Has been forgotten.
I have a new critique partner,
which is awesomely wonderful. He is very honest, giving me the good, the
bad, and the ugly about my work. Exactly what I asked for and needed.
With his input I'm sure I'll be able to get my writing to that level
needed to be worth publishing.
However, I've realized
everything I learned in English classes in high school and college has
left my "building". I've had to look up Protagonist and Antagonist again
to get a more detailed idea of where I'm missing the mark. Being a
techie, my writing revolves around user interfaces, system consoles, ROI
and cost-benefit analyses, not fictional writing.
I
find myself wondering why I "think" I'm a writer. But then something
funny, odd, somewhat hysterical happens: characters invade my space with
story lines, new problems and genres I rarely read let alone have the
vocabulary necessary to write a story that will pull the reader in.
For
example, Hallmark Channel was having a Christmas in July movie-thon and
I was listening (and swearing profusely at an uncooperative server),
when an entirely new character sauntered into my brain, plopped herself
in a comfy chair and snarkily fed me a story line. A romance story line
no less. I believe she actually belongs to Simone Anderson, but for
whatever reason this character has decided I'll be the one to write her
story.
That's when I remember why I think I'm a writer,
because I have to write. Sure, I don't know all the rules or remember
all the terminology, but it's the only way to shut up all of the people
in my head.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Spinning My Wheels
by Patricia Kiyono
Normally, I’m up for a challenge.
And since Astraea Press first published my novella in July 2011, I’ve been
cranking out and publishing an average of three books per year. Winter NaNo? No
problem. Roar Into Writing? I’m there. One hour writing sprints? Easy. The
stories seemed to flow from my mind through my fingers to the keyboard.
But this year things have really
slowed down. The book that was supposed to be submitted last December is still
languishing on my hard drive, about 75 percent done. I’ve missed several
writing deadlines this year. The only writing commitment I’ve consistently met
(other than guest posts at my personal blog) has been my weekly Monday
appearance at Four Foxes, One Hound.
At first I was just irritated at
myself. I needed peace and quiet, I told my family. I need more time, and I
need to keep up on my school work. But then the school semester was over and I
had no more papers to grade. And the words still didn’t come. I got headphones
and ignored my hubby. Nothing. I stopped watching television and shut off the
internet for hours at a time. That did seem to help, but I’d still only gain a
few hundred words rather than the 1500 I’d usually get during an hour sprint.
What to do? My daughter finally
said, “Mom, maybe you just need a break. Forget about trying to force the words
out and concentrate on something else. You’ve got plenty of hobbies. Sew a
quilt. Catch up on your scrapbook. Crochet an afghan.”
I decided I had nothing to lose. So
I closed my laptop and started sewing. And scrapbooking. And crocheting. I’m
using up a ton of fabric in the house. Well, maybe not a ton, but an awful lot.
And I’m nearly caught up on my scrapbook. The afghan I started four years ago
is still in its bag, but if the words don’t come soon I’ll take it out. I haven’t
forgotten about the story I’ve been trying to write. But maybe it’s not time to
finish it yet. But when the time comes, at least I’ll have a more organized
craft room!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)