Going old-school

Unfortunately, today went a little bonkers on me, with my return to university. So now will only be a short post.

Since spending more time on reading, on thinking about writing a bit more, things are looking up. Today I transferred my fourth WiP (Doorways being WiP1) to a notebook so that I can draft by hand. It’s a system that definitely works for me. And Mr. King gave another piece of advice that I think is very valid.

Draft with your door closed.

To me that makes sense even though I don’t have my own writing space (yet). As writers, we have to spend our first days with our ideas alone. Without outside influences affecting what we write. Or… distracting us.

I generally use earphones to drown out the distracting sounds, but I don’t stay off of the Internet. And now that I think about it, that might not be the best thing ever.

So I’m going old tech. No Internet crouching in my note book. Just ink in my pen.

Of course, it also has the additional benefit of giving me a break from my internal editor… 

Any other long-handers out there? Why or why not? What is your favorite drafting medium/program?

Stephen King Taught Me (Part 2)

So, Tuesday’s Headline lied a little. That wasn’t lesson one. This post was lesson one. I just didn’t want to mix this lesson with the lengthy introduction I felt obliged to add.

So what is this lesson?


“You must not come lightly to the blank page.” (On Writing, P80)

That is the single line that stood out the most in the whole book.

I don’t know about you, but when I get a new idea, I get excited. Really excited. Buzzing. I can’t wait to start writing. And when I write, it rushes through me like the best thrill you can think of.

But then, as insidious as venom, my one big enemy sets in. Addiction. I get addicted to my writing. That’s not a bad thing. It’s good to be passionate about what we write.

But when you’re addicted, there are two problems:

1) I start feeling like I have to write. No longer am I feeling that drive of passion.
2) And because of that, I no longer feel the rush.

I take writing for granted. It becomes something that I do out of routine.

In short, I come to my writing lightly. Very lightly.

No wonder the spark fades out on me every now and then.

And whenever that happens, I stop writing. Go cold turkey on the addiction (usually with the accompanying bad mood).

Once I go back to it, I fall in love with writing again. I feel that all rush.  And…

I go through the cycle again.

Fact is, I don’t really feel like it’s the most productive method for me to finish works in progress. So I decided that from tomorrow, I’m going to try something new. I’m going to start reminding myself why I write. I don’t want to write out of habit.

I want to write because it’s one of my greatest passions.

Do you approach your writing lightly on occasion? If not, how do you get yourself in the right feeling?