"A writer writes not because he is educated, but
because he is driven by the need to communicate.
Behind the need to communicate is the need to share.
Behind the need to share is the need to be understood."
-- Leo Rosten
because he is driven by the need to communicate.
Behind the need to communicate is the need to share.
Behind the need to share is the need to be understood."
-- Leo Rosten
"Every writer I know has trouble writing."
-- Joseph Heller
What kind of writer are you? Are you the kind that can put pen to paper with no previous thought and end up with material, great or small? Are you the kind that, with help in the form of a memory, a photo, a sentence, can conjure up a simple work of art? Or, like me, are you the kind that is rarely inspired and just cannot force the writing process to get started until your mind is good and ready to let you?
When it comes to writing, I am the least inspired person on Earth. I can't sit down and pound out paragraph upon paragraph of amazing-ness after hearing a simple cue word or being told to write about a certain subject.
Instead, inspiration comes to me on its own time, by its own whim.
Most often, something will hit me in the dead of night on those rare nights that I've actually attempted to go to sleep at a decent time. Then, the thought that has just hit me will manifest itself in the deepest corners of my mind for a few minutes.
Eventually, it decides to stretch its legs by running circles around my head kicking up sentences, thoughts, and memories in its trail. These random pieces will slowly start to find each other, determining which would be its perfect partner in crime to convey what it is they want to convey.
Entire paragraphs will form in my mind, topic sentences, content, conclusions, the whole shebang. If I continue to lay there, the entire article, long enough to be published as its own large pamphlet, will complete itself. Then, instead of being stored away carefully in those Spongebob Squarepants-esque filing folders of my mind, it decides it wants to be proofed.
So, I run over the entire thing from memory. Take pieces out, add a sprinkling of personal touches here and there, and wrap the entire thing up in a big crimson and gold bow resting perfectly on top as if it were a gift waiting to be placed under the tree.
Then, I start to panic. Is it something I want to post for the eyes of others to see? Is it the quality material I want to represent myself with? Will I forget that part that took me all of 15 minutes to come up with by morning? What if I forget completely the entry never to return so that I can take the big sparkly bow off and present it to you, my readers and friends?
At this point, I know I can't sleep until I've gotten this information down for good. A slave to my mind, I force myself out of bed to get my laptop off of my desk. I prop my pillows up against the wall and sit back knowing I'll probably be writing for a long while.
What does eventually come out of this sleep-deprived, overworked brain of mine is never exactly a work of art and, most of the time, it's never what I spent so long conjuring up, but it is something I am proud to have taken the time to write. I can say with great certainty that I have no problem sharing it with you, regardless of the fact that I know if it is something you as the reader will enjoy or not before I even post it.
With a grand average of four and a fraction posts a month, you can tell inspiration hits me rarely. What comes from that inspiration could be a simple list, a jumbled mess of questions, or a deep, profound, if not self-ego-boosting... thing that shares the worst of my secrets or the most controversial of my opinions.
In the end, I'll be sharing something. Something for me or something for me that also interests you. Either way, it would be following the advice of my best Twitter-friend, Mira (of Free2WinGames):
"Write for yourself, and you cannot fail."
Left in a comment on this post.
No matter how much or little you write, how often or far between, just write it because you want to and it will always be a work of art that only you could have created.
When it comes to writing, I am the least inspired person on Earth. I can't sit down and pound out paragraph upon paragraph of amazing-ness after hearing a simple cue word or being told to write about a certain subject.
Instead, inspiration comes to me on its own time, by its own whim.
Most often, something will hit me in the dead of night on those rare nights that I've actually attempted to go to sleep at a decent time. Then, the thought that has just hit me will manifest itself in the deepest corners of my mind for a few minutes.
Eventually, it decides to stretch its legs by running circles around my head kicking up sentences, thoughts, and memories in its trail. These random pieces will slowly start to find each other, determining which would be its perfect partner in crime to convey what it is they want to convey.
Entire paragraphs will form in my mind, topic sentences, content, conclusions, the whole shebang. If I continue to lay there, the entire article, long enough to be published as its own large pamphlet, will complete itself. Then, instead of being stored away carefully in those Spongebob Squarepants-esque filing folders of my mind, it decides it wants to be proofed.
So, I run over the entire thing from memory. Take pieces out, add a sprinkling of personal touches here and there, and wrap the entire thing up in a big crimson and gold bow resting perfectly on top as if it were a gift waiting to be placed under the tree.
Then, I start to panic. Is it something I want to post for the eyes of others to see? Is it the quality material I want to represent myself with? Will I forget that part that took me all of 15 minutes to come up with by morning? What if I forget completely the entry never to return so that I can take the big sparkly bow off and present it to you, my readers and friends?
At this point, I know I can't sleep until I've gotten this information down for good. A slave to my mind, I force myself out of bed to get my laptop off of my desk. I prop my pillows up against the wall and sit back knowing I'll probably be writing for a long while.
What does eventually come out of this sleep-deprived, overworked brain of mine is never exactly a work of art and, most of the time, it's never what I spent so long conjuring up, but it is something I am proud to have taken the time to write. I can say with great certainty that I have no problem sharing it with you, regardless of the fact that I know if it is something you as the reader will enjoy or not before I even post it.
With a grand average of four and a fraction posts a month, you can tell inspiration hits me rarely. What comes from that inspiration could be a simple list, a jumbled mess of questions, or a deep, profound, if not self-ego-boosting... thing that shares the worst of my secrets or the most controversial of my opinions.
In the end, I'll be sharing something. Something for me or something for me that also interests you. Either way, it would be following the advice of my best Twitter-friend, Mira (of Free2WinGames):
"Write for yourself, and you cannot fail."
Left in a comment on this post.
No matter how much or little you write, how often or far between, just write it because you want to and it will always be a work of art that only you could have created.
;Jen
2 Comments:
I know exactly what you mean about planning a piece out and then getting up to write it before it fades away. *^_^* My problem is that I never stop revising. I'll come across a "finished" piece I wrote years ago and still feel a need to change a word here and there.
One thing that's tough is to keep track of your unfinished pieces too. The half-thought ideas and flickers of dreams often hold great potential! Remember the "Rose" short story I made? I started it years ago, got busy, and completely forgot about it. Now it's one of my favorite pieces. ^_^
Sometimes... oh dear, how to explain this one. *Ponders*
We each have sparks of genius inside us. But sometimes it takes skill earned through time to turn that spark into a fire. That's why I feel it's important to hang on to those sparks. They may seem like nothing now, but you never know what your future self might think.
As for the quote... *major blushing* I'm incredibly flattered. *^_^* It sounds like you completely get what I was saying. Woohoo!!!
And I just realized that the "Rose" story completely encompasses that idea. Wow. I r smrt!
Jenn, I know exactly how you feel. I think I'm all of the above. Sometimes music lyrics or a picture can conjure thoughts, sometimes it comes from impulse. But my best writing usually shines when I'm experiencing emotional adversity or ecstasy- something worthy to have feelings about.
For me, I start with the body and usually have to go back to make my introduction. And I am just like you. I often have to rethink what I post online and think: "OMG, do I really want people to see that?"
Write for yourself. Beautiful. Keep writing and I hope to see more than an average of four posts next month!
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