Write Anyway

Umm – can you all hear me back there?

Hi! I’m hunting for comments. Well – not comments just for the sake of comments, but suggestions, ideas – conversation – talk to me, my people! I’m a writer in need of some feedback! Commiserate with me!

Is anyone out there or am I howling into a www vacuum? I’m not much for the ‘strong, silent type’ so c’mon – open up. What are you waiting for? An invitation? Consider yourself cordially invited.

What are you writing?

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Ever get to the point in a piece of writing where you want to “look ahead” and see how it ends? Like those “choose your own adventure” books that were popular when I was a kid? (Ok – I just dated myself. I’ll get over it.) I’m at that place in a short story I’ve been working on lately and I just can’t seem to make the right decision for my character after the climax. Should he go left? Or right? Stay put? Run wildly down a dark hall, arms flailing and screaming for help?

When I do get to that point in a piece of writing, it is fun to take the story in strange directions. No one ever has to read it if it goes bad (um…delete key, anyone?) – and if I mark my spot, I can go back and “choose a different adventure.”

Try it in your own writing and see where it takes you. Just remember to write anyway!

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I don’t know about you, but today is Monday for me despite what my calendar tells me. I’ve already spilled Diet Coke on my tan pants and managed to break a shoelace. I should just as well get back in bed, for all the Monday clichés I’ve already experienced.

But there is writing to be done, regardless of what day it is. So let’s jump right in with a writing prompt and see how deep the water is, shall we? From the CanTeach: writing prompts webpage:

Where: Where would you prefer to be right now – mountains, desert, beach – and why?

Ready? Set? Write Anyway.

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Despite my not planning it this way, the week ended up with a “sounds/silence” theme and it seemed to go pretty well. On Monday, sounds in nature were a source of inspiration. Tuesday went in a strange direction with sounds and UFO’s. Wednesday came back to earth with the sounds of home. And yesterday, Thursday, we worked with silence – or the lack of it.

We had a good week. Well, at least I did and I hope you did too. Take the weekend off – and since Monday is a holiday in the States, I’ll be taking Monday off, too. Have a good one – and remember to Write Anyway.

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Have you ever sat quietly and realized you could hear only the tick of your watch? Have you ever sat in a closed room, thinking it was perfectly quiet, when the ventilation system kicked in, scaring you half out of your skin? Have you ever stood outside in the dark, believing you finally found a slice of peace, only to have it shattered by something as soft as a light breeze through the trees?

I’ve found that silence helps to quiet my mind and to work toward coherent thought processes, but my ears don’t cooperate much. They are always picking up the sound of something, such as a cricket chirping in the grass or a fly buzzing at a light bulb.

What do you hear – right now? Write about it.

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I’m writing this ahead of time using the “post to the future” feature – that has become something of a blessing of late, considering my wild schedule. (At this point, I don’t even consider it a “schedule” because until I find a way to add eight more hours to the day so I can get four hours of sleep…well, you get the idea.) Regardless, I’m writing this while sitting at my dining room table and I’m listening to rain tap the windows of my kitchen and the wind rattle the roof of the screened deck.

The washer and dryer are doing their thing. I can hear muffled dialogue and dramatic music coming from the TV in the bedroom. And I’m hoping the snoring is coming from a dog, but since three other people are in the house somewhere, it is anyone’s guess. The refrigerator’s compressor kicks in; the ceiling fan hums.

Just listening to the sounds around me – while usually in the background and considered “white noise” – is comforting, now that I take notice. All of the separate sounds combine to create one heartbeat-like rhythm to “home.”

What sounds to you associate with “home?”

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Not that I had intended this week to be about sounds, but it is shaping up that way. For lack of an original idea this morning, I went to “Prompt Generator” for help with inspiration. This is today’s prompt:

“A noise outside awakens you one night. You look out the window and see a spaceship. Write what happens next.”

Not a place I’d typically go in my writing, but it might be fun to stretch a bit and see where it leads.

You try it, too, ok? And know that if it doesn’t turn out, the “delete” key is there for a reason!

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Over the weekend, I was outside quite a bit even though the weather wasn’t really all that nice. Cold. Windy. Rainy. But the barn roof had to be repaired – and while I wasn’t the one climbing the ladder, someone had to run for tools, steady the ladder and holler encouragements to the actual worker.

