Well, it is still raining here in the South and it doesn't look like Frances wants to leave us quite yet. I keep singing that song in my head..."rain, rain, go away come again another day."
Lady Jane sent me the most wonderful notes today on our book. I swear I'm so excited. I love how Lady Jane's mind works. Just love it! The title itself is a so poetic, so RIGHT. Better than what we had before.
You know, I've come to the conclusion that you can rush into writing, without a thought or a memory of what you want to write. Characters that just step into your brain, but when you are going to write a big book. I mean one that has meaning, one that is layered with thought, and moral, and emotion. It takes time. Sometimes a very long time. Sometimes stories change, and you as the writer must be able to change with the story. Able to breathe a new life into these characters. It is so easy to just sit and type away at a blank page. But to "think" takes much more. More self, more thought, and sometimes those thoughts are hard. Sometimes you have to think about things you'd rather not think about. The things that we push to the back of our minds and say "I'll think about that tomorrow." Not today. I think this is what makes a great writer.
Courage.
Courage to write what will be hard. Courage to say what must be said. Hard hitting, gut wrenching, soul searching, gotta do this if it kills me kind of hard. I read a book about writing once that said if you are not able to lay your soul bare, if you cannot speak the truth in your heart, then you are only skirting around issues. And the problems in your stories will be only shallow puddles that can easily be fixed. It is only when you wade out into the ocean of the unknown that you can truly feel you have touched not only a reader but yourself. Life is difficult at best. I have thought long and hard, for I have been asleep for the better part of my life. I don't mean to say that I just go through the motions, but I have kept the world far away. I have closed myself off to those things that made me uncomfortable. Things that made me grimace, would make my eyes full of tears. I have realized I cannot go on living in a vacum.
Courage.
I keep coming back to that. Courage to look objectively at both sides of a story. Even the evil of a villain feels he is right. It is what makes a villain real. Every creature has one truth. The one thing he will or will not do. How odd these little thoughts are but they are so true. How ironic a code of ethic's would be with someone who would lie, steal, cheat or even kill to get what they want. Sure, sometimes it is only a dillusion of madness but still real to that entity. Not right, I never said right.
Anyway, I'm thinking long and hard this night with the rain pattering away at the glass. I'm listening to lilting piano music, a piece called "Cristoforo's Dream" It's haunting and is by David Lanz. Check it out! I'm going to post something funny next. I'm starting to depress even myself!
Ugh!
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1 comment:
Well said, Michelle! I have gone into deep thought about the writing process many a time. I know that I could write, but would I. Would I trust myself to venture out into the world that lies within my head? I have a major fear of venturing too far, and getting myself lost in thoughts, emotions, and even the personalities of the characters I create. I believe that this is why I stick to writing poetry. It is indepth, but no further than you want it to go. You can end it, as soon as it starts if you wish. But if you write a story, all bets are off. You venture into the woods with no flashlight to ensure your way back.
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