When I talk about writing, I usually use a sweeping statement: I love it! That’s true—sort of. Actually, I have more of a love-hate relationship with writing.
A few things I don’t like:
Revision. Ick. I tend to cut through my pages like a machete. And the whole time I’m wondering: what was I thinking? Why is this character a PETA groupie? And why on earth is the sleuth and her sidekick having this conversation about the killer’s identity in a diner, surrounded by friends of the killer? What about this blimp? How does the blimp figure into this equation? Was I under the influence of my allergy medicine when I wrote this? (Okay, I’m exaggerating…..sort of.)
Knowing that I wrote poorly that morning. It’s important for me that I write every day. But the days I write poorly and know I’ll have to come back later with my machete I wonder if I’d have been better off doing yard work or something.
Promoting. Because now they’re so intertwined that I can’t really divide the writing and the promoting up into two separate groups. I graduated from college during the recession of 1993, and had to go into sales at one point in my jobless wanderings. Let’s just say I was the poster child for poor sales skills.
A few things I like:
I love unexpectedly getting an idea. When I get an idea, I hang onto it until I can grab some paper and jot it down. (With my brain, it will be gone forever unless I focus 100% on the idea until it’s committed to paper.) I had a conversation with a lady at my son’s flag football practice. As she spoke, I realized how much she looked like Camilla Parker Bowles. It was then that I realized I desperately needed a Camilla character in my book. Unfortunately, since I wasn’t listening to the lady speak, it meant that I somehow got signed up for bringing snacks to the next flag football practice (and, consequently, that I forgot. Because I needed to get to paper to cryptically write ‘Camilla’ down.)
I love it when I know I’ve written well that morning. I’ve got a glow that carries through the rest of the day.
I love it when I get so absorbed in writing that time flies by. I’m lost in the little world that I’ve created. It’s almost like going back in time to being a kid. Remember how you could get lost in what you were playing?
What are some of your likes and dislikes?
Since this way of writing is new to me, I’m just learning what I like and dislike. What I didn’t expect, but totally dislike, is how slowly I feel like this entire process is moving. When I get no pages written in a day, but revise a lot, I still sometimes feel like a failure! It’s all about resetting realistic priorities.
What do I like? My writing is improving!
Well, in my normal role odd ball, I actually like revision. Maybe that’s because I know my first cut is simply to capture the scene, setting, characters and action. I know It’s not tight. It’s the tightening process that’s fun. (Of course, I liked solving Trigonometric equations, too.) Cut, cut, cut, combine, modify, shorten, combine. Look for word economy. Man, I like that…and, expect it.
Then, when it’s done..which it never really is, I just HAVE to stop it. I get a great feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment.
Dislike? Oh, that’s easy: promotion. Particularly in person stuff. Painful, Painful, Painful. I can do it, I can schmooze if need be, but, just don’t like it or want to.
Best Regards, Galen
http://www.galenkindley.com
Like: Coming up with the perfect snippet of dialogue, you know, the one that fits the character and only that character, in only that situation.
Dislike: Writing clunky transitions
Like: Hitting my daily quota
Dislike: Writing synopses
(I also have a problem with blimps in my stories. Weird, huh?)
Good topic, and I appreciated not only your candor but also your wit – LOL.
I too dislike those uninspired writing sessions where you just don’t “have it” but it’s a duty thang to write – keeping up the discipline. Conversely, when the blessed “zone” hits, I can, like you, go for hours without noticing the time and sometimes even a couple DAYS have flown by. That’s the best. :)
And one of my favorite aspects of writing is the self-editing – the re-writes that cut out the fat and add to the meat and creativity. I used to hate editing when I first started writing, but now I have grown to appreciate it for the art that it is.
The Old Silly from Free Spirit Blog
I like it – love it- when I’m in the sweet spot and the words just flow and I have to type like heck to keep up. I hate it – when my brain is disengaged and offers me nothing.
Creating is the fun part…writing is the craft. Like words and music, the right combination makes your m/s sing.
Jina
The Berlin Sex Diary of Lady Eve Marlowe
I love this post, and your honesty about the fact that the writing life isn’t always marvellous. I’m with Galen – I love writing and hate in-person selling. But perhaps with this blogging stuff, I can enjoy the best of both worlds, staying safe and cozy in my coccoon while reaching out to the world beyond.
Great post. I love to write everyday, but some days, like you, I almost think it would be better to get the “life stuff” out of the way that is distracting me so I can sit down and really get into a good writing session. I agree, when you have a good writing day you get lost in your story trying to get it all captured on paper.
I have this love/hate relationship with NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writers Month). I discovered this gem two years ago. I am proud of myself for meeting the 50,000 words in a month goal. Its a great exercise and a way to get a story out of my head quickly and put to paper but sometimes I find myself worrying more about the word count than the content. I don’t like that. I don’t feel I do my best writing with setting word count goals. Writing is a lot less fun then.
Nancy, from Just a Thought…
Excellent post! I identify with everything you wrote, except that I’m one of the oddballs who loves the revision process. For me, it’s because I have a whole manuscript to work with and know the finish line is near. I enjoy it so much that over the last year I read unpublished manuscripts for local writers (for free) to help them learn what to look for as they polished their works. Of course, I didn’t get any writing of my own done during that time. I made myself feel better by labeling my behavior mentoring instead of procrastination.
Patricia
I always carry some kind of journal with me, I have my primary one next to my bed, an assortment of really great pens *everywhere* and yes, when those unexpected ideas come, it is so worth it to have them.