Now that I'm tipping my toes back into blogging semi-regularly, I've been thinking about what I want the content to be. I can't see myself getting back to my old blogging style of writing a blog a day of just stream of consciousness, like I did in the past. So as it sits for this blog, I am going through all the crazy notes I have and pulling out the pieces that have inspired me and we'll see how it goes from there.
Writing Prayer
Why not say a prayer, it can't hurt. And Marianne Williamson is always guaranteed to have some good words:
Dear God,
Deliver me to my writing. Deliver me to my passion. Deliver me to my brilliance. Deliver me to my intelligence. Deliver me to my depth. Deliver me to my nobility. Deliver me to my beauty. Deliver me to my power to heal. Deliver me to You.
Amen.
-Marianne Williamson
Movie Quote from Finding Forrester
Sit. Go ahead.
Write. No thinking. That comes later. You write your first draft...with your heart. You rewrite with your head.
The first key to writing is...to write. Not to think.
Take someone else’s writing and start typing it (like "A Season of Faith's Perfection.".)
Sometimes the simple rhythm of typing gets us from page one to page two.
When you begin to feel your own words, start typing them.
Punch the keys for God's sake!
Blog Inspiration – Katey Schultz
I've been following Katey for several years. She always provides me with inspiration, top notch writing and a good look at how hard it is to be a full-time writer.
Writing/Art hybrid - Do a contour drawing of anything you see. Then freewrite over it whatever scene you have been stuck on or anything you may want to write. I really love doing this.
Read Katey's description of the class she taught this to
And Philip Hartigan whom she learned it from.
EY
Monday, May 28, 2012
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Monday, May 7, 2012
What Matters Most
I received two emails today about writing and fear. This one from Manage Your Writing and another one about a writer who has been feeling shy about promoting his e-course.
Boy oh boy, us human creatures, we can plague ourselves with all sorts of fears can't we?
I'm starting to keep a list of what gets me to write. I realized lately that although I can't stand it when someone repeats him or herself in conversation, that repetition gets me going in writing. In my Blue Metropolis piece that I wrote on the EY Page about going to my old homes, "This is the place where," got me going and I've been writing more in my journal using that as my jumping off point.
And today in writing about how I beat myself up, also on the EY Page , I also found that writing, "What matters most is," helped me to get going.
I know that writing practice is what keeps me sane and gets me out of my fear. That is what Writing by Kaizen is about. Practice today even if it's crap. Practice today even if I don't learn anything. Practice today, get the words on paper, with practice I find out what's inside, what needs to come out, what matters most...
What Matters Most
What matters most is that I take it easier on myself.
I can work on my writing daily but I don’t have to be super focused all of the time
I can goof off a little
I can go to bed early when I feel tired
I can have a glass of wine
I’ve berated myself enough in this lifetime
Berating myself never motivates me to accomplish more
It stops me
Feet stuck in quicksand
Mind overwhelmed in chaotic nervous thoughts
What matters most is that I learn to love my life exactly how it is
Right now
Yes I could afford to lose a few pounds
But spending my thoughts on how I’ve failed only makes me feel like I’m a lost cause
Might as well eat more cake
What matters most is that I have the space that I need for myself
I need to have moments of silence to hear my own voice inside my head
That voice gives me the answers I need when I have questions
But she’s so soft spoken
She can get lost in the noise of other people’s unsolicited opinions
No matter the attention getting cries from others, I need to make time for myself
I can’t survive and thrive without it.
EY
a few hours after I posted this post:
And as I'm trolling for potential Liebster nominees I come across this entry on Fear and Writing. Yup it's the theme of the day!
Boy oh boy, us human creatures, we can plague ourselves with all sorts of fears can't we?
I'm starting to keep a list of what gets me to write. I realized lately that although I can't stand it when someone repeats him or herself in conversation, that repetition gets me going in writing. In my Blue Metropolis piece that I wrote on the EY Page about going to my old homes, "This is the place where," got me going and I've been writing more in my journal using that as my jumping off point.
