to look at it though. The fact that drawing could become a distraction definitely doesn't mean that it always is. The problem of distraction seems to lie in a matter of context, of whether or not something else needs to be focused on instead. If a person has one hour to do anything, and they're already really good at painting, but they could use some practice with writing descriptions, spending the hour writing descriptions would probably be the more efficient choice. Whereas if the person with one free hour is horrible at painting, and wants to practice, painting would possibly be the better option.
    Of course, these are just opinions. What do you think? Have you ever had to reluctantly put off drawing (or another artistic practice) in order to focus on writing?

Doing the Boring Stuff First

    Lately in class, I've heard of a strategy that supposedly really helps a person get the most out of their day. It's basically looking over one's To-Do List before the day begins, making note of all the most uninteresting and difficult things, and planning to do them before anything else.
    All the boring stuff. Before anything else.
    The logic is that by doing the boring stuff first, a person will be giving their fullest mental capacity to the important task before the mind can get worn out by the rest of the day's activities. This logic is sound, and I really like the concept of getting boring work out of the way first . . .
    But using my brainpower when it's at its peak on the boring stuff? Not doing anything interesting until I've slogged through the mundane? I don't want to do that! I want to wake up and immediately do something fun, not dreary. If my waking thought in the morning is that I have to do something I'd rather not within half an hour, I'd frankly be a little depressed.
    And even if the tasks weren't as boring as much as they were just difficult, there'd still be an issue. Because I (like all other people) am an emotional, occasionally erratic human being. I can't work like a clockwork machine all the time, and certainly not every morning, because I get bored, and then discouraged, which usually results in a complete halt in the work process.
    What I need is an undeterred start; a way to wake up and be eager for the day's activities rather than frustrated at the thought of the first chore. Let me do something fun, even if it's just reading for fifteen minutes; then I'll be happy to start getting boring work out of the way.
    Yet the logic remains: starting in on the boring stuff first gets it out of the way quickest, and probably with more attention and better quality than work that's done right after something far more interesting.
    Maybe I'll adopt a sort of hybrid of the "boring stuff first" technique. Maybe on certain days I'll get the boring stuff done first, and on other days I'll do a few fun tasks beforehand.
    What about you? Do you do the boring stuff on your To-Do List first? Or do you always start the day with something fun? Which do you think is better?

Sylvia Plath and Self Doubt



"The worst enemy to creativity is self doubt."

~Sylvia Plath

    Worst enemy. Huh; what an interesting way to think of it. When I hear "worst enemy," I think of a person bent on bettering, conquering, foiling, and basically destroying their noble opponent. I imagine a worst enemy as a person, or a force of numerous people; not a tendency that one person has.
    But it makes a lot of sense. Especially since the self-doubt a lot of us experience as writers often comes as a little voice in the mind. "Hey! You can't work on that now! You won't get an ounce of quality work done!" "Don't even think of starting a new project; you'll lose interest in it after two days." "You shouldn't even bother powering on your computer; you'll probably get sucked into the Internet anyway." All those positive comments that make a person feel so light-hearted.
    Yeah, that sounds like the voice of an opponent. So if self-doubt acts as an enemy, how do we beat it? Voices like this don't go away easily, if it's even possible to get rid of them . . .
    What do we normally do with people who act like a jerk and say rude things to us?
    Personally, I think the best thing to do in that situation is to . . . well, ignore them.
    So maybe that just might work with self-doubt too. It doesn't help to pay attention to them anyway; it only inhibits progress and makes someone feel crummy. Plus, the self-doubting thoughts often take root in fear and/or bitterness. So why believe a word of what it says?
    Ignoring the voice of self-doubt; what do you think of the idea? Is it best to avoid self-doubt altogether, or do you think there's something good that can come out of it?

Hunger

Looking at cake can suddenly whet a person's hunger for food.

    I've been thinking a bit about hunger lately. Not the hunger for food, but the kind of hunger that refers to the will.
    The hunger a person has when they really, really want to do something. It's a craving, a passion . . . though not an obsession (but maybe hunger is a little involved with that).
    It's good--it's necessary--to have a nice measure of hunger for things like wisdom, truth, and peace. And when you're a writer, it's also important to have a good amount of hunger for the act and craft of writing. Agreed?
    It contributes to the excitement of the craft, hunger. Yearning for the time and focus to just sit down, press keys, enjoy the moment, and shape words into a narrative of a whole other world full of totally different people (or animals, or creatures, or whatever beings the writer prefers to write about). It's an inspirational feeling.
    Sometimes I don't feel much of a hunger for writing though--which stinks, but I guess it's also part of being a writer. Having dry spells, lacking hunger. On some occasions, I feel like I have to wait a while before getting super excited about writing again; but other times, things that I actually do can whet my appetite again. Sometimes just writing without any particular plan in mind, listening to the inaudible voice of a character, can spark interest and excitement.
    Hunger's a pretty interesting thing to consider, I think. A writer's instinct that can be prompted (occasionally) but not controlled. What are your thoughts on the matter? :)

