It's hard to say, but if you're under stress or having health issues it can affect your concentration. Seeing your family doctor for a checkup might be a good thing.
Are you having writer's block or actual problems thinking? Because if it's the latter, go see a doctor.
Or it could also be that you're getting so hung up with the nuts and bolts of writing that you're no longer able to let it flow. That you've essentially suppressed your voice. It's important to have resources like how-to books, forums and writing groups, etc. But there also comes a time when too much of this can be detrimental. Creativity is a delicate thing, and there are times when you just need to turn things off, shut yourself away, and 'listen' to the voice that is the source of everything to begin with. I'm sure there are people who write better when they have daily input, but there are also those (including some of the finest writers in the world), who deliberately avoid their influence in order to keep their voices pure. Everyone has a different approach, but if you find that too much information is causing you to freeze up (personally), then maybe you should try leaving it alone for awhile until you can feel the 'flow' again. Good Luck!
I suspect that you're strangling yourself with your own ambition, unable to get your mind to accept that the point you start at is not the point where you'll end. I would suggest that you utterly, completely, totally abandon the effort to be poetic, for several months, possibly a year or two. It seems clear to me that that goal is serving as a stumbling block. Yes, I realize that in the end, you'll probably return to that goal. Nevertheless, clarity doesn't come second to poetic expression, it comes first, before poetic expression can have any hope of success. So I would pursue clarity, just clarity. Not poetry. Not maturity. Not sophistication. I believe that in time, clarity leads to maturity and sophistication, and that it provides the graceful core that lends itself to poetry. But I would suggest that you leave those thoughts to the future and just pursue clarity. What do I mean by clarity? I mean that instead of writing: As the blazing orb of our planet's solar companion rose to the topmost point of the blue bowl that is the sky, the dwellers emerged from their manmade caves and sought nourishment. write: At noon, everybody went to lunch. Whatever you want to say, just say it. Based on your forum posts, you clearly can write clearly and coherently; I'd suggest just writing that way, a lot of writing, a few hundred thousand words' worth. Embrace your natural, clear, normal writing voice. I'm not saying that it will be easy to get the ambitious part of your brain to shut up and just let you write, but I do think that pursuing that goal of clean clarity, rather than the goal of poetry and grandeur, is a better goal for now. Another thought: Could part of this be that you're writing the forum posts as, of course, nonfiction, while your other writing is fiction? If so, then I think I'd suggest that you write more nonfiction, maybe something like a blog. Re the reading, is there anything that you enjoy reading or used to enjoy reading, perhaps simple guilty pleasures that you feel that you shouldn't enjoy? If so, I'd read those sorts of things.
@waitingforzion Your problem is not that you write a rough draft roughly; your problem is that writing a rough draft makes you uncomfortable.
I like to write while taking a number two (as is the case right now.) It clears my head. Seriously. I mean, why else do you think laptops were invented?
Yuck, dislike both posts above! On topic, I just asked a friend about if he feels his rough drafts are "unreadable" as I put it. He essentially said "yes". What I've noticed is I'm becoming more knowledgeable about the process of writing and connecting to a reader. I'm more concerned with writing a sentence that "elicits emotion" from the start instead of getting the story out. I find I'm pretty interested in reading peoples story posts and tweaking what they wrote to suit my take on it. I don't do it because it's not my story and there's a lot of 1st and 2nd drafts being posted that the author will get around to fleshing out on their own. I know once I get my crappy rough draft out, I'll be able to be eloquent and clever then.
If you are experiencing a genuine brain fog, it might be a good idea to get a check up, and even take some vitamins. Vitamin B and D especially, but also C, iron, zinc, magnesium (multivitamins are good and cheap) are things a lot of people get deficient in these days, or at least, feel better with a bit of a top up. Apart from this, I would focus on rekindling your passion for literature. You must be able to follow a narrative in a book, that's a prerequisite for both reading and writing. Maybe you just need to find something you like? It isn't always easy.
As ChickenFreak and Aikoaiko said, you might be killing your creativity with your own ambitions, your own worries that you're not as good as the big authors; you're caught up with the 'rules rules rules, must follow the rules!' that your voice has basically crawled into a corner and won't come out. And who could blame it? I wouldn't if someone kept telling me to be the next Stephen King and would expect no less than a Stephen King novel on my first try. For right now, forget all that. You've demonstrated you can write cohesively. That's all you need right now. Have a story in your head? Good. Now let your creativity play around with that story. Rough drafts are uncomfortable if you let them probe your ambitions. Rough drafts are just rough drafts, not the final product. Hell, the stuff we post here in the critique area are likely not the final drafts that will be published. That nasty little voice you hear? The voice that tells you to get it right on your first try? That's the nasty inner critic you should ignore. The good inner critic understands that this is a first draft and won't borderline torture you over the fact that the first draft isn't good. Listen to the good inner critic, not the bad one.
