Category: the writing process

Has anyone seen my right brain?

~ Nancy E. Shaffer ~ 4 Comments

I can’t seem to access it.

At the beginning of the month, I got back into the editing of my novel, and what I feared was a case of writer’s block turned out to be a necessary two months of focusing on other things, namely buying a house, moving, the holidays, and a brain vacation.

Now that I am back into it, however, I’m finding myself dissatisfied with my editing efforts. Part of the editing process is very left-brained: are the details in each chapter consistent with each other? Am I using too many adjectives? Does this section contribute anything to the plot? I do well with that.

Other parts are more intuitive. This is the stage where you actually really need to concentrate on making your writing sound pretty, and I am finding some bits I’m happy with, and lots of other bits that are totally bland sounding. Which is not a federal disaster, I just need to make them read in a more interesting way.

The problem is, the part of my brain that puts words together in interesting ways seems to be asleep. Or it’s back living in my old apartment. Or maybe I left it behind months and months ago but didn’t realize it because I was working out technical problems.

Where is my creativity, the part of me that comes up with novel catches of phrase, interesting details and complications, fresh perspectives on old material? Where is the part of me that takes mental leaps beyond the obvious?

*Ack*

note to self: I want to be aliera9916 when I grow up. Or I might just steal fresne‘s brain.

My demon

~ Nancy E. Shaffer ~ 2 Comments

Taking inspiration from the always inspirational aliera9916, I have my own quotage to share:

“Writing a book is a long, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand.”  ~ George Orwell

I have long thought of the main character of my novel as my muse, and probably it is the case that I have multiple muses, and they are always my characters. But to think of the urge to write as a demon is an interesting stroke of insight. For what could “possess” me to sit at my computer for hours a day, pounding on they keyboard like my little icon demonstrates? I always thought it was my characters, begging to have their stories told, giving me no peace until their voices were heard.

But what but a demon could force you to work for not months but years, neglecting the rest of life’s other pains and pleasures?

This demon is an incessant need to put words on a page, on a screen, spewing them out like a scream, like vomit, like one of those really, really long urinations you have after you’ve been forced to “hold it” for hours after drinking way too much coffee.

Oh, ho, get your metaphors and similes here.

My writing personality

~ Nancy E. Shaffer ~ 6 Comments

Ganked from bohemianspirit

You’re a PANTSER! A pantser writes without forethought to where the plot is going–sort of by the seat of her pants method. Youre a free spirited, creative person. You write with passion about what inspires you at the moment, and you probably have a strong voice. Dont worry about writers block–youve a different story. Youve got more story seeds than a hive has bees. When you write, its in disjointed segments. You may write sequentially or in flashes of inspiration, where you connect all your flashes later. People might say you ramble a bit in your work. Your revision process might take several passes, because you really have to whip that first draft into a more marketable shape. Youre novels either hit it big or miss. Theres no in between. Readers either love you, or hate you. Learn to channel that creative energy into a masterpiece and well be seeing your name on the NYT Lists!

Find Your Writing Personality!!
brought to you by Quizilla

Why is it that whenever I take one of these quizzes, I always get the exact same results as who ever I ganked it from? I don’t even post half my quiz results, because I get suspicious that the quizzes are rigged to give one result more often than others.

At any rate, this result seems true. I can’t outline a story before hand. And most of my stories write themselves in moments of inspiration (usually in the shower, where I can’t write them down). Actually no–my characters are the ones who write my stories. It’s like a dozen crazed elves in my head all speaking at once. The main character is the one who shouts the loudest.

I am a creature of habit about where I write most of the time (my blue recliner) and when I write (every moment that isn’t taken with work or friends or sleep). And I usually have ideas for other stories in the back of my head, but I get pretty intensely into the one I’m writing and don’t come up for air until it’s done.

I haven’t come up for air in seven years. ; )

On the border