This is the Journey of Writing

You start out feeling a bit lost and directionless, but you know you want to do something. An idea hits you and causes inspiration that lights up the room and spins you around in its tingly clutches. That tiny, hopeful voice that plays with your subconscious when you aren’t paying attention says, “This could be big.” Glittery-eyed excitement dances around you. You dive in. Slowly, things build and your progress pushes you further and further into your project and before you know it, it has consumed you in almost every conceivable way. You are tarred to your project and bit by bit, you push yourself a little harder, and then a little harder still. Your personal expectations get a little higher, and a little higher until they begin to get elevation sickness, but the giddiness keeps you pushing. You become an endless one way street. Your relationships begin to sway under the strain, and while you see it, you can’t sacrifice what you are doing. You convince yourself you have balance and it’s all okay. Little hissy fit meltdowns that are not understandable to others begin to litter  your feebackless chamber. Small things pile up against you and your project, but they feel like boulders. The insular and individualistic nature of it all begins to eat at you and self doubt creeps in, its long, snaky fingers tarnishing everything. A bigger meltdown leaves you flailing about on the floor, but you can’t give up. You grasp at a tenuous lifeline, but next week there is an even bigger ‘what am I doing to myself’ moment that sweeps you up and bangs you around until you don’t know which wall has bruised you the worst. You shout off a cliff, your anger curled like a dirty fist. You question each and every thing about yourself, your abilities, your possibly lost sanity, and of course your project, its merit and pretty much everything connected to it. You have to throw in the towel. It’s the only way to rebalance the scales. Two hours later, it’s like the meltdowns and bruising never happened. You are up off the floor feeling as refreshed, inspired, and raring to go as if you just stepped out of a rejuvenating shower in the fountain of youth and optimism. This is the journey of writing.

–inspired by the movie Julie & Julia as Julie’s life showed me that I am not the only one who was been through this wretchedly joyous journey.

Writers and War

It is Remembrance Day in Canada. (Veteran’s Day for y’all Americans.)

Lest We Forget

As a Canadian, peace is one of the most important things in my life and something I value above all else.

To think… all the lives touched by war. All the lives lost. And for what? For freedom. For peace. For ideologies. War changes people, societies, cultures, landscapes and families.

How did I learn to fear war, to value peace? Some of was ingrained through socialization, yes. But it is deeper. I feel war. I empathize with those who have been touched by war. I put myself in the shoes of strangers who have lost their husbands. I feel the fear those soldiers must feel. How though? How do I feel it? How am I able to empathize?

Writers. Writers are part of why I am able to put myself in the shoes of a soldier, a mother, a child. It can be something simple like John McRae’s poem ‘In Flanders Fields’ or it can be something disturbing like Timothy Findley’s ‘The Wars’ or even something light like Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows  look at life after war in ‘The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.’ It can be disturbing artwork along with to-the-point words like in Pascal Croci’s graphic novel ‘Auschwitz,’ a diary like Anne Frank’s, or something more modern like ‘The Cellist of Sarajevo’ by Steven Galloway. All these different perspectives, focuses, people, life, and emotions all add up to someone who has never felt war, doing all she can to prevent it. To fear it.

John McCrae

I bow my head for a moment of silence to remember those who have fought for our freedom and to those who have taken up the struggle to write about war so that those who have never experienced it, can. Allow us to fear it and prevent it.

What Fills Your Writing Bathtub?

Bathtub analogy: You have a tub representing your energy or creative skills. Your goal is to fill it. Good things that help build you up (energy or skills) fills the tub. Things that drain you (criticism, rejections, etc) empty your tub.

While you may have heard of the bathtub analogy before, Brad R. Torgersen has put a distinct writer’s slant on it by arguing that a writer wants to fill their tub to the top where the ‘professional line’ hangs out. To fill your tub to that line, you need to build your skills and work hard.

My mom’s version of the analogy is more of an “energy” tub instead of a “skill” tub. Who or what fills you up so you can do your work? Who or what creates holes in the bottom of your tub so you have to struggle and work extra hard to keep water in your tub?

Both analogies are good. As a creative person, you need both to succeed. You need to build your skills. You also need creative energy. If you have brick walls in your way, it makes it harder to fill that tub. Maybe you don’t have access to the resources to build your skills. Maybe someone is constantly telling you you’re no good. These create holes in your tub, making it difficult to fill the tub.

So, what fills your tub? Skillwise and energywise? For me, writing itself is a tub filler. Writing gives me energy. I also have a family that supports my writing. I have great critique partners. I have a pile of buddies on Agent Query who fill me up. I have places to discuss writing. I have writing books, access to online classes, and great, informative blogs to follow. There is always something to help me build my skills and get me thinking about writing in a new way. In short, I got it good baby. My tub is filling up.

How’s your tub doing? Does it need a repair kit? Is it close to overfilling?

P.S. There is a conversation going on about this over on AQ. Join in or leave a comment here.

Enjoy!

The Writer Who Signed an Agent is…Calista!

Cdesses/c.taylor, aka Calista, my critique buddy over on AgentQuery is in the process of signing with a literary agent. Calista decided to move from fantasy to steampunk a few months ago and the move paid off. She’s written a great story about a feisty lass named Phoebe who creates a powerful drink that brings her to the center of a murder mystery. I feel honoured to have read and provided feedback on VIRDIS as Calista has a unique voice and a very simple, crisp, straight-forward style that makes my convoluted, wordy mind envious. When her book comes out, I’ll be sure to let you know so you can enjoy this action adventure/romance/history/mystery story set in London.

What is steampunk? Basically, it is a genre that is part historical, part futuristic. In Calista’s story, the story is set in London in the 1800s. While some things are as they were in the 1800s, such as clothing and social norms, it is a ‘what if’ take on life with a bit more technology. What if steam could be used to power some of the inventions we have now?

Curious? You can read her story, VIRDIS…coming soon!