And today in writing about how I beat myself up, also on the EY Page , I also found that writing, "What matters most is," helped me to get going.
I know that writing practice is what keeps me sane and gets me out of my fear. That is what Writing by Kaizen is about. Practice today even if it's crap. Practice today even if I don't learn anything. Practice today, get the words on paper, with practice I find out what's inside, what needs to come out, what matters most...
What Matters Most
What matters most is that I take it easier on myself.
I can work on my writing daily but I don’t have to be super focused all of the time
I can goof off a little
I can go to bed early when I feel tired
I can have a glass of wine
I’ve berated myself enough in this lifetime
Berating myself never motivates me to accomplish more
It stops me
Feet stuck in quicksand
Mind overwhelmed in chaotic nervous thoughts
What matters most is that I learn to love my life exactly how it is
Right now
Yes I could afford to lose a few pounds
But spending my thoughts on how I’ve failed only makes me feel like I’m a lost cause
Might as well eat more cake
What matters most is that I have the space that I need for myself
I need to have moments of silence to hear my own voice inside my head
That voice gives me the answers I need when I have questions
But she’s so soft spoken
She can get lost in the noise of other people’s unsolicited opinions
No matter the attention getting cries from others, I need to make time for myself
I can’t survive and thrive without it.
EY
a few hours after I posted this post:
And as I'm trolling for potential Liebster nominees I come across this entry on Fear and Writing. Yup it's the theme of the day!
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Liebster Blog Award
My EY Page Blog was nominated for an Award by the lovely Bonnie Vesely at Just Venture Coaching
The Liebster, from what I understand, is a way to highlight bloggers with less than 200 followers. It is a pay it forward award and the responsibilities are as follows:
1. Thank the one who nominated you by linking back.
2. Nominate five blogs with fewer than 200 followers.
3. Let your nominees know by leaving a comment on their sites.
4. Add the award image to your site.
One of my goals for 2012 was to find myself a writing community. Thanks to Robert Lee Brewer's April Platform Challenge I've become a part of an active online writing community that we call "MNINB Platform Challengers."
It's been a little overwhelming on the social media front. Because of the challenge, I now have a Twitter account and a Facebook page. I never thought I'd ever have a Twitter account, turns out I like Twitter. Who knew? I've got a whole lot of new blogs that I've subscribed to from the MNINB group and I'm working BIGTIME on time management. ha-ha! All this activity keeps my mind on the writing so what more can I ask for?
As an aside, I love that Robert's Blog is called, "My Name is Not Bob" because the EY Page stands for, "Shelley with an EY." How many people out there have pet peeves about their names? :)
EY
The Liebster, from what I understand, is a way to highlight bloggers with less than 200 followers. It is a pay it forward award and the responsibilities are as follows:
1. Thank the one who nominated you by linking back.
2. Nominate five blogs with fewer than 200 followers.
3. Let your nominees know by leaving a comment on their sites.
4. Add the award image to your site.
One of my goals for 2012 was to find myself a writing community. Thanks to Robert Lee Brewer's April Platform Challenge I've become a part of an active online writing community that we call "MNINB Platform Challengers."
It's been a little overwhelming on the social media front. Because of the challenge, I now have a Twitter account and a Facebook page. I never thought I'd ever have a Twitter account, turns out I like Twitter. Who knew? I've got a whole lot of new blogs that I've subscribed to from the MNINB group and I'm working BIGTIME on time management. ha-ha! All this activity keeps my mind on the writing so what more can I ask for?
As an aside, I love that Robert's Blog is called, "My Name is Not Bob" because the EY Page stands for, "Shelley with an EY." How many people out there have pet peeves about their names? :)
EY
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Blue Metropolis continued - April 2012
Blue Met – Part 2
When I’m at these events I either write notes that can help me to write, nuggets that inspire me that I may use to get me going at some point – the next event was just nuggets
Newfoundland Writers
Mark Callanan, Mary Dalton, Kathleen Winter
Mark Callanan was in a coma for quite some time and when he woke up his brother pretended it was 2 years later.
