Quotation Commentary #3 - G. Fowler

Let's start by being honest here.  I should not complain.  I know I shouldn't.  I have the pefect job.  I write.  I do what I love and I'm pursuing the (not a, but THE) dream I've had since I was barely as tall as my desk sits now.

Even when it's hard, I enjoy myself.  Because I'm doing what I love.  But, seriously, some days (including the past week for me) Fowler, SO got it correct:

I don't have much commentary on the quote today because it really just speaks for itself.  I mean, for all you writers - I know this quote made you sit back and nod your head in absolute empathy.

Happy Friday!  Here's to a weekend filled with writing! (Or whatever it is you're passionate about.)

Picture via life.com

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Gene Fowler (1890-1969)? 
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Procrastination Justification (Can It Actually Lead To Innovation?)

Let me start by throwing it out there that I am a world class procrastinator.  Believe me - if there's anything that can keep me from my task at hand, I can find it and use it to my procrastination advantage.  Even when it comes to tasks that I love to do... For instance, writing.  (Let's pause for a moment for the shock heard 'round the world - who ever would have thought I'd choose writing as my example?)

I was on a mayjah procrastination kick last week.  I got sick, but when I got better a day later, I avoided writing.  And on the next day.  And the next day.  And the next.  Now, I'm a believer in taking a day off here and there - to let that reservoir of creative juices refill when it's been overworked.  Even two days, maybe three.  But more than that (for me it was an entire week) is just plain old procrastination.

I wanted to write, I really did.  I love this job.  But I let myself find distraction in every. single. thing. possible.  A lot of it was writing related, but we all know it's not the same as actually facing the manuscript and giving those fingers a workout on the keyboard.

This past Monday, I finally forced myself out of the hazy procrastination fog.  After much whining about how much I procrastinated (just another procrastination method, no?) I opened Project Jane and click by painful clack I typed a new paragraph.  And then another, followed by a new page, and so on and so forth.  I found my stride again, though it was a slow start.  (I finally passed the 70,000 word mark - yay me!)  By the time I finished typing that night, the last dregs of laziness had flown from my knuckles.  I was in writing heaven.  At one point I'd even, mid-sentence, come up with a completely new and awesome angle.  I call that super duper writing heaven. 

Then a strange thought struck me.

I loved what I'd written.  Yet, I couldn't help but feel that had I attempted to write even a day earlier, I never would have written the way I had.  The words would have been shaped differently; the flow would have been set to a different frequency.  And most startling of all was the realization that I might never have developed the new twist. 

[GASP]

Maybe sometimes procrastination is a good thing.  Perhaps my lazy tendencies will actually pay off in the world of writing first drafts.  Looking back, I realize that I might have produced a completely different story had I never procrastinated the way I have.  Would I have liked it? Probably.  Could it actually have been better? Possibly.  But do I love, love, love the story I've written up to this point? Absolutely.

So, while I still strive to complete this draft without any further procrastinating - I no longer feel guilty about the time I've already spent doing just that.

(Of course a necessary caveat here is that this could certainly all be a severely imaginative rationalization on my part - a subconscious effort to allow myself to think that procrastination is okay... So take my words in at your own peril, haha.)


♥ me

Writer's Block Remedies... Tip #3

TIP #3: Write or Die

I so hope you've heard of Write or Die.  It is the perfect - and I mean PERFECT - remedy for the kind of writer's block I call Cyberspaceship Disorder. 

Long story short: you enter your desired word count and then select the amount of time you want to achieve it in.  Select how harsh you want the application to be and hit the "Write!" button.  You'll find yourself facing a screen to type on.  If you stray from the screen you are, in effect, yelled at.  If it takes you too long to write a word, you're punished.  When you hit your desired word count, I'm telling you it's like a fresh piece of birthday cake!  Seriously.  Then, copy and paste it into your own document and make your edits from there.

These are the consequences that you select before you start:

• Gentle Mode: If you pause from writing for too long, a box pops up to remind you that you need to continue.
• Normal Mode: If you pause for too long, a really unpleasant sound/song is played.  It only stops when you start typing again!
• Kamikaze Mode: If you stop writing, your work gets deleted.

I recommend Normal Mode.  The songs they play to "yell" at you are extremely annoying and keep you really focused.  I definitely say skip the Kamikaze Mode - your work really does unwrite itself if you take too long to type, and it's infuriating and can (in my case at least) cause a person to give up on what they're working on.

You also choose from three "Grace Period" options: Forgiving, Strict, or Evil.  These periods correlate to the length of time you are allotted without typing anything.  I usually go with the Forgiving option.  Sometimes I need a moment to think quickly through the next scene, so a little bit more time between typing is needed.

One of the things that I really enjoy with Write or Die, is that while I'm typing I absolutely can't surf the Internet - or tweet - or catch up on my much needed celebrity gossip... BUT, since it's timed, when it's over I give myself a break and skim whatever sites I feel like. Then it's back to Write or Die!

♥ me

Romance... Literary vs Commercial

Do you literally write romance stories?  Do you write fantasy and only consider the romance in your work to be minimal (if any at all)? 

