How do you do this WRITING THING? - Page 2

ScalyFreak · 10-28-2011, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by teh603

I wouldn't quite put it that way, but I have had the problem he's describing.

Completely insane, and blackmailing others into doing your creating for you?

I think relationship with a muse is a two-way street, myself. If you're lucky enough to have one visit you now and then (talking in abstracts here), it probably doesn't hurt to help him/her feel welcome and lock out all distractions for a while, and focus only on writing.

I've always found music very helpful to shut out the rest of the world.

Keryl Raist · 10-29-2011, 08:04 PM

I'd call inspiration the first idea, and all the little ideas that follow that create your story, as such, without them, you don't have a story. So, no, I wouldn't call it overrated.

However, I'd call getting your butt in the chair and writing everyday, motivation, and that cannot be overrated. You can get a whole lot done with a little inspiration and a whole lot of motivation.

But you've got to have both, or else you never get a story written.

frahse · 10-29-2011, 09:50 PM

I see that some of you are working hard on the thing called Inspiration, with one just calling on the omniscient author (O.K., that's me) to just tell.

I will say this. If you don't feel you have it, then what is your lack? What is the effect?

If you feel you do have it, then describe that which you possess, or even what possesses you. What happens?

All these questions only indicate the point that each of us define or should be able to define "our inspiration." And in a vernacular of sorts "Else what are we talking about?"

So tell us what you mean by being inspired? (Go on. You can do it.)

Steven Lyle Jordan · 10-30-2011, 10:04 AM

I already defined inspiration, so I'll describe it's impact on me.

I come from the Craftsman's school of writing: I write because I can, I enjoy it, and I've honed my work until I'm pretty good at it.

I don't need "inspiration" in order to write. I just need to want to write, and to have something to write about. I don't need "inspiration" to give me a story to write. I just need to sit down, think of an idea or two, spend some time researching and developing the idea, and outline what I intend to do with it.

There are any number of writers who are familiar with this school, especially those who are called on to write periodical content on a regular basis, and quite a number who write novel-length works for a living. I'm sure some would say that, without "inspiration," their works are lacking, they are not art; I draw no such distinction.

Writing can exist without inspiration; it can be driven, instead, by "assignment," as in, "I want to write about this," or, "they told me to write that." A Craftsman should be able to do their best work on any assignment that is within their capabilities to handle. And that work can still be art, if their work is good enough to be considered by that special and nebulous moniker.

VydorScope · 10-30-2011, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

So tell us what you mean by being inspired? (Go on. You can do it.)

Yes, go on YOU can do it!

SmokeAndMirrors · 10-30-2011, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

I started to give out a lengthy spiel along the order of what you might expect from someone trying to sell a secret method or promote a book or a series of lectures.
That was quickly squashed by my aversion to those kinds of self important promotions.

Also I think that in this thread we will deal with ideas. rather than lengthy how to do instructions.

So let us cut into the matter quick and deep.

One important idea can be summed up simply as "INSPIRATION."

What is inspiration?
Why do I need it?
Do I need it?
Where the hell is it hiding?
Why does it go away?
How can I coax it back out from under the bed?

I will start the discussion by simply saying that

Inspiration is vastly overrated!

I agree. If you only write when you're inspired, you have some long, self-tortured periods of writer's block to look forward to.

Writing is a special kind of art. It lives in a lot of different places at once - as art, as one of the most effective means of communicating information, as a teaching aid in and of itself, and a million other things. Each art has its personality, and that of writing is most definitely a multi-tasker.

Sometimes it is just necessary to write. Someone must write about this. Someone must record history. Someone must write the manual for this device. Someone must convey this idea to humanity. Someone must share how they're feeling in an unmistakable format, to which anyone who is literate can respond.

I don't always write because I'm "inspired." In fact I usually don't. I write pretty much because I have to - not only do I have to personally in the sense that I am driven to do it, but I have to because someone must.

It's oftentimes a matter of dredging up the inspiration when you're not really feeling it. I will often start a piece by just stream-of-consciousness word-vomiting that goes on for paragraphs or even pages - as long as it takes for me to hit my stride. When I hit it, all those words, which are basically the generator for my inspiration, go away. No one sees the work that goes in to finding inspiration to write.