Hesitation

    Wow. Starting a new story is difficult.
    I'm doing that now, preparing to begin a new story before editing my previous one. I've been preparing for a long, long, long . . . long time. And admittedly, lately, I haven't been doing any research--I've just been hesitating.
    I have pretty much all the notes I need for a basic rough draft. My schedule has settled down enough for me to carve out time to write. I even have a little outline for the first few chapters. By all logical reasoning, I should be ready to start writing the story.
    Yet weeks have passed, and I still haven't started.
    Procrastination? Definitely, but I think there's something else to it too. An expectation I've held in my mind as an excuse for not beginning.
    On more than one occasion when I might have had the time to write, I thought: This isn't the right time to do this correctly. No, the ideal hour (two hours, actually, or three) to sit down, open up a new document, and begin the wonderful journey of a new story has to be perfect. The weather has to be exactly right, the mood has to be exactly right, I have to not be hungry at all, I have to have something nice to drink . . . everything must be perfect, because I cannot bear to write something I expect to be great and have it coming out not great. I must do all these things, and then everything I write in that first chapter will come out easily and perfectly.
    Yeah, that'll happen. I really need to get rid of all these excuses and just start writing, even if it doesn't come out as flawlessly as I picture it in my mind. Honestly, I'm pretty sure first drafts are never as good as the story is in one's mind. They only become so eloquent and beautiful after editing, revisions, and lots of time spent in diligent work.
    I'm going to try to be diligent like that and just start writing. No expectations of perfection, no excuses.
    Do you ever have trouble like this when starting a new story? Is the hesitation from procrastination, fear, doubt about whether or not the story is the right one to write? What do you do to overcome it?

Pablo Picasso on Inspiration

"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working."

~Pablo Picasso

    Inspiration. Wouldn't everyone like to always have it as they start writing? I would. But unfortunately, it isn't always that way. Sad are the days when one has a lot of time to write, but seemingly nothing to write about, and little desire to keep writing a passage that seems bland.
    I think writing is like running. One can start slowly or quickly, but it always takes effort to move from stillness. And if writing is like running, short passages of practice writing are like a warm up lap. Something to get the gears going and the creative juices flowing. Even if it's dry writing, it's still writing, an effort to create, the kind of work that Picasso might be referring to here.
    Does anyone regularly do some practice writing before working on a project?

Hooked By a Book!

    I'm pretty sure you don't have to be an extremely avid reader to get hooked by a story. You don't have to be the kind of person who always carries two or three novels in your backpack. It only takes one. One story that draws you in and holds you like a tornado, pulling you through the current of its plot and keeping you thrilled to the point where you don't want to stop reading until the story is over.
    It's actually pretty cool, experiencing a novel that interesting. It's a fantastic adventure and the sort of story one can take valuable notes on.
    But there are, unfortunately, more than a few consequences to being so focused on reading a book. The worlds in stories can be awesome to travel in, but we still live in a real world that requires our attention. Whether you're a kid, a teenager, or an adult, there are things to be done. Homework to do, classes to pay attention to, family dinners to attend, a job to work at. When we're reading, we're not doing these things, and we can't put those things off for days.
    And tragically, not every day has hours of uninterrupted free time to spend on reading. Sometimes we've got to pause, shut the book, put it away, and focus on a completely different task. Which can be especially difficult when the story's in the middle of the action, or when there's a cliffhanger to be resolved. It's like a part of the mind is still stuck between the pages! Can't you sometimes hear particularly interesting lines being reread, picture scenes replaying? It can take more than a couple minutes to readjust to the real world.
    Then of course, there's the beast of procrastination. This thing seems to enjoy taking advantage of awesome books. When there's a nice hour to do something, and the choice is between the fun, three-quarters-of-the-way-completed book and the boring homework assignment, it's not too difficult to guess which one will be picked and which one neglected. I can finish the book tonight! There's only a hundred more pages! There'll be time to finish the other thing later! Sure there will . . .
    It's tough sometimes. Somewhat unbelievable, but it can honestly be hard to put a really interesting story down and force oneself back into the real world. It takes willpower, and a remembrance of priorities.
    I schedule a specific time on a particular day to finish a novel. On the weekends, usually, or during a break. Having an arranged, usually uninterrupted time to look forward to helps me put off immediately going into the next chapter--which would then be followed by the next one, and the next one, etc.
    Do you know what it's like having a book you can't put down? Which book was it? Do you have a strategy for putting it off for a while?