An Influx of Ideas

Inspiration is so odd.

Instead of the bolt of lightning, I feel like it's more of a storm watch thing for me. First I get that broadcast ribbon thing that beeps in while you're watching your favorite show and warns you of "severe storms" headed your way. Then a few minutes later (or an hour, however long it takes), the slow rumble of thunder in the distance creeping through the walls. The rooms start to darken as the light from the window fades to gray. And then you look out the window and see the clouds coming together, twisting, forming something dark, drifting towards you. Maybe you wander outside or stay at the window, feel the wind tangle it's fingers in your hair, feel this cold, dank warning leave a sheen on your skin. Perhaps it starts to sprinkle. And then the clouds start to flicker and you can make out the flashes as a blue/white current traces back and forth through the sky. Before you know it, the storm's on you, pouring rain, rumbling, striking lightning and completely taking out your power.

I love thunderstorms. I also love using them as a metaphor for how an idea can take over a mind in a creeping manner. Love it. And lately, this has been happening to me. A new idea, like a thunderstorm in a drought-wrought summer. Question is, do I go dancing in the rain? Or do I stay loyal to the old?

Really tempted to go with the exciting storm...

Farewell 2010

2010 was kind of a bad year for me. It was like a tail spin of unmade decisions and loss. Great loss. I went through a tough time finding a job, couldn't make up my mind about which book to write, couldn't return to college this past fall, and just this past month, my beautiful siberian husky, Luke, passed away...



You may remember him from my post "Why I Should Join IPCA" when I entered the PARANORMALCY ARC contest. He was 9 years old. I don't want to get into the details because it makes me cry every time, but he was beloved. I picked Luke out on Halloween night when I was ten years old at Pet City. It was this cute little pet shop in the mall where we lived in Boise, Idaho at the time. He was just so adorable and so breathtakingly beautiful (er, I mean handsome. Guys prefer handsome, correct?) I just couldn't walk out of there without calling him my own. My dad caved. He'd always loved huskies. And ever since then, Luke had been more than a friend or a companion. He'd been family. It's amazing that he lasted so long. He was known for getting his stomach pumped at the vet's office. He'd tried to eat chocolate covered raisinets, batteries, and fireworks. Yes, people... fireworks. That dog was a wanna-be curious cat. And I loved him so much...

I don't want to make this blog post too depressing, and I want to TRY to keep my eyes dry if at all possible, so... I will carefully segue into a farewell to the past year.

Goodbye to:

Uncertainty.

Indecision.

Inconsistency.

Hello 2011...

This is the year that I will walk forward with sure steps.

To Co-Write or Not to Co-Write... That IS the Question.

Hello, everyone! I hope you're having a wonderful holiday, and in case I forget to add this very joyous statement on at the end: Merry Christmas (and also in case I disappear again, Happy New Year!)!

So, NaNoWriMo was very interesting. I wrote. A lot. And read very little. But strangely enough, I have been writing even more in December. Why? Because I have taken on a new project. The adaption of a previous work that was written with a friend. We decided to adapt said project on November 26th, and since have written 129 pages of... awesomeness. That probably equates to anywhere between 60-80 pages on my part. It has been a whirlwind of words. I've found out about characters in more depth than I had ever thought possible-- all because I already had their basic personality down pat (including a few complexities already established in early stages of writing). I mean, it's even more exciting to write because I have someone on the other end that's both writing her own section of the book and pestering me to finish on my end. It's very motivating. How can it not be when you have someone that's just as enthusiastic and who is sharing the work?

The only drawback is... working on your individual book becomes what? That's right, ladies and gents. Almost nonexistent. I'm hoping I can get back on that gig soon, but I'm a little wrapped up in the adaption of this very exciting and very captivating book right now.

I'll check back in soon with an update or two.

Wishy Washy

That is exactly what I am.

I can NEVER. EVER. NEVER EVER make up my mind.

For the past four years I have been jumping between two story ideas. One includes my personal therapy, and yet extensive religious research. The second one was a spontaneous reaction to what one of my "supposed" side characters would do in a certain unwanted situation. And I find that once I choose one, I constantly think about the other. It is a vicious conspiracy that works against me to make sure that I NEVER finish a single book. And I hate that it's working.

I suppose the smart choice would be to continue on with my second story idea, which so far has about eighty five pages done, and work on researching/outlining the first idea at the same time. Since neither will shut up for the other. But will this really work?

I guess we'll find out.

*insert dramatic closing sequence here*
To be continued...

New Directions

Every plot seems to find them. New directions that is. It's annoying, it's confusing, and sometimes just plain sloppy. But that's the way of writing it would seem. Annoying, confusing, and sloppy.

I have finally been able to write, with the help of my plotline that I wrote out not two to three months ago. Unforunately, when there is one change, there seems to be ten other details to add in. And I have had more than one change. It makes weaving a new idea and/or chapter into one's book very hard. When I try to steer one of my character's fates in a different direction, then suddenly it's very hard to get them back on the same track. But I guess that's just the way it goes sometimes. There's a million possibilities and yet you have to choose only one. Sounds a little bit like life and not just writing a book.

As it is, I am not much of a fan of outlining. It's not easy and it's definitely not a short process. Hopefully, these new ideas, or what I like to call diseases, won't spread through-out the entire length of the plot.

Dead Ends and Wrong Turns

This is a sign. For a dead end. But since we all know I'm not talking about the road, why don't I just get right into it.

A month or two ago, I wrote a post about choosing a path to write about (That was the one with the pretty black and white picture with the two streets/paths separated by the fancy fence). Now, I'm right back at that fork, trying to choose another path. It's not easy. In fact, it's just down right mean sometimes. It's almost as if there were signs lined up all along the way, telling me exactly where I was headed, and yet... I was unable to heed them.

But why not just choose a path, right? Why NOT just turn around when I hit that dead end? If I can't choose a path, why not walk down both and find the right choice at the end of each?

And in this dilemma there lies my answer. Walk down both. Do the work. Make a choice.

To be continued...

Doubts

When I started this blog, I knew that there would be ups and downs. And I knew that there would be a lot of work put into this writing situation, but... I decided to do it anyway. You see, there's so many decisions a writer has to make when they're trying to put together a novel. There are millions of paths that one can choose from. And seeing as I'm a person who can't make up their mind to save their life, this can cause a very tricky predicament.

One thing I've always wondered, but don't hear much about in the writing world is, how does an author choose between two really great ideas for two completely different books? It seems like there would be a very simple answer to this question, but I haven't found one so easy in all my experience with the written word. I have two storylines that I want to do, and will do, but which one do I choose first?

I've been asking around and have received several ideas for a solution, but... it just doesn't seem that easy.

I put a lot of weight into my decisions, maybe more than I should, but I want to make sure that I make the right decision at the right time. For instance, how much book am I ready for? Have I experience enough to write about either of these storylines with credibility? I want to make this as good as it can be...

But it seems I might be putting too much thought into this. Others have said to just write both; "when you get sick of one story, write the other one for a little bit." But I'm afraid that I might not concentrate on one as much as the other...

I have so many doubts that it's choking my creativity... Perhaps, if I step back and choose to shorten my sights on simply writing what I love to write when I want to write it, then maybe everything will just flow...

One can only hope.

My advice to any writers out there that might be reading this, is to write just because you simply love it. Don't worry about making the right decisions. The good thing about writing is that you can always edit it later. Don't change something just because you're scared that it won't turn out the way you want it. Push through and let it fall into place.

You know, I should be taking my own advice more often.