Write Lightning is a blog from writer Deb Thompson.
Everyone is welcome here.
(Some links or topics may not be completely kid-appropriate.)
Everyone is welcome here.
(Some links or topics may not be completely kid-appropriate.)
Mon, Feb 08 2010
The burning and the extinguishing--and the writing that suffers
Posts will be minimal this week while we work on some office logistics and other important tasks. It's tough enough keeping one's head in the game when one is kept from writing fiction by being busy working on material that is (generally) more utilitarian than creative. When tasks are completely non-writing in nature and are having to come first it becomes obvious that sometimes all a writer can do is stay the course mentally while putting out the proverbial fires of life.
posted at: 21:26 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Posts will be minimal this week while we work on some office logistics and other important tasks. It's tough enough keeping one's head in the game when one is kept from writing fiction by being busy working on material that is (generally) more utilitarian than creative. When tasks are completely non-writing in nature and are having to come first it becomes obvious that sometimes all a writer can do is stay the course mentally while putting out the proverbial fires of life.
posted at: 21:26 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Fri, Feb 05 2010
Story structure
There's a popular acronym that most of us have seen: KISS. It seems to have originally been intended by engineer Kelly Johnson to stand for "Keep it simple and stupid". Somewhere along the way it evolved to be known more often as "Keep it simple, stupid". Unfortunately, the latter phrase sounds like an insult. Some prefer KIS, which translates to "Keep it simple".
The original admonition is a good one, not only for engineers, but for writers. We may have to do plenty of research behind the scenes of our writing. But our goal should be to make it so easy for the reader to engage in a story that the underpinnings of our work fade into the background. There's always a leap of faith when one gets on an exciting carnival ride. We don't usually get to interview the people who designed or assembled the ride. And most of us don't ask to see the drawings or specifications. We trust that when we climb onto that contraption we're going to have the ride of our lives. A reader expects the same of a writer.
posted at: 10:55 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
There's a popular acronym that most of us have seen: KISS. It seems to have originally been intended by engineer Kelly Johnson to stand for "Keep it simple and stupid". Somewhere along the way it evolved to be known more often as "Keep it simple, stupid". Unfortunately, the latter phrase sounds like an insult. Some prefer KIS, which translates to "Keep it simple".
The original admonition is a good one, not only for engineers, but for writers. We may have to do plenty of research behind the scenes of our writing. But our goal should be to make it so easy for the reader to engage in a story that the underpinnings of our work fade into the background. There's always a leap of faith when one gets on an exciting carnival ride. We don't usually get to interview the people who designed or assembled the ride. And most of us don't ask to see the drawings or specifications. We trust that when we climb onto that contraption we're going to have the ride of our lives. A reader expects the same of a writer.
posted at: 10:55 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Thu, Feb 04 2010
Write where you can make the best of it
If you haven't written today, why not? That's not a confrontational question. It's intended to just get your mind thinking about the real reasons why you haven't done much wordsmithing lately. You may think you have some sort of block when what you really have might be the need for a more (or less) comfortable chair or maybe a warmer (or cooler) room in which to work. Some people think one has to have an office equipped with a formal desk, files and full reams of paper neatly stacked nearby before they can create their work. But I know of writers who, at least to begin their projects, scribble in cheap composition books in the car. Some curl up in a porch swing near a honeysuckle vine to get their fiction flowing. I've done some very satisfying work in a public library. I could have quick access to research there and could observe people coming and going and could listen to their conversations and use their words to keep my own characters' dialogue sounding real. Your writing space should be whatever pokes a hole in your writing vein and draws the story from your core.
posted at: 14:38 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
If you haven't written today, why not? That's not a confrontational question. It's intended to just get your mind thinking about the real reasons why you haven't done much wordsmithing lately. You may think you have some sort of block when what you really have might be the need for a more (or less) comfortable chair or maybe a warmer (or cooler) room in which to work. Some people think one has to have an office equipped with a formal desk, files and full reams of paper neatly stacked nearby before they can create their work. But I know of writers who, at least to begin their projects, scribble in cheap composition books in the car. Some curl up in a porch swing near a honeysuckle vine to get their fiction flowing. I've done some very satisfying work in a public library. I could have quick access to research there and could observe people coming and going and could listen to their conversations and use their words to keep my own characters' dialogue sounding real. Your writing space should be whatever pokes a hole in your writing vein and draws the story from your core.