If you answered yes to either question - well, my friends, you may need to think again!! 

Did you know that the original meaning of the word "romance" was to have belief in things that are out of our control?  (God, ghosts, etc.) 

See, until the years leading up to the 1800s, romances weren't about courtship and love - they were about adventure - superhuman abilities and heroes that fought dragons and went on missions to save the day.  (Sure, sometimes the heroes won the girls at the end, but the love wasn't the basis for the story - the action was.)  Think quests... and King Arthur tales... Chivalry and dramatic triumphs...  Romances were actually first written for male readers!

Then the 1800s rolled around and things began to change.  Somewhere along the lines the fantasy genre we know today branched out from the romances. (A post for another day perhaps.)  And along those same lines, a new type of "romance" writing emerged in France.  A far cry from grail quests and legendary sagas, romances began instead to emphasize themes of gallant and flattering love, (think lovers who seek solace in one another's arms during rough times).  The concept of "romance" switched from fantastic/eerie/gothic adventures to novels centered on the "scene-by-scene" advancement of wooing and/or lusting  that ended with marriage - or at least the "happily ever afters".  This is probably what you think of today, when you hear the term "romance".

However, there is a stark difference between commercial romance and literary romance.  (And, I think they make perfect sense, if you've read my other post about Literary vs Commercial Fiction.)

In commercial romances, also known as "Harlequin romances", the lovers always overcome their obstacles and are happy and in love by the end of the novel.  You pretty much know from the beginning that the two protagonists will end up together - but that's okay, it's probably why you read it in the first place!  Who doesn't love a happy, hopeful ending?  I can tell you - commercial romances (particularly those by Nora Roberts) helped me to escape from some pretty crappy break ups in previous years!

Literary romances focus on more realistic romance.  The lovers are actually unable, most of the time, to overcome whatever obstacles they face.  Sad, yes - but also authentic.  I'm married to my "Prince Charming", but goodness did I have to get through a lot of frogs before I found him.  (And, okay, to be fair - there were one or two non-frog genuine nice boys with whom the relationships just didn't work out.)  The point is that in real life, which is what should be reflected in literary works, romance is much less likely to end in marriage than what you'd read in a commercial novel. 

One thing that I love about literary romances is that truly in these works of fiction, I am able to find beauty in the small things.  Looks, touches, longings... They're almost more meaningful because their very purposes go unfulfilled.  You know what I'm talking about.  I'm sure you have memories of your own... Sweet gestures that fell through, smiles from handsome/pretty strangers in passing... Things that never came to fruition, but still make you feel warm inside when you remember them.  (Or bitter - I think it works both ways, ha.)

I'll leave you with this:  In whatever way you choose to define it - be it adventure, love, or lust - go get you some romance today, dear reader ;-)

♥ me

Do any other writers have this problem?

I have a problem.  And if I don't fix it, it could end up major one.

It's my tongue.  I can't seem to use it to form coherent sentences when asked about Project Jane.

Before I continue, let me tell you a little bit more about me:

• Public speaking? No problem.  Let me prepare a speech and I can give it comfortably, with few nerves... (Or give me some alcohol and watch what happens... I become hilarious - it's true, I swear.)
• Quick thinking?  Again - no real problem.  I can solve math problems like a pro. (I did used to teach it after all.)  And don't get me started on the amazing lies I told in high school, at the drop of many a dime, to get out of trouble... pretty much on a weekly basis.
• Project Jane? I am in love.  I love my story and am really proud of what I've created.
• Synopses (that's plural for synopsis, btw)? Also no biggie.  Ask me to write a description about the story in a clear and concise manner?  I gotcha.
• Conversations? Granted, I'm nowhere near my husband who can talk the paint off a wall - but I can hold my own, for sure.

But, my goodness, it seems that I cannot combine the above factors to form a single, interesting sentence.  Or even a group of sentences.  I think a good portion of it is based on in the fact that I have very few friends who like to read fantasy.  So I always am slightly uncomfortable using the "F" word - yet it's definitely a part of what I'm writing.  It's just that... people's eyes really do kind of glaze over at the word.

There's more though.  I don't know what it is that keeps me incoherent when speaking about Project Jane.  Is it that I love it too much - and I worry about any negative remarks?  I don't think that's it... I can handle criticism.  Is it that I don't have a clear idea regarding what the story is about?  NO! I know this baby inside and out.  Maybe I know it too well?  IDK (my BFF Jill) (I just had to add that last part, ha - remember the commercial?) 

Maybe it's the blonde in me.  (I can say that - I'm a natural blonde... well - not naturally as blonde as the current color, but still.)  Maybe I should just memorize the hook from my query and repeat it to people...

In any case, I have to get it together.  What if I actually get picked up - published even?  I'll have to be able to speak about it - in ways that make other people as excited about the book as I am.  Too bad you can't go to a reading and just hand out note cards instead of verbally answering people's questions.  OH. Or I could just speak in haiku... Sigh.

Does anyone else struggle with this?  If so, how do YOU handle it?

♥ me