today, the black dog is prowling. i told Twitter about it, and my tweeps instantly set about cheering me up. or, in one particular case *looks hard at @peevishpenman* bullying me to do something about it. Carrie's suggestion was to join her blogfest.
after a little persuasion, i guess i may have one or two things to add, with the caveat that most of the advice probably comes not from me, but from Saint Neil (better known as Neil Gaiman - thoroughly bigged up in this post on how i became a writer and got my name).
1) write. just write. doesn't matter what. emails, blog posts, poems, short stories, scenes, *anything*. if you haven't been trained, you need the practice. even if you *have* been trained, it'll keep the writing muscles in your brain nice and limber.
2) write about stuff you find interesting. if *you're* not interested, your readers sure as hell won't be.
3) read. lots. sounds obvious, i know, but that's how i learned to write. just by having my nose (literally) in a book from the age of seven or eight.
4) read different stuff to what you'e used to. you may not enjoy a lot of it, and that's fine. but *give it a chance* before you put it down and say "this isn't for me". you may be surprised. also, it will give you clues as to what you in particular probably *shouldn't* be writing. (see #2)
5) ask yourself "what if?" ALL THE TIME. this is how stories are made.
6) most importantly (for me, at any rate) find a support network!!! seriously. Twitter (where i found mine) has more value to me as a writer than i could possibly, possibly express. for advice, opening up new genres, and a vast, limitless supply of support, encouragement and Twitterlove, i woldn't call myself a writer if it wasn't for those little 140 character messages, cheering me on from all over the world.
it gives me the warm fuzzies. ^_^
hey, carrie, whadya know? it seems to be working! *smile*
.
Friday 18 June 2010
Sunday 6 June 2010
insomnia, storms, little brother and powerless.
as usual for a weekend, i went to bed quite late last night. well, it was about 1:30 this morning, actually. but i couldn't sleep.
for three reasons.
the first was that it was hot and muggy. about this, i won't complain. it's inconvenient, sure, but this country can be so effing cold and miserable at times, that i refuse to complain when it's hot, as a matter of principle. i love the hot weather, even if it makes me dopey and listless, it's still better than being cold! also, it's the sort of weather that produces one of my favourite things in the whole world. we spent a good half hour last night, dangling our legs out of our bedoom window watching a storm at about seven miles distance. *sigh* it was the first of the year, and utter bliss. it was perfectly still, and the clouds were lighting up in the distance with that unearthly beauty you only get on summer nights.
the second was that i had a new story idea knocking on my brain. this, of course, pleased me. i haven't been writing a lot, lately, as i have other things on my mind, and it's kind of hard to settle to it, but i'm thrilled that i'm still thinking as a writer, even wen i'm not writing. to me, it's another tiny step towards that place i want to be - someone who needs to write. (heh - in writing that, i realised that what i'm doing is attempting to cultivate an addiction. naughty Squeaky! *grin*) i spent a lot of time thinking about this story, and how it might go - disconnected elements i might throw in, and i hope it will be the backbone of this year's NaNoWriMo effort, but we'll have to see. i know little about it, just how it starts and, as i said, one or two random bits that may or may not be in the middle. it sort of stems from the description duel i was involved in at the beginning of the year. i had an idea there might be more to it at the time, but for some reason, it started to put some roots into the story silt last night. but i'm not going to chase it. with me, that doesn't seem to be the way forward. nor planning a story arc or indeed (as i think i've mentioned before) outlining a plot. somehow, it loses the excitement of the writing. it makes me wonder if that's because i started writing with NaNoWriMo - that heady, exciting, headlong rush down the pathways of the story seems to have set itself as the pattern for me. i'm not a thoughtful, introspective type of person. and, if i'm honest, those sort of books don't generally float my boat. what can i say? i'm instinctive, impulsive and exciteable, and very much enjoy that kind of book, too.
which sort of brings me to the third reason that i couldn't sleep. i'd been reading a book that filled my brain with fireworks, both good and bad. i read half of it yesterday, and half of it today. and i urge you, as an internet user, to do the same. the book is called "Little Brother" by a man named Cory Doctorow. it's about how the surveillance culture that we live in can go horribly, horribly wrong. it's about security, and privacy, and (most attractively for me, as i always, *always* wanted to be like this) about a bunch of geeky teenagers who take on the might of The Man. And Kick. His. Ass. it's *really* exciting, and explains some of the arcana of the internet in a way i could just about grasp. and it was fascinating.
truly - geeks are the future.
sadly, i think i'm possibly too old to become any kind of computer/communications geek now, and my mathematical understanding is most assuredly not up to the job. but i have such a huge admiration for geeks of *every* stripe - not just the electronic ones. if there's any sort of justice around, never mind the meek inheriting the earth - i think the geeks should.
speaking of books wot i haz read, i would like to bring your attention to another one whilst (or, rather, *if*) i still have your ear. this one is the first in a YA fantasy series. Powerless Book 1: The Synthesis is written by Jason Letts, also known as @foreverjuly . you may have seen him wandering around on Twitter at odd hours of the day or night (he teaches English in Japan), being alternately philosophical and subversve. he's a lovely guy, and i urge you to get online and buy the book. i spent a short while dropping one or two reviews on amazon.com, smashwords, LibraryThing and GoodReads this afternoon. i did it gladly and with pleasure, since i enjoyed the book, and we all like to help each other out, don't we? best thing about the internet, i think, actually - there truly is a kind, helpful, sharing culture out there, and i'm lucky enough to know/communicate with some of the loveliest promoters of that phiosophy, who promote it simply by being themselves. it gives me the warm fuzzies on a reguar basis. anyway, here's what i had to say about it:
"I enjoyed this book very much. The main character is warm and giving, the supporting characters are human and three-dimensional, and the story and the world it is set in are well-thought-out, detailed, engaging, exciting and interesting. It's an excellent and thoughtful debut, and I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of the series."