posted at: 14:38 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Wed, Feb 03 2010
How to stay too busy for writer's block
Even if you write full-time you may have days when your actual writing time is very limited, or you may have time to write but find that your time to stay in a creative flow is restricted or cut into small sessions. One of my habits is to keep an easy acces to non-fiction, fiction, poetry and other projects. If I'm at a computer I try to have handy access to a notepad type of program and keep plenty of notes going there. If an idea strikes while I'm working on some research I jot down my thoughts in a notepad window. I carry pads or paper with me in the car on short or long trips. A camera is handy to capture scenery or buildings that spark story scenes or new settings. I have file folders containing photos and character notes. I even keep grocery lists on the refrigerator that have been known to spark ideas for a story. Writing is a life-long habit for me. Memory can fail, but getting a thought or a list down on paper helps guarantee that I'll take action with it later. If you're doing queries or focusing on certain markets you might be trying to keep track of that along with all your other writing. If you're also an illustrator or you take your own photos for articles you'll need a way to keep track of those. Trust me. There is always plenty for a writer to do, including at those times one can't sit and stare at the computer screen or composition book and "create".
posted at: 22:05 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Even if you write full-time you may have days when your actual writing time is very limited, or you may have time to write but find that your time to stay in a creative flow is restricted or cut into small sessions. One of my habits is to keep an easy acces to non-fiction, fiction, poetry and other projects. If I'm at a computer I try to have handy access to a notepad type of program and keep plenty of notes going there. If an idea strikes while I'm working on some research I jot down my thoughts in a notepad window. I carry pads or paper with me in the car on short or long trips. A camera is handy to capture scenery or buildings that spark story scenes or new settings. I have file folders containing photos and character notes. I even keep grocery lists on the refrigerator that have been known to spark ideas for a story. Writing is a life-long habit for me. Memory can fail, but getting a thought or a list down on paper helps guarantee that I'll take action with it later. If you're doing queries or focusing on certain markets you might be trying to keep track of that along with all your other writing. If you're also an illustrator or you take your own photos for articles you'll need a way to keep track of those. Trust me. There is always plenty for a writer to do, including at those times one can't sit and stare at the computer screen or composition book and "create".
posted at: 22:05 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Tue, Feb 02 2010
I don't have time (or insert-other-word-here) to write
Writing at home is a challenge for many of us who write. There are always other things that will tug and pull and try to steal our writing time and focus. And we can't ignore our social life. It's important to keep human contact going so that we don't become hermits and forget how to tell stories of real humans. It's always a challenge for me to keep the house clean, do laundry, help the spouse with outdoor projects and other things and still be able to sit down and concentrate on writing stories. There are a million things that can pull us away from our writing. Are we going to let that happen? If not, how can we keep going when the refrigerator breaks down, we need to pack and catch a plane, we need to clean up after dogs or help kids with homework, we need to write checks for bills and maybe we even need to handle another whole job and then try to sit and write without fatigue taking us right off to sleep?
When I know I can't spend hours on a project I try to find ways to keep it fresh in my mind. I make lists or write down key words relating to scenes I'm building in my mind. While my hands are busy cutting up onions, unless it's one of those particularly radioactive onions that takes full focus, I try to keep the mind busy with seeing my characters and imagining their gestures, their voices and their general look. I've even spoken lines aloud to see whether my character would actually say such a thing.
People often think writing is easy. Good writing isn't easy. It takes commitment. It takes energy. It takes determination. It takes using whatever task is before you as a catalyst to move the writing forward rather than holding the writing back. I'm writing this right now to remind myself of all this. I hope some of you reading it might find help at the same time.
posted at: 13:27 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Writing at home is a challenge for many of us who write. There are always other things that will tug and pull and try to steal our writing time and focus. And we can't ignore our social life. It's important to keep human contact going so that we don't become hermits and forget how to tell stories of real humans. It's always a challenge for me to keep the house clean, do laundry, help the spouse with outdoor projects and other things and still be able to sit down and concentrate on writing stories. There are a million things that can pull us away from our writing. Are we going to let that happen? If not, how can we keep going when the refrigerator breaks down, we need to pack and catch a plane, we need to clean up after dogs or help kids with homework, we need to write checks for bills and maybe we even need to handle another whole job and then try to sit and write without fatigue taking us right off to sleep?
When I know I can't spend hours on a project I try to find ways to keep it fresh in my mind. I make lists or write down key words relating to scenes I'm building in my mind. While my hands are busy cutting up onions, unless it's one of those particularly radioactive onions that takes full focus, I try to keep the mind busy with seeing my characters and imagining their gestures, their voices and their general look. I've even spoken lines aloud to see whether my character would actually say such a thing.