“jerking like a dreaming dog hunting rabbits” Mark Callanan
“Having the face blown off you – Kathleen Winter
The Montreal X Factor
Was a discussion of how Montreal has been the place for music over different time periods. For Jazz, Rock, Electronic…
“If you wanted to do it, you had to build it yourself”
Write Fast – What’s the story, reason, cause & effect, Where the story begins.”
Writers in Peril – Ahdaf Soueif
Yes, I loved her so much that I went to see her twice.
“Creativity & the ability to see beyond the difficulties and create”
Book, “In the Eye of the Sun” her best know book
Book, “A Map of Love,” shortlisted for the Booker.
Our revolution looks just like us. It had a sense of humour. It was creative, artistic, frilled with a resourcefulness, making use of whatever your environment had to use. She talked about the transit that has been in the middle of being built for the last 10 years and how the people in the square made bathrooms out of it and people lined up to use them. That they always made room for older Egyptians. The sense of camaraderie in the middle of a revolution. The importance that the whole world was watching.
What would you imagine a revolution to look like? It doesn’t look like that.
It was a demonstration of how we wanted to be. Being and doing our best.
Ray Robertson – Writer Happiness
I have to admit that I only went to Ray Robertson’s event because depression was mentioned in the description. I have watched him on TV in interviews from The Humber Writing School and I’d never connected with him because I found him to be a quote-aholic. I always found that too distracting. “I’d think, I know you’re smart, so tell me what you think”
Well, I was pleasantly surprised. Ray Robertson is funny as hell. The excerpts he read from his book of essays, “Why, Not?” were engaging and of my generation so I had similar memories or it brought on my own memories. This book is going to get me to write.
I wished that he would talk a bit more about depression but that can always be dicey.
He also made me think about what I do believe, In the end we just have to write what needs to be written. You hear that essays don’t sell or poetry collections don’t sell or short story collections don’t sell and there is always a writer that proves that wrong. We need to write what needs to be written by us.
Gems and quotes that inspired me:
Being born – “our kicking and screaming arrival”
You have a plan and you discover as you write the book what it’s about
Ray used to play “air piano” when he was a kid.
He reminded me of when I was in my early 20’s living on my own and spending my entire paycheque on records. I’d save just enough money for food and the rest went on records. It was a passion that was more important than food or a social life.
He talked about valuing language and what words can do. No matter what, you can’t help but have your ideas come in when you are writing. And when you experience something, you need the right words to describe it, “I didn’t have the whole experience because I didn’t have the words.”
His opinion from watching the adults when he was a child was that most jobs are degrading and soul crushing. So, what are we going to do with freedom? We have this opportunity, what are going to do with it?
“I became a novelist because I don’t play well with others. I’m highly selective of what I bother to do”
The e.e cumming quote, “I am through you so I, ” was mentioned when talking about love. Basically the best relationships, “help me be who I want to be.”
He said that there is a myth of unending orgasmic happiness when we’re in love and then we have to ask ourselves – “Why am I not happy? How much are you willing to sacrifice?”
All good books are about why we are here.
His writing schedule:
He writes 4 to 5 days a week for 3 hrs
It’s the daily commitment
He reads poetry/ prose when he feel out of sorts with his writing. He will take breaks and simply read. “When I feel like I’m not writing with the commitment to language, I take a break and read poetry & prose”
Final Event – Becoming a Writer
Tamara Faithburger
Mentioned reading Geroge Batailles – Story of the Eye as inspiring her to write.
In her late 20’s she became a writer.
She wrote diaries, experimental and got a job writing xxx story writing. . Having a job writing taught her how to write as work. She currently teaches yoga because it gives her a flexible schedule.