I'm curious. How long have you been writing? I''ve been been writing for less than two years, so I'm still very much a novice. I went through a prolonged period where I was suffering from burn out, due to having had to learn so much so quickly. I agree with others when they say not to worry so much about the polish. Only do enough to keep your pride intact and your writing moving forward. I'm inclined to over buff and as a consequence end up running round in circles with every new realisation. Better to lay down a firm foundation and then worry about how stylistically you want to proceed. If you try and cover all bases at once it will become overpowering, and you'll end up feeling like you are getting nowhere. I think it would be worth finding out. Self doubt is natural but make sure it's not masking something else. I have problems with concentration, and as a by-product of that, consistency, so I know first-hand how darn affecting these kind of doubts can be. (Are the problems I'm facing due to my state of mind or my inexperience as a writer?) It helps immeasurably to be able to determine the difference between the two, or the correlation when it comes to it. I recently took a complete break of nearly a month and spent a bit of time concentrating on other hobbies. I was scared I might lose the impetus to return to my W.I.P but the opposite was true. By week number three, I was itching to get back to it. Taking the pressure off myself allowed a bit of space for my brain to unwind, to reboot, and become capable of perceiving what I'd written in a more balanced, less self-ridiculing light. It's not perfect but I read worse every day. If you really want to write the story you will, by hook or by crook. Focus on telling the story. Then focus on everything else. Think of yourself as being a sculptor. Is it really worthwhile chiseling out the fine detail of the piece when there's a chance you might inadvertently hack off an arm, Venus de Milo style, at some point down the line? I agree with this. In fact, the disparity between my forum posts, and some of my writing sessions is very evident to me. After some experimentation and blogging as myself, I came to realise I was writing my story from entirely the wrong perspective. I was writing in Third when my story lent itself better to First Person. As soon as I realised this, bits naturally started clicking together in a way they previously hadn't. Keep your chin up... there's always a solution, just don't let yourself become so despondent or so stuck in your own personal rut, (your future ambitions) that you fail to see a way out in the here and now. Polish comes with growth.
You're not alone in this situation, because I can totally relate. The problem from my perspective is that I don't write as much as I comment, and my mind has adapted to the particular style I use when giving my opinion. The same can apply to you as well, which is why you might be able to compose coherent replies but at the same time can rarely string together a satisfying narrative or poem. What I would suggest is to lay off any kind of forum participation for a while (let's say a couple of weeks) and at the same time try and adopt some of the tactics others have put forward, like @ChickenFreak's pursuit of clarity. Whatever it is that you feel is best, always remember to keep trying something different. Cheers!
I think we all feel this way sometimes. I try not to get bogged down by "rules" too much, but here's one that almost always works for me, and it's pretty well regarded: Say as much as you can in as little as you can. Even the greats could be greater. I'm reading Kafka on the Shore right now, and love it, but constantly say to myself "gee, that is a clunky sentence." So if they aren't perfect, why should we be? But if your words aren't coming out right, then eliminate them. Don't say "He stood up and walked to the door." You can't stand sideways, or down (well, I suppose you CAN stand down, but that's a different meaning altogether), so why not just "He stood and walked to the door"? Or better yet, can you walk without standing? So even just "He walked to the door," might be better. Feel the rhythm of the sentences--if you've had nothing but single clause sentences for an entire paragraph, maybe adding "he stood" will be a nice break from the uniformity. But always remember this, because I think it's the most important thing to drill into your head! (And it's not a rule, so it can't be broken): There is no word or sentence so perfect that it will make your story. But a single out of place word or sentence CAN wreck your story. So if you think a sentence is so brilliant because of it's strong imagery, and bold word choice, it might mean that's a signal to get rid of it. It won't ever make your story--but it could break it. Anyway, don't give up. Don't despair. If you can write a good forum post, you can write a good something-else. Cheers.
I disagree. The sentences in 'Kafka on the Shore', the fusion between English and Japanese, language and thought, everything in that novel is perfection. Nothing clunky about it. It just goes to show how tastes vary, and nobody could please everyone, not even literary geniuses
Chapter 32, pg. 323 in my copy: "He popped into a place nearby and ordered sushi and a beer. He was more tired than he realized, and only finished half the beer." Finishing both of these sentences of roughly equal length and syntax with the word "beer" doesn't work for me.
Well, we can take things out of context and pick at them, however, you know what they say about taking things out of context...Besides, even number word repetitions always feel jarring, and can be used to reinforce the sense of unease, so in this instance, I feel that it's more a case of you not 'getting it' than you being correct in your assessment of the writing/translating (since Murakami translations are unique in as much that they are re-written by professional translators, together with the author, to communicate his story as faithfully as possible in English). I didn't feel that was clunky while I read it, so that's my criteria, as well as my point. I didn't bring this up in order to debate the quality of Murakami's writing, I only used it to illustrate to the OP how tastes and opinions vary, and how you can't hope to please everyone, no matter how good you are.