Because the inspiration isn't that important. It's that someone must do it.

frahse · 10-31-2011, 01:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Then answer it

Honestly your post has no meaning unless you explain what you mean by that term. You might as well have said...

Asldkjfjhsdf89h0hwf is over rated!

It has the same meaning as what you have presented so far.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Yes, go on YOU can do it!

Our friends in this thread have said over and over what inspiration is, what it isn't, and how to deal with its presence or absence.

They're doing a great job. I hope everyone is learning and growing by sharing their thoughts.

VydorScope · 10-31-2011, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

Our friends in this thread have said over and over what inspiration is, what it isn't, and how to deal with its presence or absence.

They're doing a great job. I hope everyone is learning and growing by sharing their thoughts.

Right, but you started this by saying its over rated, and etc. You also said that everyone defines it differently so that what you mean by it is not the same as others. So I think its a fair question to know what you think it is.

frahse · 10-31-2011, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Right, but you started this by saying its over rated, and etc. You also said that everyone defines it differently so that what you mean by it is not the same as others. So I think its a fair question to know what you think it is.

I can see that you would have little use for Socrates, preferring the tenets of a Solon instead.

At this point of treatment, I can only recommend patience for you.

Steven Lyle Jordan · 10-31-2011, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

At this point of treatment, I can only recommend patience for you.

And I can recommend that you answer the question, lest you be considered not worthy of interaction by those on this thread. Surely, you do have an opinion of what inspiration is? Or are you simply baiting your audience?

ScalyFreak · 11-01-2011, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

They're doing a great job. I hope everyone is learning and growing by sharing their thoughts.

Everyone except the thread creator, who is refusing to share.

Socrates participated in the discussions he started, if you are trying to emulate him, you need to do that as well. Or if you don't have an answer, at least admit that, and we'll use that as a starting point for the next discussion tangent.

But don't just drop a post and tell others "discuss!" without contributing any thoughts of your own. That's bad forum etiquette.

frahse · 11-01-2011, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

How are you defining Inspiration?

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Then answer it

Honestly your post has no meaning unless you explain what you mean by that term. You might as well have said...

Asldkjfjhsdf89h0hwf is over rated!

It has the same meaning as what you have presented so far.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Yes, go on YOU can do it!

Quote:

Originally Posted by VydorScope

Right, but you started this by saying its over rated, and etc. You also said that everyone defines it differently so that what you mean by it is not the same as others. So I think its a fair question to know what you think it is.

Now fellow contributors I will say that one of the most important things an author must do is to be observant, and find and show patterns in life and events as well as discordant events interrupting those patterns. That is what draws the readers attention like, "What the heck is going on?"

So what is the pattern in the above comments I have quoted? How do they relate to the thread?

ScalyFreak · 11-01-2011, 09:47 PM

Why do I feel like I am being given a lecture, thinly disguised as an attempt to provoke discussion..?

If you want to take on the role of teacher, you need to prove credentials before we move any further.

morriss003 · 11-02-2011, 02:57 AM

I hardly remember a time when I did not have a story to tell. I wrote my first two books when I was thirteen or fourteen. One was a SF and one was a western. Of course they were childish hormonal fantasies. But since then, more stories than I will ever write have floated through my head. Some have been entirely forgotten, I'm sure,and some will probably never be written. I probably will never get to "The Werewolves of Antarctica."
Some stories develop into worlds of their own. Really, I'm bewildered by the concept of inspiration. How can you be inspired? Aren't these people in your brain demanding to get out?
In the quiet of the night, when sleep is fleeting, I listen to them telling me their tales. Jara Mackenzie was explaining just the other night how Baylispli Tyre warned her that the banker might not be the altruistic sort. It was that warning, she said, that cause her to omit any reference to Bayli or to her brother Davud, and to listen to Racer when he noticed the two security men at the front of the lobby. So when she was forced to submit to the Family Intercession Agency, at least her brother was safe on the Lugging Nut.

frahse · 11-02-2011, 02:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frahse

Now fellow contributors I will say that one of the most important things an author must do is to be observant, and find and show patterns in life and events as well as discordant events interrupting those patterns. That is what draws the readers attention like, "What the heck is going on?"

So what is the pattern in the above comments I have quoted? How do they relate to the thread?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

Why do I feel like I am being given a lecture, thinly disguised as an attempt to provoke discussion..?

