Blogging Anniversary!

“Don’t intentions count for anything?”

This question came from a grad school professor. We debated the strength of the main character in literary postmodern book (the title escapes me now). Most of the students and I complained we didn’t much like the main character because he didn’t do anything. Yes, we realized the postmodern novel could break the traditional plot and the quest and all those literary devices, but that didn’t mean we had to like it.

This is my first year anniversary of blogging. I’m still not sure what I am doing, but I will continue to do write. In this case, action replaces intention, even if the direction isn’t entirely clear yet.

The journey continues . . .

This summer I will be coming up on my sixth anniversary of living in the house I live in now. When we moved in, we faced a yard full of construction trash and blasted rock. I was determined to create a garden. With little time or finances, it has been a frustrating process, and my garden is still far from what I envision it to be one day. I read The Secret Garden enough times as a child to know what I want. So, over the past six years, I’ve moved and dug up many rocks, created flowerbeds, planted, and composted. Certain plants have been more successful than others, and certain areas have surprised me with gorgeous fecundity.

Now, in this glorious time of year, I steal outside and take a few minutes to enjoy. I wish I had a before picture (trust me, it was ugly), but here is the process so far. My work in progress.

Intentions are not enough. Maybe that’s why I forgot the name of that book.

No Time

This is the list I brainstormed on the things I do (and can do more of) to get my writing done:

I sit down at my desk and open my laptop.

I write before I begin work in the morning.

I write after my sons go to bed at night.

I don't watch television
I don't play computer games.
(The last two are easy because I've never been a fan of either activity).

I read books as a reward for a good writing session. If I didn't do this I would be reading more than writing.

I limit the amount of time I can use the Internet to read my favorite sites and blogs. I give myself five minutes and get back to work.

This one is new: I use my voice activation program in the car while I drive. I hope this is legal! This works best with rough drafts. I can get quite a few pages of text from a single trip to Eastsound. Of course, people see me talking to myself, but this is Orcas Island and crazy is considered normal.

If I don't have my laptop, I have a notebook and a pen to write down ideas (but not when I'm driving).

I write down my dreams if they seem fruitful; I've found several plots in my dreams.

I think about stories, characters, and pacing when I take walks with my dog.

I drink coffee and tea.

I eat chocolate.

I would love to hear what others do to stay focused and working.

Outlining Spring

I'm working on an outline for a new project. The story that came to me in a dream a few months back.

I do have to wonder about my dreams.

This is the first time I've written a detailed outline before the rough draft. It's a challenging experience. I tend to like to see where my writing takes me instead of being led by a guide. Obviously, there's always room for change and revision.

Outside the weather is shifting. Tonight a storm moves in. Tomorrow, we're supposed to have a strong windstorm. I hope my pretty white plum blossoms and delicate tulip stems survive.

In my writing, I like the shifts. I like to create conflict and set the windstorms on my characters when things are looking settled. Sometimes I feel sorry for my characters, but conflict must happen. Conflict creates change, and change creates transformation.

Dilemma

My life as metaphor . . .
My life is a series of dilemmas right now.
How to use my time is a common dilemma. I face significant dilemmas like how to best raise my sons. I also face trivial dilemmas like what to make for dinner.

The dilemma I face now relates to writing. Imagine that! Again, I am faced with those two virtual manuscripts in front of me. One is 30,000 words fleshed out, but an editor/teacher told me that I should set aside because the market is glutted with fantasy right now. Drat. Just when I thought I could conquer a fantasy novel as well.

The other is a dream turned outline. The editor/teacher thinks it is marketable and unique. I agree with her. I should write it then, correct? Oh a whole unfinished draft! A draft not even started yet. I want to run and hide under my desk until it goes away.

Of course, it will not go away. So, back to work. Perhaps I could write both simultaneously. But I would need the time I do not have.

So, I have a dilemma.

So Proud

Here's a link to a story in this week's local paper about my boys and their friend's most excellent discovery: http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/sanjuans/isj/lifestyle/88264192.html

Tools

I'm not a huge fan of outlines or outline tools. Over the years I've learned many techniques for building stories. Some writers swear by the index card/scene method (which can now be done on the computer). Some writers love detailed outlines with every chapter broken down. Some writers use collages out of magazine pictures to build plot.

I've tried all of these and more. I'm glad I tried them, but I didn't get the results I wanted. My method includes lots of thinking, brainstorming, and a list outline (one word for each plot point) before I begin. Incidentally, the outline changes significantly with each draft. I was one of those students who wrote the outline after I wrote the essay. I needed to write the paper to know what direction I wanted to take. Some of this spills over to my fiction writing.

Yet, writing does need direction and structure or a great idea may not become a great story. A great start may not become an entire book.

Recently I stumbled across this great visual outline on C.J. Omolulu's blog: http://cynjay.blogspot.com/2009/02/how-to-write-book.html

I applied it to a something I would like to start soon, and I loved the results. It was short enough, so I didn't feel bogged down with details yet specific enough to cover all the main parts of a good story.

I hope you find it helpful as well.

Voice and Muse

A compelling voice! How many times do we hear this is what a writer must have to succeed?

I talk with my composition students about voice. We all search for adjectives to adequately describe something that cannot be described adequately with adjectives.

Is my voice compelling? What does that mean anyway? To use force or pressure to lure a reader away from his or her other obligations? I can think of many journeys to the library or bookstore where my true quest was lost in the discovery of new words. I was pressured into reading and loved every minute.

I would like to think of other words with other connotations for voice. How about authentic? Authentic in what way? The voice could sound real, yet is this what we want to achieve? Realism?

Voice. Some voices I do love to hear. Usually, these voices are from people I love.

Mix the writing with a powerful love potion and stir; this is how to capture the reader with a compelling and authentic voice.

Now, what is the love potion?