Why? Because that tiny, tiny bite of prose violates two style guidelines out of the tangled infinity of rules and guidelines for writing? It's not possible to tell whether those two sentences are good or bad without far, far more context--at least several paragraphs, and possibly the entire novel.
Of course it is. If I wrote an entire novel, that you knew nothing about, but then had the sentence "Looking at the wall I saw a picture on the wall," you'd say it was redundant, and awkward. It doesn't matter what the rest of the novel is. Now, in the Murakami example, it may not have been redundant, but that doesn't mean that you can't critique a sentence or two without the rest of the novel. Don't argue with me. My writing is better than yours.
That just sets you up for the comeback: "so not only do you write badly, but you think bad writing is better than good writing."
Thank you everyone who replied to my little quandary. To Amanda_Geisler I read you advise with interest and have even tried some of what you have suggested:reading books and watching movies on similar subjects to my novel. I'm wary of doing that because I may inadvertently copy other's work. Also I have a semi-unique topic which isn't easy to categorise and haven't found anything similar in books or movies. I also get distracted easily. I think that is my main problem. That, and the fact, that in my head I have written the story already, I'm referring to my 5,000 word outline. I'm a seat-of-the pants kind of writer ( I have heard it called a pantser) I get a thrill out of making it up as I go along. Interesting enough I hit a wall when my rewrite joined my original draft and that's when I lost my way. To Renee j: No I haven't written myself into a corner but I do have a few chapters that have dead ends. Where to I go from here sort of thing. How do I join the chapters together? As I said to Amanda I need to reinvent my story. I planned it out too vigorously and have lost all interest in it. I should think of it as organic life form and allow it to grow without pruning it into a shape its resistant to go. To PensiveQuill: I've tried going away and doing something else. I have done a few story stories and have gone back to writing the novel only to get stumped a few thousand words into it. "Something about my original layout is bugging me" Yes, it is. I have considered a few possibilities: I have over planned and I have lost interest due to that; I don't know my characters enough; the progression of the story is wrong (I'm starting too far back and I should start in the clutches of the story) I should write something for adults instead of trying children's fantasy for my first attempt at novel writing, and worse of all I've tried to squash too much into the story arch and have overloaded myself. Who knows what the reader would think of it? To Link the Write: "And what's worse is when your brain refuses to let you admit to yourself that the project had big flaws and you could do better. Instead, your brain says, "Problem? No, no, there's no problem. No problem at all! Keep going, this is the idea you started with, so let's keep it." WOW were you reading my mind. That's exactly what going on in my head. I actually thought the opening chapter was the problem but I am now thinking that the whole premise is the problem. I need to scrap it all and start again. I will keep the characters and the setting, the themes but I will completely rewrite the plot. To thirdwind: I have tried that, I have taken a break and written other stuff and allowed a little too much distraction to occupy my time. It hasn't worked. As I've said before I am just writing the wrong story and it has taken me some time to realise that. To pechalulu: Yes, yes I am trying to recapture a journey that is well trodden and has become stale in my head. I have over planned, not in minute detail but enough to take all the magic out of the tale. I like you idea of giving the characters different choices and even allowing them to go off the rails. I have considered writing short stories with my novels characters in mind and finding out how they'd react to situations I stick them in. I find that far more tantalising than writing the novel. That says a lot, doesn't it? And this is the best advice yet: "Plus, I try not to let too much time go by in between bouts of writing. The longer I can accept being away from a project the easier it is to ditch." That same idea has FINAL penetrated into my head. When I read I prefer to read in long bouts or I get distracted and don't return to the book, sometimes for months. So I finally hit upon the idea that what if I took the same action with my writing, write in long bouts I wouldn't get so distracted or lose steam.
