Imagine with me...
You are listening to a lovely piano concerto. You lean back in the comfy chair, close your eyes and relax into the smooth flow of music.
then the pianist hits the wrong key.
EEEK.
flow interrupted.
That's what happened to me this past week with my WIP. I was going along all fine and dandy but then something wasn't right.
It began as a nagging whisper at the back of my mind...
not right...not right...not right...
Of course, I ignored it. I was following my plot line...I was building scenes....what could be wrong?
not right... the voice grew louder.... could be better it whispered.
So I stopped writing.
Stalled.
It is a lousy feeling, but I'm glad that my inner voice is telling me to reassess and redirect my work.
I'm not sure exactly what is not working...or how I'm going to fix it...but I will listen to that inner voice and find the answers.
It means more work, more time, more ripping my hair out...
but I'll do what it takes.
*sigh* writing a novel is blasted hard work!
18 comments:
Take a break, go for a walk in the sun, adjust your eyes to above and hit it again in a day or two... luv ya
Thanks, Jamie..excellent and helpful advice. big hugs right back atcha.
Bummer, Tess! But I know you can fix this and it will be a hundred times better once you do. :)
Happens to me every few chapters, I feel like. So I go back and rework it, then start back where I left off. Before long I'm mucked up again! But in the end I think it makes things better if you have that little voice that can alert you to danger. With my first manuscript I ignored her, and I paid dearly when I trashed all 125,000 words of it.
Keep at it, it will be worth it in the long run!
~Tara
Sharon: thanks, pal. I do think it can be better...it's just getting there, you know?
Tara: seriously? man, you don't know how much that helps. yes, we should be thankful for that little voice. I think it is honed and strengthened when we listen. and, I, too, have tossed whole novels. that sucks worse.
I got some great advice once about what do to when things start going pear-shaped (which they invariably will when first drafting). Go back to the last spot where things feel right and chuck everything past that point (save the trashed part in a cuts folder or something). Then start from the last "good" part of the story and try again.
Good for you for paying attention to your inner voice, even if it means being stalled for a while. Time will help.
It's amazing how that inner voice works. If I try to pretend I don't hear it, something will come back to bite me. Glad you listened.
I'm having that problem right now actually. I want so badly to dive into my line edits but everywher I turn it doesn't feel right. I just wish it was a tadbit easier.
Guess I'll be watching my inner voice (or listening I should say).
Yes it is blasted hard work! But good for you for listening ... I've ignored that voice a time or two only to discover farther down the path that I really do have to go back and fix it, argh. Better to listen sooner, rather than later!
Lotusgirl: great advice from a great source it seems...good to know it is something we all need to learn to adjust/work through.
MG: hello there...I hope time and a long walk will help.
Tricia: it is amazing, isn't it? truly.
Jen: just a LITTLE bit easier would be soooo nice sometimes.
Ali: better sooner than late, yes. and I too have ignored it in the past and been sorry.
I've been the pianist who has hit the clunker. Hope you find your tune back. Maybe you need to change up the music.
Never ignore that feeling. Sleep on it, walk away from it for a while, ask someone. We writers are usually too close to see what may be obvious to someone else.
That nagging inner voice can be a drag, but quite helpful. It's a writerly instinct.
Ahh, so true, Tess. That inner voice can be frustrating, but it's usually right, isn't it?
Mary: that's right..you are a pianist and a writer..so, you certainly understand.
Martin: never never never ignore it. cognitively, I know that. emotionally, I want to pretend I don't.
Medeia: a drag...the perfect phrase.
Cynthia: yes, it is usually right. dang it.
writing a novel is blasted hard work! <--- Preach it.
Well, you could look at it this way - you are blessed to be able to hear it. With the roar of everything else going on in our lives, it's so easy to miss that inner voice!
Keep at it! Your writing is lovely!!!!
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