The Writing Bug
Round Robin topic for January: Everybody wants to write a book, but most do not. Writing is hard work. When did the writing bug bite you, and what helps you get through a complete story?
Hm… Writing, creating a world and characters, even when the world is contemporary, fires the imagination and allows us experience things we normally wouldn’t. We escape for a brief time.
Some days, the words flow from my fingers onto the screen like an open fire hydrant. Other days, they seep out in a painful ooze. Every day I manage to add to the words that build my stories I consider a good day.
The Beginning
An avid reader at an early age, perhaps my desire to write was inevitable. The writing bug bit me around ten. It made itself known in a fan fic piece that will never see the light of day. (Not only because I’m not sure where it is, but also because I have no desire to share it…ever. LOL) A dystopian story has been floating around in my brain since that time. I have so many others clamoring to be written I doubt I will ever write it. It’s probably for the best. More than likely, that story has been told a million times over.
Other than poetry, I didn’t write more than essays until I opened Wild Child Magazine in 1999. I adopted a few pen names (Kit Wylde and Rosa Orrore) and wrote a couple of stories. Two of them, Last Chance and Hieroglyphs, eventually became eBooks published by Wild Child Publishing and/or Freya’s Bower.
My Creative Process
I used to claim that I didn’t have time because of my two publishing houses. Now that they are winding down, I no longer have that excuse. (Well, I’m finishing up the last quarterly reports and 1099s. It does interfere with my writing time.) Things haven’t changed much…yet. I struggle to finish stories. My muse starts gung-ho the first chapter or two. The further in I get, the quieter her voice grows until she’s whispering in my ear and I have to strain to hear her. However, the second I turn in a direction she disagrees with, her voice swells to a cacophony of dissent. I cannot ignore her.
Perhaps her whispers stem from the vocal perfectionist inside my head, or that I try to lead her in one direction when she points in another. Or, maybe, I just think too much. LOL Too much analyzing can kill the mood, in more ways than one. (grin)
Your Story
If you write, where did you start? What’s your process?
If you’re an avid reader, have you ever dreamed of writing a book? If so, what keeps you from doing it? (No pressure. I’m curious.)
If you enjoyed this post, please follow the links below and find out what others have to say on this subject.
Marci, so interesting to read about how your muse keeps you on track.
Thanks, Margaret. I really enjoyed your post as well.
I know exactly what you mean by the dwindling voice. Any time I get to that place I start wondering if the plotters might be right.
It does make me wonder, but, then, when I know where I’m going and how I’m getting there, I lose interest. LOL
My muse is pulling your muse’s tricks. She-he-it got me through ten chapters and now has abandoned me! I’m working through it waiting for she-he-it to yell yes in my ear so I know I’m on the right trail. I think the message was to think this action through more critically…and maybe believable.
Rhobin, ask yourself where the next high-tension scene is going to be. Skip ahead and write that — then the in-between bits should be easy to fill in.
🙂
My muse thinks linear. I have to write in sequence or she laughs in my face, spins around in a different direction, and gives me the bird. LOL
My problem, Robin, is that I keep asking myself, “Where to know?” Her response? Crickets. However, I think if I listen to my characters, they will lead me where they want to go.
Interesting post. I’m impressed that you began to publish a magazine. That would take a lot of work and interfere with your own writing.
I wasn’t writing at the time when I started the magazine. The magazine reactivated my writing bug. I was too busy pursuing acting/singing for a while. I even have a few unfinished scripts…somewhere. LOL At one point, I wrote 5 Chautauqua shows of historical women that I performed in schools and around the state for other functions. My focus wasn’t on writing, and this was at the very beginning of the rise of the internet.
Hi Marci! A very helpful blog on the life of a writer or trying to become one. Two publishing houses! How do you manage it? I have one, and with a partner, and there are times I think I’ll go mad. And no, I don’t think you think too much.
Well, I just recently closed them down. I didn’t do much writing. I felt guilty because I knew how much I needed to do for the houses. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. LOL)
Marci, I understand why you have retired your publishing business, but sorry to see them go all the same. High-quality, ethical, professional small publishers are not that easy to find.
Thanks, Bob. It was a hard decision to make, but, ultimately, the right one. I think we’re going to see more fold over this next year, sadly.
When I was 11, my uncle in California casually mentioned that he writes letters to family members. That seemed pretty cool to me, so I took up letter writing as well to the friends in Connecticut I’d had to move away from. That led to journal-keeping, and that led to fiction writing.
Similar to the problem you mention, the muse can grow quiet. To re-spark the original fire, I look for visual cues: my muse is using sign language somewhere. Somewhere in my perimeter is an object, a person, a situation. She is next to it. The Fates have arranged the circumstances of my moment, my room, or my situation, and the person/place/thing which opens the next chapter is somewhere near. When I fend her flapping her arms and grinning at me, I know my eyes have found the portal through which to follow her.
The most recent one was a shoe. I tripped on a loose shoe on the floor, left behind by my boy. So? The next scene opened with my character’s mysterious past being further exposed by the discovery of a particular shoe… The writing flared back to full flame.
What a fabulous tale, Stephen. I love your poetry. You weave your words in a wondrous way. 🙂 I’m glad you are writing again.
Like you, I wrote copious letters when I was wrong. However, I wasn’t much on consistently journaling. I wrote in bits and spurts. None of it was ever riveting, but simply the thoughts of a young girl with all the angst and drama of a young girl. LOL
Marci, you made such a good point about your characters disagreeing with you. Only another author would get that!
They can make things miserable if they aren’t happy with the direction you’ve taken them, Victoria. LOL