People often think writing is easy. Good writing isn't easy. It takes commitment. It takes energy. It takes determination. It takes using whatever task is before you as a catalyst to move the writing forward rather than holding the writing back. I'm writing this right now to remind myself of all this. I hope some of you reading it might find help at the same time.
posted at: 13:27 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Mon, Feb 01 2010
The joy of sharing dictionaries
Writing blog entries while under the influence of intense sleepiness can lead to odd word choices and loopy sentence structure. Let me just say that I had great fun helping pass out dictionaries to third graders this afternoon. It's a real treat watching children gasp and applaud when told that they are getting their own dictionary to keep forever. And it's a whipped cream and maraschino cherry kind of topping on the treat to see a whole class of kids open those dictionaries and look up word after word and check the lists of planets and other information in the back of the book.
As a child, one of my favorite things to do was to sit and read a dictionary. When I see a kid do that same thing now I realize that the third grader who looks up at me and smiles from behind those pages might be a budding writer. I'm sure the fun of that realization will come through in this post, in spite of intense sleepiness. It was a very satisfying day.
posted at: 22:50 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Writing blog entries while under the influence of intense sleepiness can lead to odd word choices and loopy sentence structure. Let me just say that I had great fun helping pass out dictionaries to third graders this afternoon. It's a real treat watching children gasp and applaud when told that they are getting their own dictionary to keep forever. And it's a whipped cream and maraschino cherry kind of topping on the treat to see a whole class of kids open those dictionaries and look up word after word and check the lists of planets and other information in the back of the book.
As a child, one of my favorite things to do was to sit and read a dictionary. When I see a kid do that same thing now I realize that the third grader who looks up at me and smiles from behind those pages might be a budding writer. I'm sure the fun of that realization will come through in this post, in spite of intense sleepiness. It was a very satisfying day.
posted at: 22:50 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Fri, Jan 29 2010
Happy trails to you
Have you ever walked a trail loop in a state park or similar setting? You can usually begin your walk near a parking area and there are often several trails that begin, including longer, more strenuous hikes to a place from which to catch a magnificent view. There are often paved, level walks for those who use a wheelchair or who want to enjoy the forest without breaking a sweat. And then there are the loops. These are often shorter than some of the other trails and may be seen by veteran hikers as a baby route. If I choose a trail loop I see the all-business hikers go by me with their backpacks full of trail mix and water to keep them going while they seek that zenith of scenery they can reach only by working every muscle in their bodies. Here I am on my little loop, looking down at mossy, fallen logs and gazing up at, in one instance, giant redwoods with branches that sweep from top to bottom of trunks and sway in the breeze and leave me with the scent of ancient times sitting in my nostrils.
Yes, metaphor is afoot here. Life has a variety of trails and we each walk in them all at some point or another. The loops may not be the rockiest or the most scenic, but they can be the most fulfilling if we come back to the parking area with a sense of having been somewhere important.
When we write we use them all. There are level trails with corresponding ease of movement and rocky banks with shallow footholds and painful grabbing places that require care but have huge rewards in terms of story climaxes. Then there are the loops that seem circular and easy at first, but are ultimately full of internal growth and completion of life processes. Every story needs them all. Every life needs them all.
posted at: 17:52 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
Have you ever walked a trail loop in a state park or similar setting? You can usually begin your walk near a parking area and there are often several trails that begin, including longer, more strenuous hikes to a place from which to catch a magnificent view. There are often paved, level walks for those who use a wheelchair or who want to enjoy the forest without breaking a sweat. And then there are the loops. These are often shorter than some of the other trails and may be seen by veteran hikers as a baby route. If I choose a trail loop I see the all-business hikers go by me with their backpacks full of trail mix and water to keep them going while they seek that zenith of scenery they can reach only by working every muscle in their bodies. Here I am on my little loop, looking down at mossy, fallen logs and gazing up at, in one instance, giant redwoods with branches that sweep from top to bottom of trunks and sway in the breeze and leave me with the scent of ancient times sitting in my nostrils.
Yes, metaphor is afoot here. Life has a variety of trails and we each walk in them all at some point or another. The loops may not be the rockiest or the most scenic, but they can be the most fulfilling if we come back to the parking area with a sense of having been somewhere important.
When we write we use them all. There are level trails with corresponding ease of movement and rocky banks with shallow footholds and painful grabbing places that require care but have huge rewards in terms of story climaxes. Then there are the loops that seem circular and easy at first, but are ultimately full of internal growth and completion of life processes. Every story needs them all. Every life needs them all.
posted at: 17:52 | category: /Writing Life | link to this entry