First of all , I have specifically registered to this site as it seems that there are people who specilize in writing. I am myself not in the business of "creative writing" and my problem might not be totally related to "creative writing". Still with all the experience you seem to have, I believe someone will be able to offer a good piece of advice> I am currently in the process of writing my dissertation (a non-native English speaker) at a top-5 university in the U.S. Looking at my published work, it would appear that I am an "okay" writer. At least I get good feedback when people read it. Some even tell me that my prose is very clear, organized. Others go as far as to say that I write well. What they don't know is how much time it takes, how painfully slow it is and how much I hate the process - and myself while doing it. I don't hate writing in general, I think - posting on various fora, writing emails, putting down my thoughts without any consequence is actually simple and I can keep going at it without much hesitation (including this post). As soon as I start writing something related to my "research" or to work as an "academic" though, I get stuck. Writing 250 - 500 words in a day is an accomplishment for me! (after 4-5 hours of writing).It usually entails unending editing of the sentences and words I put on paper. I am not able to write three sentences, let alone three paragraphs, in one go. When writing book reviews or small pieces, this is not a big issue. Eventually I get it done and sometimes I am even happy with the result. But now, when writing a dissertation, this pace is unacceptable. I will never finish it if I continue like this. Now I am not exactly sure where the problem is. I've tried to read a few books about writing, and dissertation writing, but have yet to find the solution. I would be grateful for constructive feedback! Here are some of the issues I am struggling with specifically: 1. For a 20-page pager I need about a month or two to get the first draft done. Some people might call it not a first draft - but effectively a 3rd draft, given the amount of editing I do during the process. I am not sure how to force myself to writer faster. 2. Besides the incredible amount of time to produce anything, I struggle with the "flow" of the text as well. Since every sentence and paragraph is a result of "hard labour", the overall paper doesn't flow well at all...I find the text dense, boring and generally not put together well. I.e. the amount of time I put into writing the first draft is not necessarily offset by its quality. I often find that it took me too much time with little tangible results. I need to edit and rewrite it again. And time just keeps ticking...days and months go by. 3. Outlines - all the literature that I have read says that you need good outlines. In my case I find that they rather constrain me than help. I usually have a very clear structure in my head how I want to write my papers and proceed accordingly. But then I feel that method restrains my freedom in writing and thinking during the process..and it makes the whole product look mechanical and simply, not a good paper. 4. Once I tried to write a small piece (a book review of 1000 words for a journal) the way I usually write emails. Without laboring it too much and looking up my notes, I wrote it comparatively quickly (it was done in a week). The flow was really good. This turned out to be one of the few published pieces that I enjoyed re-reading. With all the other published work, I don't enjoy rereading it. This doesn't apply to my emails though ..there I get more kick out of rereading them. 5. Perfectionism..is one common cause for a writer's block (so the literature says). And it's a serious problem, nothing to be proud of. Another problem is the feeling of being "overwhelmed" by information. I do feel that I suffer from both. Eventually though I suspect that I don't know simply enough about the topic I want to write about - that's why it's taking me so much time to formulate any thoughts. Writing about smaller issues is much simpler...be it blogs, book reviews, or op-eds. But my disseration chapters - that's really a headache. So very often instead of writing I feel compelled to read more. But then this is supposedly also one of the common reasons why people never finish their work (btw. I've been researching this topic of mine for years now - it's comparative work). These are some of the problems I am trying to solve. Anyone having similar issues? If so, how do you go about solving them? (btw. I might have written this in 10 minutes...the amout of words in this single post is greater than what I am able to produce during the entire day when it comes to my dissertation chapters).
WRITERS BLOCK? Lets call it, “Starting a project without being prepared. I give you Five million dollars, and say, “Here, make me a block buster movie.” You buy a movie camera, film, hire a few actors, and start shooting. I come onto the movie lot, and ask you, “What is the movie about?” You reply, “I don’t know yet, I’m just making it up as I go along.” I sit on the side lines in silence watching. Five days later I ask, “Why aren’t you shooting the movie?” You reply, “I have movie block.” “What is the story about?” I ask. You look at me like I’m stupid. “I don’t know yet. I’m letting the actors make it up as we go along.” “Let me see the script…the outline of the story,” I ask. “We don’t have a script,” you reply. “Let me get this clear. You don’t have an idea what the story is about. You don’t have an outline, and your just making it up as you go along…is that correct?” “Yes.” “I see. And you don’t have the slightest idea why you have movie block?” “No.” “Here is a suitcase. Put what is left of my five million in it…you’re fired.” Writers don't get writers block. They treat their writing like a business.First you have an idea about a story. You make notes. The idea starts to grow, or you put it aside. If it does start to grow, you make more notes...the idea starts to hold your interest. You layout a plot. A beginning, middle, and an end. The story has to say something. It has to have a reason for being. Example: A man has a dream of being a writer, but he doesn't have the money to go to school.The story is about how he earns the money for school, only to find...bla, bla, bla.Several times you change the plot. You still have not written one word of the story. Again you change the plot. You will know when it is right. Character building. You make a file on each character...everything about them. Where will the story take place, and at what time in history? You gather all the fact about the place at that time. Now you are ready. Your plot has three sections, beginning, middle, and an end. If you have a slow day, you can stop writing in the beginning, and do something in the middle, or the end. When you stop writing for the day, make a not where you want the story to go for the next day. Do the above, and you will never have a brain block...it is called being prepared to write a story. One of my stories started with a simple question. Over the following year it developed, and redeveloped unit I had a plot I loved. It was nothing like thee first question I asked. Once I had the plot...I started to write. It took another year to write the story. Once it was complete. The hard work of rewriting started. I have done that twice. I am on the last rewrite. The story? "Naked is West Upton."
