Writing about Writing

[rowyn]

Ah, the urge to write. I don't really want to write like this, however. I want to write ... more than this. I want to write fiction. I don't know exactly what. I've many stories I could work on. I could start something brand-new. But instead, I find myself paralyzed by a curious indecision, as if I don't know what to say, or don't know how to get there. As if I'm afraid to open up that file, to look upon words that have gone before, or upon the perfection of blank white space. I don't know why I want to write some new fiction so badly, yet cannot persuade myself to take even the first steps toward doing so.

Comments

[gen.livejournal.com]

One occasion in my journal (the previous one) I just wrote a "mental coredump" and just babbled onto the screen. It got really odd, but it was a very freeing exercise.

[rowyn]

This is, actually, more or less what I was doing when I wrote this entry. ;)

Writin'

[kamots-sawtooth.livejournal.com]

Not being one who has much of an artistic bent...heck, I think the right side of my brain mostly just sleeps and keeps my head balanced...I haven't any personal experience there but have had artsy-type friends feel as you describe. Their feelings seem to be a lot like Gen's 'core-dump' philosophy: Just start writing/drawing/ect. Don't worry about what comes out, how it sounds, what it looks like...just go all zen and let it floooowww. = )

Well, sounds like good advice to me, but your mileage may vary.

-'mots

[lady-anne.livejournal.com]

Nothing to contribute - just wanted an excuse to say 'Hi'.

Be good - The Lady, Anne

[rowyn]

Hi!

*waves back cheerfully*

[jordangreywolf.livejournal.com]

This is one reason I really appreciate the "art jam" sessions with Koogrr & Co. I know I want to draw things. I've got plenty of things worth drawing - things that I need to get done - but when faced with it, it's so easy to just divert myself, do something else. When I head out to Panera Bread, or over to Koogrr's place, and objective is to DRAW THINGS, then it's a lot harder not to do at least something, even if it ends of being something entirely unrelated to what's on my "to do" list. (And even if that happens, I seem to get back on track and do something worthwhile, too.)

Maybe that's just me. But I can't help but wonder if you might benefit from some sort of "writer's circle." Not some bulletin board where everybody's supposed to post something, but a more real-time thing. Okay, so maybe it's a little difficult to gather at a local tea-house to scribble ideas on paper - or expensive to have a laptop to wag along - but I'm sure that such a gathering would inspire me to do more by way of writing - even if I don't actually write anything down, but we just jot down notes.

Wait. What am I thinking? I do this already! For Akoma - for the rules sets. Koogrr, Mach and I shoot the breeze on ideas, and lo and behold, something comes together. Not right then and there, in polished form, but I take notes, and I string things together later. And there's somebody I can show the finished work to - or at least the work in progress - and get a feeling of accomplishment.

I'm far more likely to get, say, a chapter done on the special rules for witch doctors, if there's somebody I can keep up to date on my progress - someone who actually cares, and who has opinions about it.

If face-to-face doesn't work, then I suppose an online writer's circle chat room would be nice. Even gathering in some room on a MUCK and yakking about stories and story ideas.

[rowyn]

I find that getting online to a MUCK or a chat client is almost a sure-fire way to ensure I get nothing done. One of the reasons I don't just connect-and-idle to Sinai any more is that it was too distracting. I could easily spend a whole evening yakking and web-browsing, without ever focusing enough to write something coherent. That's why I prefer to do my brainstorming via email instead of by live chat. Though when I'm *really* stumped and can't get *anywhere*, it's definitely useful to chat about it. But if I'm just sort of in the doldrums about it, talk more often distracts me than anything else, even if it is talk about my current project.

But, yeah, I definitely agree about being able to share the product with someone who cares. One reason I'm doing so much more writing in Unfinished Tales than I have in the past several years is that I have an audience. OK, not a huge audience, but still, it's a pretty vocal little group. I bet I get more feedback than the average webcartoonist with a couple hundred readers. ;)

[sythyry.livejournal.com]

If you write it, I'll read it!

Paradox

[zorkfox.livejournal.com]

Re: Paradox

[rowyn]

I seldom write in notebooks (I hate transcribing it later, and notebooks are so easy to lose, and hard to share) but I was very tempted to buy a diary I saw, with black pages and a red dragon embossed in the corner of each one. It looked so cool! But the store didn't have anything to write on black paper with, and hence I was saved. ;)