Hello all, can't wait to get to know you and your writing styles. I am an aspiring writer, who writes every day on many subjects but never submits a single alphabetic character (my blog does not count as publishing). Being a Sci-Fi Buff with an over the top imagination, most of my scribblings are fairly "out there". My current project is a trilogy as the three subjects just flow together yet they are so different that the decision (my own personal brain assistant) was made to just make three books. Currently, I am about 50K words into each and write them all depending on the mood I am in. Pretty certain this may not be the way most do it but how would I know any different? This is where you all come in on this journey of mine. *smiles* I have no qualifications (other than my over active imagination) that might qualify me to even think that I may be a writer worth reading. My frustration is simply how do people do it? I mean.... here I sit smack dab in the middle of this amazing story going on in my brain and trying to click it out as fast as it is coming in some coherent way when................ the dog starts barking her head off...... I quiet her...... the other dog starts whining.... I go to the door to show them no one is out there (previously had my headphones on to try to stay in the zone).....there stands the neighbor..... "May I borrow your vacuum"? The moment is lost, I'm back in the real world and it is going to take some time to get back there just in time for the next interruption. How in the world do you all do it? Now that you have witnessed my grammar at its very worst, I feel better as the worst is over. Can't wait meet you all. Polly
AHHH I AM A SCIFI BUFF TOO!!!! Sorry I got a little excited there Welcome to the writing forums. I have little writing experience and I have found this forum to be a very very useful tool in not only improving my writing skills but my story telling skills! There were times, (I would say 75% of the time) I would write stories that would end up being in the 'unwanted' pile in my drives. Not that it is a bad story or that I was not great at writing it. Instead it was more of a collection of writings and ideas that I had at the time that I feel may or may not have potential. I consider it writing exercises. You never know when you look back on them that you have an idea worth writing or worth fixing. I am currently working on one right now and I am addicted to it.
Welcome. Sounds like a focus issue. The thing you have to do is not allow for any distractions. You take care of one thing and another will come, like you said.
There are published authors who have written on a notebook on the kitchen counter in moments of freedom between cooking dinner. Some have written on the subway or train on the way to work. Many people need absolute quiet and focused time for writing--I highly recommend this--yet it is difficult and sometimes impossible to set aside even a full hour of uninterrupted creative time. Make the time to write if you can and use it well; but also, make yourself write with the time you have. Distractions will always arise, no matter what kind of environment you've attempted to create. If you feel the muse coming on, put the dogs out and lock the door. Write while you must. If you can't ignore the distractions, you may have to learn to work in spite of them. In fact, it's essential you learn to, because you can't control when the muse hits.
Welcome to the forum. I'm glad I'm not the only one with this problem. But unlike you, I have some "unpeople skills" that help me write. First off, I don't like people. Ever hear the expression, "I'm a real people person." Well, I'm not. I'm a machine person. I find most people clueless. As my wife would say, "In the jungle they would be eaten." But I also have skills you do not. Being an insane biker has it's privileges. People don't like crazy people. And I use that to my advantage. I also have an 'unwelcome mat.' This is the real unwelcome mat in front of my home. It has not been photo-shopped into the picture. It's not just about writing, when I'm home, I'm in my home. And I don't need any excuse for solitude. People call first before coming over due to my demeanor if they read the mat and still decide their life is worth selling magazine subscriptions. http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb231/TheTourist_bucket/DSC00249.jpg
Oh, I love this doormat - I need to get one of those too We only open the door when we expect visitors. Our house is our castle
Coming from Texas, I'm surprised you do not open the door armed. I think my consternation derives from the pursuits I enjoy. Things like sharpening, writing or reading, or detailing my bikes, all take time and focus. So when some brain-donor tries to invade my sanctum, it's an intrusion. These are not things you can put down and then instantly pick back up without re-focusing. When I write, I'm not an observer. I'm in the story, standing right next to lead. If he's in the middle of a car chase, it's like asking me to pull over while the villains are still coming.
@Polly - Have you tried working away from your home? Go to the library and put your earphones in a type away? Or a coffee shop? Or somewhere that you won't run into people you know. I think you should install The Tourist's 'unwelcome mat.' I need to talk to my husband about getting this. We always joke that we found each other because we both hate people and the only people we can tolerate is one another. My dad has a sign on his house that says: "Mi casa e mi casa" (my house is my house - play on the mi casa e su casa). Does the telephone bother anyone else?? Nothing more distracting while writing than the phone ringing. I actually quite often find myself unplugging it and turning off my cell phone.
Well, I'm not originally from Texas but from Germany where there are much stricter rules when it comes to gun control, which I support. But having a good watch dog like our Bessie is like being armed. At least she counts as protective device when we recently bought new house insurance
We have a saying in my house, as well. "E una cosa di Siciliana." It's idiomatic, and you can just about guess how. LOL. I guess I do not understand the overall premise. If I'm working at home, or just sleeping, why does every hoe-handle with an idiotic agenda think that pounding on my door or telemarketing is ever going to win me over? One day I just stood on the other side of the door, barked like a German Shepard and pounded on my side. That guy couldn't leave fast enough. If you're a nice guy, and I have no past experience here, you could tell your neighbors and friends that working on your book is working, just like their job. You don't want interruptions, and you won't answer the door during any pre-set times.
I'm half Italian (dad immigrated here when he was about 12) so yes, I do know the idiom LOL. The only reason he has a Spanish one is because my parents have a retirement home in central American. Now I think I'm going to search out a sign that says "E una cosa di Siciliana."
Welcome to Writing Forums, Polly! I hope you find what you're looking for here, whatever your interests in writing. This forum aims to provide the best workshopping resources on the internet, and to that end we have a few rules which you should familiarise yourself with before you get stuck in. The main section of the site is the Writing Workshop, where members can post their writing in order to receive critique of their work. However, before we allow members to post their work, they must have met some basic requirments. Firstly, you must have been a member for fourteen days, and have made twenty posts on the forum overall (please note, posts in Word Games do not count towards this). This is so that members, when they post their work, have familiarised themselves with the forums and contributed to them (as well as hopefully learned something for themselves). Secondly, members must provide two constructive reviews of other people's work for each piece of their own that they wish to post. This is because we believe that the focus of workshopping should be equally upon giving reviews as receiving them, as they allow a writer to practice and improve their editing skills, which they can then apply to their own writing. Beyond the Writing Workshop, you will find that we have extensive forums for discussion of aspects of writing, as well as a community area for general discussion. We also run periodic short story and poetry contests, which are good for challenging yourself and expanding your skills. If you have any questions or problems, then the moderators (myself Cogito, Lemex and Dante Dases) should be your first port of call. Any technical problems with the site itself should be directed to Daniel, the site administrator and owner. I would recommend you have a look over the rules so that you know what to expect, and what is expected. But aside from that, I hope you enjoy your time here. Banzai