seriously - go buy it, and read it - it rocks! ;o)
---
there was another storm this morning, at about seven o'clock. right over our heads. the thunder woke me up with a jump - the only time i don't mind being woken by sudden a loud noise. it was absolutely lovely. the rain had cooled the air as it hammered down, the lightning was fresh and clean, and the crashing and rumbling of the thunder was just so deliciously comfortng. it swells my heart with bliss to remember it, and it lulled me back to sleep with a smile on my face.
.
for three reasons.
the first was that it was hot and muggy. about this, i won't complain. it's inconvenient, sure, but this country can be so effing cold and miserable at times, that i refuse to complain when it's hot, as a matter of principle. i love the hot weather, even if it makes me dopey and listless, it's still better than being cold! also, it's the sort of weather that produces one of my favourite things in the whole world. we spent a good half hour last night, dangling our legs out of our bedoom window watching a storm at about seven miles distance. *sigh* it was the first of the year, and utter bliss. it was perfectly still, and the clouds were lighting up in the distance with that unearthly beauty you only get on summer nights.
the second was that i had a new story idea knocking on my brain. this, of course, pleased me. i haven't been writing a lot, lately, as i have other things on my mind, and it's kind of hard to settle to it, but i'm thrilled that i'm still thinking as a writer, even wen i'm not writing. to me, it's another tiny step towards that place i want to be - someone who needs to write. (heh - in writing that, i realised that what i'm doing is attempting to cultivate an addiction. naughty Squeaky! *grin*) i spent a lot of time thinking about this story, and how it might go - disconnected elements i might throw in, and i hope it will be the backbone of this year's NaNoWriMo effort, but we'll have to see. i know little about it, just how it starts and, as i said, one or two random bits that may or may not be in the middle. it sort of stems from the description duel i was involved in at the beginning of the year. i had an idea there might be more to it at the time, but for some reason, it started to put some roots into the story silt last night. but i'm not going to chase it. with me, that doesn't seem to be the way forward. nor planning a story arc or indeed (as i think i've mentioned before) outlining a plot. somehow, it loses the excitement of the writing. it makes me wonder if that's because i started writing with NaNoWriMo - that heady, exciting, headlong rush down the pathways of the story seems to have set itself as the pattern for me. i'm not a thoughtful, introspective type of person. and, if i'm honest, those sort of books don't generally float my boat. what can i say? i'm instinctive, impulsive and exciteable, and very much enjoy that kind of book, too.
which sort of brings me to the third reason that i couldn't sleep. i'd been reading a book that filled my brain with fireworks, both good and bad. i read half of it yesterday, and half of it today. and i urge you, as an internet user, to do the same. the book is called "Little Brother" by a man named Cory Doctorow. it's about how the surveillance culture that we live in can go horribly, horribly wrong. it's about security, and privacy, and (most attractively for me, as i always, *always* wanted to be like this) about a bunch of geeky teenagers who take on the might of The Man. And Kick. His. Ass. it's *really* exciting, and explains some of the arcana of the internet in a way i could just about grasp. and it was fascinating.
truly - geeks are the future.
sadly, i think i'm possibly too old to become any kind of computer/communications geek now, and my mathematical understanding is most assuredly not up to the job. but i have such a huge admiration for geeks of *every* stripe - not just the electronic ones. if there's any sort of justice around, never mind the meek inheriting the earth - i think the geeks should.
speaking of books wot i haz read, i would like to bring your attention to another one whilst (or, rather, *if*) i still have your ear. this one is the first in a YA fantasy series. Powerless Book 1: The Synthesis is written by Jason Letts, also known as @foreverjuly . you may have seen him wandering around on Twitter at odd hours of the day or night (he teaches English in Japan), being alternately philosophical and subversve. he's a lovely guy, and i urge you to get online and buy the book. i spent a short while dropping one or two reviews on amazon.com, smashwords, LibraryThing and GoodReads this afternoon. i did it gladly and with pleasure, since i enjoyed the book, and we all like to help each other out, don't we? best thing about the internet, i think, actually - there truly is a kind, helpful, sharing culture out there, and i'm lucky enough to know/communicate with some of the loveliest promoters of that phiosophy, who promote it simply by being themselves. it gives me the warm fuzzies on a reguar basis. anyway, here's what i had to say about it:
"I enjoyed this book very much. The main character is warm and giving, the supporting characters are human and three-dimensional, and the story and the world it is set in are well-thought-out, detailed, engaging, exciting and interesting. It's an excellent and thoughtful debut, and I'm really looking forward to reading the rest of the series."
seriously - go buy it, and read it - it rocks! ;o)
---
there was another storm this morning, at about seven o'clock. right over our heads. the thunder woke me up with a jump - the only time i don't mind being woken by sudden a loud noise. it was absolutely lovely. the rain had cooled the air as it hammered down, the lightning was fresh and clean, and the crashing and rumbling of the thunder was just so deliciously comfortng. it swells my heart with bliss to remember it, and it lulled me back to sleep with a smile on my face.
.
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