A daily blog post. A writing assignment due by Friday. Revisions to the first chapter of Sanctuary sent out by Wednesday. And still, at least an hour a day on the RFH (Rewrite From Hell).
I think it’s too much. I’m sorry, ladies, I don’t have it in me. I think I can manage a daily blog post or a writing assignment, but not both. Or maybe we can extend the due dates for the assignments. Say, a month instead of a week so we can give ideas time to percolate? I may just be whining about it because I don’t want to do it – but I need to stay focused on the rewrite and it’s so, SO easy to get sidetracked.
Speaking of the RFH. Several nights in a row, I’ve found myself nodding off with pen in hand. Is this a sign that the scene I’m writing is excruciatingly boring (there’s no sex or blood or severe emotional trauma), or that it’s difficult (see previous) or is it just a result of drinking chai at night instead of coffee? A bit of everything?
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I went to Buffy’s yesterday to interview her as a source for Sanctuary.* (Yes, I do enjoy writing it, and especially in italics; it makes it look so Official.) Afterwards, her husband Brett let me score some music off his external hard drive. It included the Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Prince, Sly and the Family Stone, Jamiroquai, and another band with a weird name I can’t think of just at the moment. I’m exploring funk as a way to make my main character a little more accessible – more like someone I’d like to hang out with instead of someone who would intimidate me and scare me off.
Sometimes I put on sacred choral music – different versions of the Ave Maria (not the Schubert; it’s too saccharine), some 12th century chant (Hildegard von Bingen was a friggin’ genius), and other classical pieces just to set the mood. Which may explain why I’m falling asleep writing this damned scene. I should switch to the Mozart Requiem or the Carmina Burana. That might do it.
Anyway, I’ve been very curious as to your musical tastes, ladies. Do you listen to music when you write, or do you need total silence? And if you do, what music do you prefer? What music do you like to listen to even when you’re not writing?
Dish.
*Lori, for background, Buffy is a friend who went to college with Kelly and me and ended up in the Asheville area. She’s been one of my best friends for … well, let’s not get into exactly how many years it’s been. Anyway.
I think it’s too much. I’m sorry, ladies, I don’t have it in me. I think I can manage a daily blog post or a writing assignment, but not both. Or maybe we can extend the due dates for the assignments. Say, a month instead of a week so we can give ideas time to percolate? I may just be whining about it because I don’t want to do it – but I need to stay focused on the rewrite and it’s so, SO easy to get sidetracked.
Speaking of the RFH. Several nights in a row, I’ve found myself nodding off with pen in hand. Is this a sign that the scene I’m writing is excruciatingly boring (there’s no sex or blood or severe emotional trauma), or that it’s difficult (see previous) or is it just a result of drinking chai at night instead of coffee? A bit of everything?
*****
I went to Buffy’s yesterday to interview her as a source for Sanctuary.* (Yes, I do enjoy writing it, and especially in italics; it makes it look so Official.) Afterwards, her husband Brett let me score some music off his external hard drive. It included the Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Prince, Sly and the Family Stone, Jamiroquai, and another band with a weird name I can’t think of just at the moment. I’m exploring funk as a way to make my main character a little more accessible – more like someone I’d like to hang out with instead of someone who would intimidate me and scare me off.
Sometimes I put on sacred choral music – different versions of the Ave Maria (not the Schubert; it’s too saccharine), some 12th century chant (Hildegard von Bingen was a friggin’ genius), and other classical pieces just to set the mood. Which may explain why I’m falling asleep writing this damned scene. I should switch to the Mozart Requiem or the Carmina Burana. That might do it.
Anyway, I’ve been very curious as to your musical tastes, ladies. Do you listen to music when you write, or do you need total silence? And if you do, what music do you prefer? What music do you like to listen to even when you’re not writing?
Dish.
*Lori, for background, Buffy is a friend who went to college with Kelly and me and ended up in the Asheville area. She’s been one of my best friends for … well, let’s not get into exactly how many years it’s been. Anyway.
I think you're probably just really tired, Andi!
ReplyDeleteI agree that a daily blog post is too optimistic. I think if we do one or two a week, when we're inspired, and do our best to comment on each other's, that should be fine. As far as frequency of assignments or due dates, I'll defer to you two.
The important thing is that we write. If that's mostly your rewrite, Andi, that's plenty good enough.
Music? I'm thrilled to hear you're getting into funk. I don't know a huge amount, but I love it. Earth, Wind & Fire and Sly/Family Stone are two of my favorites. I grew up on EW&F. Otherwise, I'm still fond of Led Zeppelin, and I love love love the blues. But I'm not big into music when I write.
The music I'm listening to while I'm writing definitly affects my mood and my writing. When I was first writing the first version of the NHN, I was listening to a lot of Led Zepplin and Grateful Dead, trying to put myself in a particular frame of mind as well as the place and time that music is associated with in my memories. Sometimes I would play "Stairway to Heaven" over and over while I worked on a particular scene. It was quite helpful.
ReplyDelete