 Romance/Love: March 05, 2008 Issue [#2256] |
  Romance/Love
This week: Edited by: Fyn  
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3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
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Elie Wiesel: Write only if you cannot live without writing. Write only what you alone can write.
Henry David Thoreau: Write while the heat is in you. The writer who postpones the recording of his thoughts uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with. He cannot inflame the minds of his audience.
Sharon O'Brien: Writing became such a process of discovery that I couldn't wait to get to work in the morning: I wanted to know what I was going to say.
Stephen Leacock: Writing is no trouble: you just jot down ideas as they occur to you. The jotting is simplicity itself - it is the occurring which is difficult.
Jack London: You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.
Edmund Morrison: Like stones, words are laborious and unforgiving, and the fitting of them together, like the fitting of stones, demands great patience and strength of purpose and particular skill.
Henry David Thoreau: Write while the heat is in you. The writer who postpones the recording of his thoughts uses an iron which has cooled to burn a hole with. He cannot inflame the minds of his audience.
Samuel Lover: When once the itch of literature comes over a man, nothing can sure it but the scratching of a pen.
Whence cometh our inspiration? Where hides the illusive muse? I am fyndorian, and I'm pleased to bring you this week's Romance newsletter. |
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In a newspaper article written about my poetry some thirty years ago, I was asked about where I got my ideas from and how I handled that inspiration. My answer was that, 'I feel a poem coming on.' My parent and friends were used to my saying that and dropping whatever I was doing to scribble down my thoughts or, sometimes, stopping long enough to write out the entire poem. I always carried (and still do) a note pad with me where ever I go. It is as much a part of me the shoes on my feet or the clothes on my back.
Yet, at the time, I really didn't come up with a good answer as to where my ideas came from. I was trying to sound intelligent (this was going to be in a newspaper after all) and I was only 16. Saying that I got them from anywhere and everywhere just didn't seem an adult enough answer. But the fact of the matter is that it is the simple truth. The important issue is knowing HOW to look, perhaps better, how to RECOGNIZE it for what it is.
Those times when I think, 'Gee, that's cool,' I write it down. Too many times I've had a thought and then later all I can remember is that I'd had a thought, but now have no clue what that important thought had been. Used to drive me crazy until I got in the habit of writing it down. It doesn't mean I use it right away, but it is there for me to go back to and retrieve.
In my experience, the best inspirations have never been from 'grand moments.' By 'grand moments' I mean something over the top as far as a romantic moment or a chilling moment might be. It usually seems the best inspirations come from unexpected moments, those caught at the periphery of your vision out in right field. It can simply be a matter of being aware of these moments and catching them on the fly.
Sometimes these inspiration arrive fully dressed and ready to parade down the street. Other times, even the initial inspiration is not much more than an insightful moment that bears playing with.
According to the American Heritage Dictionary, inspiration is
1.
1. Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity.
2. The condition of being so stimulated.
2. An agency, such as a person or work of art, that moves the intellect
or emotions or prompts action or invention.
3. Something, such as a sudden creative act or idea, that is inspired.
4. The quality of inspiring or exalting: a painting full of inspiration.
5. Divine guidance or influence exerted directly on the mind and soul of humankind.
6. The act of drawing in, especially the inhalation of air into the lungs.
I like number 6: The act of drawing in, especially the inhalation of air into the lungs. For me that defines the essence of inspiration: The drawing of an idea into my brain, not unlike air into lungs, where it is processed and then exhaled as writing.
In between the 'in' and 'ex' -halation is what I call the cooking process. I have an idea which I 'toss into a bowl.' It sits there on that counter in my brain until I come up with other ingredients to toss in. It isn't a short story or poem or much of anything yet. It is just stuff in a bowl. Eventually, I toss in a few more ingredients: a character, a personality, a problem, a setting. It is still just stuff mushed in a bowl. Eventually I add some lifeblood into the mixture and set it on the stove in my head to simmer. When it boils over, I begin writing.
Ever been to some of the contests here that offer a choice of words or a photograph as a prompt? Sometimes one can look at these and have virtually no reaction at all. The muse sleeps on blissfully unaware that those words or pictures are supposed to shake the muse awake and get it working overtime. But then at other times, the sight of that photo or series of words kick starts the muse and it hits the floor running.
Perhaps it sparked a childhood memory or a reminder of a less than pleasant evening. Regardless, on some level either it hits home or it misses by a mile. I think some of the best writing boils up from the instantaneous spark when it happens rather than the times spent thinking and thinking, trying to drag SOMEthing out of the depths.
In these cases I either go with the flow or go on to something else. (My muse gets cranky if I force feed her ideas. She regurgitates garbage.) And then the end result often feels forced. It lacks that illusive 'feel' of being absolutely right on.
This follows along with something I was told back in college. Sometimes one needs to listen to the poem or short story, or to a character. There are times when it wants to go one direction and we force it down another street. I wrote something here on site the other day that in reality was two different poems in one. Not intentionally, but in the process of writing it, two ideas developed and I tried to push the writing in my original idea's path. The piece of writing strained to go in a different direction, but then it would not have fit what I was trying to write the piece for. So I continued pushing and shoving the piece and ended up with something that worked...but...
This fact was pointed out to me and upon reflection, I saw the reviewer was able to see what the story was trying to do and what I was doing to it. Upon revision, I now have two pieces of writing that are on the way to being excellent, rather than one that really wasn't terribly good. Does it fit the prompt? Nope. But if the end result is a well written piece then the prompt accomplished its end goal: writing!
Inspiration hits each of us in a different way and we each respond to it differently. Just as no two people seeing an accident happen will see the same things, no two writers will treat an inspiration the same way or see the same ideas in it. What actually inspires us is a quirk of the moment defined by our experiences in life, our mood at the moment and our ability to act upon or retrieve said moment.
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The following items have inspired me!
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From Cubby  :I could truly feel your frustration, Fyn! Bigsmile Sometimes I'll be typing away on the keyboard, thoughts running along smoothly, and my hubby will interupt me consistently about... nothing important whatsoever!. Like you, I want to scream SHUT UP!!! But I just smile, nod once in awhile and force out a few words of acknowledgment, such as... "Oh?" "Huh!" "Really?" "Hmmm..." *Laugh* I would never intentionally hurt his feelings, but GEESH! Timing is not always good, is it? Thanks for sharing your frustration! I'm sure many readers will connect, as did I. Bigsmile
~Cubby ")
Sometimes I think it is simply that the 'non-writing' partners just don't/can't understand. If I had a nickel for every time my thoughts got derailed....
From heartofahawk Sorry about your Pats (sniggers).
Great subject though, and I liked the quotes at the beginning. I needed the reminder - I'm getting close to submission, and the peaks and valleys are killing me! I'm too old for this...Hawk
The quotes are fun, aren't they? *smile*
From Lorna Dune  :What a way to write a newsletter!!! I also watched the game with my boyfriend, but that was what we did, watch not talk! You showed great courage in not really telling him to Shut Up!!!!!
lol
Interesting and enjoyable newsletter Fyn, showing us that much inspiration for writing - even in a newsletter - comes from 'everyday' situations. Though I have to admit that I was pulling for the Giants. Larry
Hmmm seems like a lot of folks wanted the Giants to win...So I expect you were all thrilled. In retrospect, they did play the better game. *smile*
~~~~~
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