tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post8551879532595181834..comments2024-03-29T03:30:18.368-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: My Cure for Writer’s Block and ProcrastinationDanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-91754201695522072242018-06-13T12:51:17.348-06:002018-06-13T12:51:17.348-06:00Do both, Polly. Embrace the path your creative hea...Do both, Polly. Embrace the path your creative heart chooses at the moment. I wish I could paint as well as write. My grandmother, a number of grandchildren, and some cousins are artists. I am considering photography. Have you ever tried your hand at that? :-)Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06686488133905538811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-56222076785064166322018-06-13T12:41:43.750-06:002018-06-13T12:41:43.750-06:00Hi Susan -- Also add a little author intrusion, lo...Hi Susan -- Also add a little author intrusion, long run-on sentences, and a few named but unimportant characters who have no purpose in the story. I never had so much fun writing as I did with One Day at the Cat's Claw Pub.Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-40461054712855053142018-06-13T11:29:52.784-06:002018-06-13T11:29:52.784-06:00That is such great advice. At a recent conference,...That is such great advice. At a recent conference, one of the presenters said go ahead and put all the cliches, adverbs and head hopping in that first draft. Susan Gourley/Kelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02669793865290876168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-43249838138332937542018-06-12T14:45:12.965-06:002018-06-12T14:45:12.965-06:00Gee, where do I go from here? My first career was ...Gee, where do I go from here? My first career was as an artist. Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-79712536513775944022018-06-12T14:40:11.840-06:002018-06-12T14:40:11.840-06:00Hi Heidi! We'd have to have a runoff for that ...Hi Heidi! We'd have to have a runoff for that Queen title. I had set aside two hours to write today...so I cooked potatoes and eggs for potato salad, made a phone call, sat outside with a glass of iced tea, and took a nap. And now I'm on the internet. That's the way I roll!Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-38405643162492650632018-06-12T14:37:38.856-06:002018-06-12T14:37:38.856-06:00I agree! I know folks who have never finished a bo...I agree! I know folks who have never finished a book because they spend so much time editing the first chapter...Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-13107736416735389222018-06-12T14:36:10.667-06:002018-06-12T14:36:10.667-06:00Linda, thanks so much for your comments on Wishing...Linda, thanks so much for your comments on Wishing Caswell Dead. The book I'm working on now is set in that same little Illinois town with some of the characters repeated and the main characters brand new. Getting hooked on a fictitious town is a good way to pull myself into the next project...and the next. A painting break would be fun...but as my cousin asked, "Why can't you do both?" :DPatricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-92103588695619379942018-06-12T12:16:31.342-06:002018-06-12T12:16:31.342-06:00This is great, very interesting approach. I call m...This is great, very interesting approach. I call myself the Queen of the Procrastinators, and I'm a died-in-the-wool pantser. Not sure I like the way I write, but it seems to work for me--eventually! Thank you for sharing this!Heidiwriterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02593338979995203659noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-14104050058632143682018-06-12T11:57:22.408-06:002018-06-12T11:57:22.408-06:00The first draft should just be getting the bones d...The first draft should just be getting the bones down. I don't waste time on anything else, don't edit or revise. Why massage things you are going to cut anyway? But this is a great tip for getting unstuck.Diana Hurwitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18216220574149672733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-82052866629310183422018-06-12T11:04:02.001-06:002018-06-12T11:04:02.001-06:00Both you, Pat, and Polly have so much writing tale...Both you, Pat, and Polly have so much writing talent. I would really hate to see either of you stop altogether. I just recently read Wishing Caswell Dead. Oh, my goodness, what an incredible story! The ending was one of my all-time favorites. On a side note: I've known writers who took a "painting" break (from word pictures to paint on canvas). One in particular whose books I've edited did return to writing after a 2-3 year break. Whatever you choose, just be sure it makes you happy.Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06686488133905538811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-47439032115138144352018-06-12T10:47:47.893-06:002018-06-12T10:47:47.893-06:00Thanks, Polly. I spent some time dealing with that...Thanks, Polly. I spent some time dealing with that same question this spring...I decided to finish my wip and then see how I feel. I'm kind of tempted to take drawing and painting lessons instead. :DPatricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-57937368264514526222018-06-12T10:41:23.770-06:002018-06-12T10:41:23.770-06:00I'm a pantser too, Maryann, so this project wa...I'm a pantser too, Maryann, so this project was like pantser on steroids. As for finishing that story, one member of my critique group said it's his favorite of everything I've written. Food for thought.Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-69104281640887219612018-06-12T10:39:38.225-06:002018-06-12T10:39:38.225-06:00Free range imagination comes from giving imaginati...Free range imagination comes from giving imagination free rein. The project gave me a lot of ideas for creative structure and letting characters behave badly. It was enough fun that I may go back and add more to the story.Patricia Stolteyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192369425956406122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-45659139867843829162018-06-12T09:57:20.896-06:002018-06-12T09:57:20.896-06:00Great post, Pat. My problem is not writer's bl...Great post, Pat. My problem is not writer's block, it's deciding whether I want to continue to write at all and apathy about spending so much of my life writing with little to show for it. It's a decision I'll have to make. Maybe I'll get a burst of energy. Glad you weathered your slump. I know we all have them.Polly Iyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05729656119287702191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-60764887539770590092018-06-12T09:31:04.049-06:002018-06-12T09:31:04.049-06:00Thanks for affirming that my approach to writing i...Thanks for affirming that my approach to writing is not so far off the mark, Pat. I am a real pantster and have taken Anne Lamott's advice to heart "You can write a shitty first draft." <br /><br />This approach you took is not so far removed from journaling to get the creative well primed, only you end up with more of the story to start working seriously on. I do hope you finish yours. Maryannwriteshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09479027709233807149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-1977721469965905162018-06-12T09:30:50.962-06:002018-06-12T09:30:50.962-06:00What an interesting idea, Pat! The editor in me re...What an interesting idea, Pat! The editor in me rebels at the idea of not following the rules, but practicality reasons that rules can be applied later. Giving imagination free rein allows creative juices to flow unhindered, an almost sure key to unlock writer's block. Great post!Linda Lanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06686488133905538811noreply@blogger.com