She writes whenever she can through out the day.
Her opinion is to establish writing contacts based on the people you know. Let it be more organic. And in promoting your work – say yes to everything.
Joshua Knelman: “Hot Art”
His Background – 4 years Concordia university in Creative Writing program & minor in English Lit.
He did an internship at Saturday Night as a fact checker for articles and said it was good for getting comfortable with talking to all sorts of people from Prime ministers to prostitutes and in between.
It was an organic 7 natural process in getting his agent, the agent called him based on his original article about art theft and asked him if he had enough to write a book, which he did.
Nicole Lundrigan – “Glass Boys”
She was called an “academic playgirl” by a professor because she was interested in so many things. She has a serious heavy science background.
She only started writing because she needed something to do as a stay-at home mom to feel like she still had a job outside of the house.
She started writing articles. She wrote a junior reader text book
“Never thinking about the reader kept me honest.”
She does a lot of writing/thinking in her head and writes in snippets, a little bit everyday. 500 words at the least
She wrote what interests her got publishers interested and then approached an agent who had a similar writer.
“you’ve gotta be different when approaching agents”
“assume that everything that you write online can be read by everyone”
Writing Regimen:
Reading is part of my writing work. Deadlines are really good. you need to show up at the studio
500 words a day, I delete more than I write. But write everyday
Has weeks of discipline
The following notes are just a mish mash of the three of them writing:
Read your work out loud
Themes – isolation & disconnect
Young female sexuality
Screen writing is really good money
You need good writing friends who can support you
You need a great editor
Confidence depends on the day
Sex writing taught Tamara Faithburger – voice, language, you have to write as real as possible, as urgent as possible. “I want you to not put the writing down”
Nicole said – “Writing is an acceptable form of Self abuse”
Set it up so you have something to work on the next day.
“I always want to do better than the last thing I’ve done. I try to outdo myself.”
Pretend that a writer you respect is reading your book.
When I’m at these events I either write notes that can help me to write, nuggets that inspire me that I may use to get me going at some point – the next event was just nuggets
Newfoundland Writers
Mark Callanan, Mary Dalton, Kathleen Winter
Mark Callanan was in a coma for quite some time and when he woke up his brother pretended it was 2 years later.
“jerking like a dreaming dog hunting rabbits” Mark Callanan
“Having the face blown off you – Kathleen Winter
The Montreal X Factor
Was a discussion of how Montreal has been the place for music over different time periods. For Jazz, Rock, Electronic…
“If you wanted to do it, you had to build it yourself”
Write Fast – What’s the story, reason, cause & effect, Where the story begins.”
Writers in Peril – Ahdaf Soueif
Yes, I loved her so much that I went to see her twice.
“Creativity & the ability to see beyond the difficulties and create”
Book, “In the Eye of the Sun” her best know book
Book, “A Map of Love,” shortlisted for the Booker.
Our revolution looks just like us. It had a sense of humour. It was creative, artistic, frilled with a resourcefulness, making use of whatever your environment had to use. She talked about the transit that has been in the middle of being built for the last 10 years and how the people in the square made bathrooms out of it and people lined up to use them. That they always made room for older Egyptians. The sense of camaraderie in the middle of a revolution. The importance that the whole world was watching.
What would you imagine a revolution to look like? It doesn’t look like that.
It was a demonstration of how we wanted to be. Being and doing our best.
Ray Robertson – Writer Happiness
I have to admit that I only went to Ray Robertson’s event because depression was mentioned in the description. I have watched him on TV in interviews from The Humber Writing School and I’d never connected with him because I found him to be a quote-aholic. I always found that too distracting. “I’d think, I know you’re smart, so tell me what you think”
Well, I was pleasantly surprised. Ray Robertson is funny as hell. The excerpts he read from his book of essays, “Why, Not?” were engaging and of my generation so I had similar memories or it brought on my own memories. This book is going to get me to write.
