Category — On Writing

Articles about writing are prolific on the Internet. Tons galore of professional writers offering their techniques and advice ad redundancy, and add the refrain “every writer’s journey is different”. Pile on the memoir-esque writings on writing (mine included) and saturation comes to mind.

It’s all wonderful, yet there is no pull there for me. There is no true willingness to contribute to it all, simply because I haven’t anything new to offer… yet.

I’ve always just wanted to write stories. Since quitting four years ago, a lot of ground has been lost with that. Lately, the struggle with some short stories, a novella, and the plotting of a novel, has all been going so very slow. My boyfriend assures me that both speed and discipline will pick up, as long as I stay focused and stick with it.

Stick with what exactly?

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© by Cathrene Gehue, 2008

Disclaimer: This post is a long one!

Children play from the heart no matter what they do. There’s no doubt; no question. Heart reigns in all they do, but somewhere along the way, the mind starts learning about the world we live in. And the world we live in values mind more than heart. It influences the best of us. As a child I wrote from the heart, then somewhere in my journey mind took over.

After dropping out of University of Toronto, I began working in the book distribution industry. For seven years it was both fun and frustrating at times. I was young and dreamed of becoming a published writer. Somewhere along the way, disillusionment occurred. The glamour of being a professional writer lost its sheen and allure. What had happened?

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© by Cathrene Gehue, 2008.

Many months ago, I came across an intriguing little quiz at Holly Lisle’s website. Holly is a published author with many novels to her name, most of which seem to fall into the fantasy genre. Her website is part promotional tool for her own work and part resource for other writers. It’s her way of “paying forward” with her knowledge about the writing process and the publishing industry.

The quiz is called Are You Right for Writing?, a short multiple choice questionnaire for helping to evaluate the extent of your writing passion. Today’s article is inpsired by question #9, which is: “Where is the weirdest place you have ever written?”

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Over the summer, while considering ways to improve Imagination Unbound, many, many, oh so many, ideas poured into my mind, thanks to a highly functioning Muse. And when I say lots of ideas, I mean LOTS.  Capturing every single one of them was impossible. My mind, on the best of days, is like a partially clogged sieve.

Of course, with lots of ideas, comes the arduous task of sifting through the ones you do manage to capture. Which ones do I pursue? Which ones should be tossed aside? Which ones should be implemented first? Where do I go from here?

Thanks Muse. You’ve been very co-operative, and as usual, you’ve placed a muchos taco on my metaphorical plate, to the point where I feel stuffed and bloated and wonder why I indulge in everything you offer me.

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