If you want to take on the role of teacher, you need to prove credentials before we move any further.

I hope that you feel that you are learning something from this discussion. Personally I am learning a lot.

I have asked for comments about the two main statements that I have made and likewise I have commented on the comments, and now I ask the above //quote// about the constant questioner that is in this thread which I now repeat in order to be sure that I am clear:

"So what is the pattern in the above comments I have quoted? How do they relate to the thread?"

11-02-2011, 02:57 AM	#29
morriss003 Evangelist Posts: 438 Karma: 3409790 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Maui Device: kindle	Teeming with Stories I hardly remember a time when I did not have a story to tell. I wrote my first two books when I was thirteen or fourteen. One was a SF and one was a western. Of course they were childish hormonal fantasies. But since then, more stories than I will ever write have floated through my head. Some have been entirely forgotten, I'm sure,and some will probably never be written. I probably will never get to "The Werewolves of Antarctica." Some stories develop into worlds of their own. Really, I'm bewildered by the concept of inspiration. How can you be inspired? Aren't these people in your brain demanding to get out? In the quiet of the night, when sleep is fleeting, I listen to them telling me their tales. Jara Mackenzie was explaining just the other night how Baylispli Tyre warned her that the banker might not be the altruistic sort. It was that warning, she said, that cause her to omit any reference to Bayli or to her brother Davud, and to listen to Racer when he noticed the two security men at the front of the lobby. So when she was forced to submit to the Family Intercession Agency, at least her brother was safe on the Lugging Nut.

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10-29-2011, 08:04 PM	#17
Keryl Raist Zealot Posts: 140 Karma: 379182 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Charleston, SC Device: Kindle for PC	I'd call inspiration the first idea, and all the little ideas that follow that create your story, as such, without them, you don't have a story. So, no, I wouldn't call it overrated. However, I'd call getting your butt in the chair and writing everyday, motivation, and that cannot be overrated. You can get a whole lot done with a little inspiration and a whole lot of motivation. But you've got to have both, or else you never get a story written.

10-29-2011, 09:50 PM	#18
frahse occasional author Posts: 2,314 Karma: 2064403292 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Wandering God's glorious hills, valleys and plains. Device: A Franklin BI (before Internet) was the first. I still have it.	I see that some of you are working hard on the thing called Inspiration, with one just calling on the omniscient author (O.K., that's me) to just tell. I will say this. If you don't feel you have it, then what is your lack? What is the effect? If you feel you do have it, then describe that which you possess, or even what possesses you. What happens? All these questions only indicate the point that each of us define or should be able to define "our inspiration." And in a vernacular of sorts "Else what are we talking about?" So tell us what you mean by being inspired? (Go on. You can do it.)

10-30-2011, 10:04 AM	#19
Steven Lyle Jordan Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,478 Karma: 5171130 Join Date: Jan 2006 Device: none	I already defined inspiration, so I'll describe it's impact on me. I come from the Craftsman's school of writing: I write because I can, I enjoy it, and I've honed my work until I'm pretty good at it. I don't need "inspiration" in order to write. I just need to want to write, and to have something to write about. I don't need "inspiration" to give me a story to write. I just need to sit down, think of an idea or two, spend some time researching and developing the idea, and outline what I intend to do with it. There are any number of writers who are familiar with this school, especially those who are called on to write periodical content on a regular basis, and quite a number who write novel-length works for a living. I'm sure some would say that, without "inspiration," their works are lacking, they are not art; I draw no such distinction. Writing can exist without inspiration; it can be driven, instead, by "assignment," as in, "I want to write about this," or, "they told me to write that." A Craftsman should be able to do their best work on any assignment that is within their capabilities to handle. And that work can still be art, if their work is good enough to be considered by that special and nebulous moniker.

11-01-2011, 09:47 PM	#28
ScalyFreak Sith Wannabe Posts: 2,034 Karma: 8017430 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: I'm not sure... it's kind of dark. Device: Galaxy Note 4, Kobo Aura H2O, Kindle Fire HD, Aluratek Libre	Why do I feel like I am being given a lecture, thinly disguised as an attempt to provoke discussion..? If you want to take on the role of teacher, you need to prove credentials before we move any further.