I wished that he would talk a bit more about depression but that can always be dicey.
He also made me think about what I do believe, In the end we just have to write what needs to be written. You hear that essays don’t sell or poetry collections don’t sell or short story collections don’t sell and there is always a writer that proves that wrong. We need to write what needs to be written by us.
Gems and quotes that inspired me:
Being born – “our kicking and screaming arrival”
You have a plan and you discover as you write the book what it’s about
Ray used to play “air piano” when he was a kid.
He reminded me of when I was in my early 20’s living on my own and spending my entire paycheque on records. I’d save just enough money for food and the rest went on records. It was a passion that was more important than food or a social life.
He talked about valuing language and what words can do. No matter what, you can’t help but have your ideas come in when you are writing. And when you experience something, you need the right words to describe it, “I didn’t have the whole experience because I didn’t have the words.”
His opinion from watching the adults when he was a child was that most jobs are degrading and soul crushing. So, what are we going to do with freedom? We have this opportunity, what are going to do with it?
“I became a novelist because I don’t play well with others. I’m highly selective of what I bother to do”
The e.e cumming quote, “I am through you so I, ” was mentioned when talking about love. Basically the best relationships, “help me be who I want to be.”
He said that there is a myth of unending orgasmic happiness when we’re in love and then we have to ask ourselves – “Why am I not happy? How much are you willing to sacrifice?”
All good books are about why we are here.
His writing schedule:
He writes 4 to 5 days a week for 3 hrs
It’s the daily commitment
He reads poetry/ prose when he feel out of sorts with his writing. He will take breaks and simply read. “When I feel like I’m not writing with the commitment to language, I take a break and read poetry & prose”
Final Event – Becoming a Writer
Tamara Faithburger
Mentioned reading Geroge Batailles – Story of the Eye as inspiring her to write.
In her late 20’s she became a writer.
She wrote diaries, experimental and got a job writing xxx story writing. . Having a job writing taught her how to write as work. She currently teaches yoga because it gives her a flexible schedule.
She writes whenever she can through out the day.
Her opinion is to establish writing contacts based on the people you know. Let it be more organic. And in promoting your work – say yes to everything.
Joshua Knelman: “Hot Art”
His Background – 4 years Concordia university in Creative Writing program & minor in English Lit.
He did an internship at Saturday Night as a fact checker for articles and said it was good for getting comfortable with talking to all sorts of people from Prime ministers to prostitutes and in between.
It was an organic 7 natural process in getting his agent, the agent called him based on his original article about art theft and asked him if he had enough to write a book, which he did.
Nicole Lundrigan – “Glass Boys”
She was called an “academic playgirl” by a professor because she was interested in so many things. She has a serious heavy science background.
She only started writing because she needed something to do as a stay-at home mom to feel like she still had a job outside of the house.
She started writing articles. She wrote a junior reader text book
“Never thinking about the reader kept me honest.”
She does a lot of writing/thinking in her head and writes in snippets, a little bit everyday. 500 words at the least
She wrote what interests her got publishers interested and then approached an agent who had a similar writer.
“you’ve gotta be different when approaching agents”
“assume that everything that you write online can be read by everyone”
Writing Regimen:
Reading is part of my writing work. Deadlines are really good. you need to show up at the studio
500 words a day, I delete more than I write. But write everyday
Has weeks of discipline
The following notes are just a mish mash of the three of them writing:
Read your work out loud
Themes – isolation & disconnect
Young female sexuality
Screen writing is really good money
You need good writing friends who can support you
You need a great editor
Confidence depends on the day
Sex writing taught Tamara Faithburger – voice, language, you have to write as real as possible, as urgent as possible. “I want you to not put the writing down”
Nicole said – “Writing is an acceptable form of Self abuse”
Set it up so you have something to work on the next day.
“I always want to do better than the last thing I’ve done. I try to outdo myself.”
Pretend that a writer you respect is reading your book.
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