Early Morning Musing

What would it be like to write all morning long? Get into that routine. Maybe take a walk to clear my head and get the blood flowing. Grab a coffee before settling in at my desk then jumping in and letting the creative juices flow. 

It’s not an elaborate dream. 

Essentially it is just setting aside that time, making that commitment, treating writing like a real job. The only difference is that it is a job I LOVE. It sounds romantic, doesn’t it? But it’s all apart of creating the right environment and mindset to get the WORK done. And it is work. With so many thoughts and ideas flying around my head, it’s difficult to focus. It’s like the key room in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, which I just recently reread. The room is full of flying keys, but Harry must capture that one key amongst thousands; focus and determination are needed, all the while all the other keys are out to get him. 

Will my writing scenario ever become reality? How can I make it become a reality? Are these the musings of an unstressed mind? The one thing that shatters my dream is the sound of a phone ringing. As the day drags on and my energy level dissipates, there is even less motivation. I am a morning person, that is something I've known for a long time, but even mornings are getting more difficult. What happened to Saturday morning get-aways? Take a moment and goto one of your favorite websites and grab a blog entry. This is what I found.

“Don’t let the tail wag the dog: write first for yourself, then tell your readers—show your readers—why it should matter to them.” Daryl Rothman

Getting Unstuck - Igniting the Muse

HOW DO I fill in those large empty spaces in my story? Specifically, I want more interaction between my characters, so I put together a list of prompts to jump start the creative process. This would be a reference for any project I happen to be working on. 

Dialogue - get the characters talking to one another and watch what happens. Just jump in, the beginnings can be altered or dumped. Sometimes the meat is there just waiting to be discovered. 

Remember - writing begets writing.  

Start in the middle of a scene - get that kernel of an idea down. Where are they? Place, setting, activity. Throw them together doing something. Throw in a third of forth character to stir things up. You're the writer - you can add the lead-in and transitions once you get the feel for the scene and know where it belongs. 

Look further down the road - what smoking guns need to be planted that will be used later and much later in the story? Let the reader be a fly on the wall to these events. Only three people in the world know what's happened; the reader, the writer and the character. 

Go back to the outline - You've made an outline, haven't you? Of course you did. Use this micro-caption of your entire story as a guide to what scenes are still needed. Color code, bullet, italicize, whatever it takes to fill in those blank page and the holes between scenes. 

Throw away what isn't working or isn't necessary - sometimes ideas don't work out. Know when to throw it away. If it doesn't move the story forward or doesn't reveal something integral to the characters, get rid of it. Readers don't want to be bogged down with frivolities. Dress up your characters, but if it doesn't set the tone or advance the plot, keep it simple. It's winter, they need a winter coat. But if that coat is the reason they drown, or prevents them from drowning; it becomes important.  

Write a two-way (open) letter to your character - this is a form of conversation that can allow you to delve into the psyche of your characters. What do they want? What don't they want? Find out what makes them tick by asking them questions directly. Let them tell you what they are thinking, feeling, planning. This exercise can uncover hidden gems within your characters. There are two sides to most people; the image they present to people and what they keep inside. Characters are no different except that as a writer, you get to reveal what lurks beneath that beautiful outer layer. 

Create intriguing characters

What makes a character come alive? As opposed to a flat, uninteresting one. 

• they react to situations and other people 
• they have memories 
• mannerisms 
• opinions, judgments  

Show them listening, watching, thinking - describe their silence. How a character looks at something is an opportunity to describe their mood.