quote:“The anxiety involved is intolerable. And . . . the financial rewards just don’t make up for the expenditure of energy, the damage to health caused by stimulants and narcotics, the fear that one’s work isn’t good enough. I think, if I had enough money, I’d give up writing tomorrow.”
Well...I wouldn't go so far. But I do take a lot of sabbaticals, even when I know I shouldn't
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Since I don't believe in a muse, writer's block has never been a serious issue for me. I'm of the Orson Scott Card and Joyce Carol Oates school of writer's block--namely, that writer's block is your subconscious telling you that either you've taken a wrong turn in your story or that you need to get away from it and let the subconscious work out the solution for you.
I certianly liked Trollope's approach to writing. Not the 250 words every 15 minutes, but the dedication to write 3 hours a day.
[This message has been edited by Balthasar (edited June 29, 2004).]
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I guess I would agree with the subconscious thing. Whenever I’ve had a difficult time working, it was because I had a story I really didn’t like. Deep inside, I knew I didn’t like the story or where it was going, and so it was drudgery to write. Some of those were pretty good ideas, they just didn’t feel good to work on. Once I start on something new, the block seems to go away.
Sometimes it’s easier to set things aside and come back later. In my case, much later.
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I don't agree with the subcounscious thing. I believe that almost every form of the block is caused by a fear of failure, and the only way to bypass it is to keep working.
Posts: 697 | Registered: Mar 2003
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posted
This might fit here. It's from Which Lie Did I Tell: More Adventures in the Screen Trade by William Goldman. (I've adjusted it for writing as opposed to screenwriting.)
quote:"I can't figure out what {the characters} should do next.".... ..."Well, have them do something!...That way we'll have something to change.".... ...{start} moving.... ...{We're} not going to {publish} the second draft....So just write something so we'll have something to change.
In a nutshell, action begets action. Posts: 1810 | Registered: Jun 2002
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