And since I wasn’t the one truly working, and therefore wasn’t “as tired,” I was tasked with taking the dogs out right before bed on Sunday night. I heard ducks and Canada geese on the pond. Horses were stomping and snorting while finding a comfortable resting spot out of the wind. The trees rustled behind the house. But then I heard coyotes, and they were really close. I’m guessing they were in the trees just beyond the barn. They don’t usually howl that close to the house – or maybe I just never noticed before – but they were singing, howling and yipping like crazy. I thought my dogs were going to go nuts; the fur on their shoulders stood up and they both dropped their heads down and growled, all the while checking to see what I would do.

Being a chicken, I whistled both of the dogs into the house, snapped off the lights, locked the door and went to bed! Hearing wildlife – like coyotes – is one thing; dealing with them eye to eye is not something I’d like to experience, thanks.

What have you “heard” lately that inspired you to write?

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Despite the week from aich-eeee-double hockey sticks I’ve had, I actually got a lot of writing done. I guess there is something to say about working under pressure or the more you have to do the more you get done – or something like that. Regardless, we covered a lot of ground: free writing on mothers, weather, lilacs, and memories. Random, but still a lot of ground.

I hope you have a fantastic weekend – and make sure you write anyway!

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Because I have nothing to lose and even less time, I’m going to recycle a post for today’s entry. Day old posts are kind of like day old bread – crunchy on the outside, but still pretty soft and tender in the middle. A free writing exercise I assigned myself yesterday, this was originally posted at Whaling Season:

Lilacs

Always lilac. Always.

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So yesterday’s writing warm-up on the word “mother” was kind of draining for me. How did you do?

I don’t know about you, but I am looking for a different – less emotional – topic to write about today. You know, the weather has been particularly lovely in my part of the world lately. Therefore, for lack of a suggestion from the peanut gallery, I’m going to use the weather as inspiration – specifically, what the weather brings this time of year: lilacs.

Check back tomorrow to read about spring, lilacs, weather, or whatever else comes to mind. You try it too, ok? Whatever you write about, just remember to Write Anyway.

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Yesterday, I suggested using the word “mother” for a writing prompt. Any variation of the word was fair game as long as writing commenced for at least 15 minutes. I also promised I would post my response to the prompt. So – here is mine:

Mother: Synonym for Love?

Mother. Synonym for love? No. Strength.

How did your writing go?

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Welcome back, readers/writers. Did you have nice Mother’s Day weekend? I am not talking about mine today. Parts were nice; parts were not so nice. My baby (nearly 8 years old – stop looking at me like that) did make me a special Mother’s Day card and that was very nice.

You know, the word “mother” carries a lot of baggage – and I do not necessarily mean that in a bad way. Let’s write about it, ok? Take 15 minutes – turn off the phone, email, pagers, what-have-you, shut the door and write about the word “mother.” Go anywhere you like with it. Write about your mother, a mother you know, a mother-in-law, a mother cat/dog/horse, a mofo (stay clean, if you can), or the mother of all battles. You decide. I will post my response tomorrow.

This should be interesting. Let me know how it goes!

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The writing prompt from yesterday (borrowed from Writers Digest):

After returning from work, you walk into your house and notice an item that wasn’t there when you left in the morning. What room were you in, what was the item and how did it get there? (500 words or fewer – to start)

Here is my response:

Work was hell. Too much to do and not enough hours to get it done. My mind was still “at work” when I walked in the door, saw the disaster that was my living room. Couch cushions all over the floor; blankets and pillows strewn from one end of the room to the other; stuffed animals and children’s toys dropped randomly; plates and cups stacked precariously on the end table, coffee table; dirty floors; shoes tumbled in a heap on the rug by the door. I could not help myself. I sighed loudly, disgusted, exhausted, and tired of it all.

Glancing toward the window, I noticed something red out of the corner of my eye and I stopped dead still and stared. I saw a single red rose in a crystal vase balanced carefully on the window sill – and in that quick image, the cluttered room melted from view. I saw tender petals, love and peace. I could not help myself. I smiled. (159 words – 12 minutes)

Have a great weekend! And remember to write anyway.

Since this week was thrown out of synch because of technological failures, let’s go back and try a writing prompt. I am blatantly borrowing from Writers Digest:

After returning from work, you walk into your house and notice an item that wasn’t there when you left in the morning. What room were you in, what was the item and how did it get there? (500 words or fewer – to start)

I will be back Friday to post my response to the prompt. Good luck.

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