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"The Artist's Way" is written for artists, actors, writers, all kind of creative people. It sparks your creative juices so strongly that I had to quit only partway through it. I'm a professional sculptor and am working on being a professional novelist. While working on "The Artist's Way," my creative juices (which usually run fairly high anyway, but I was at a low spot when I tried the book) were at low tide. Suddenly I was so full of creative energy I was literally not able to sleep more than an hour or two a night! I had to stop working on the book so I could sleep! I highly recommend it. Good luck getting past your block!
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I dug up a method mentioned in various commentaries on Theodore Sturgeon, of writing a page a day on a typewriter---most of you guys have heard of typewriters, haven't you?---and stopping at the end of the page, even in the middle of a sentence, until the next day. That way you generate a continuing interest in coming back to write. Not really a book, but, like I said, it gets a mention in various writeups on Sturgeon.
I wrote an article about doing it that way for Kathleen and Workshop a while back---it's online somewhere. Yeah, what I did got rejected. But it wasn't the point. It got me going again after a long silence.
Now I'm antsy 'cause I've missed three days of putting in work on my novel...I hope to cure that after I finish here...
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I haven't read that book, let alone heard about it. I find different ways of getting over my writers block problems, and the most successful one to date would be simply changing the font around, like bolding it, decreasing the size of the text and writing in a whole new text. I do that even if I don't have a clue of what I'm writing, even if it's complete garbage.
I find that that works for me, and it may work for others as well.
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In my infant career of writing I have had to have two works going at a time and switch back and forth about three days per book. It is kind of like too much candy at once so I switch to salt for a day or two then I am ready for candy again.
Oh and not heard of that book but I will be watching for feedback from others. so far I have purchased about 20 books reccomended on this forum. Reading as fast as I can absorb.
[This message has been edited by BruceWayne1 (edited February 07, 2007).]
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I read a fair number of excerpts from this on Amazon. It looks like it's got a lot of pop-psychology in it. The index indicates that it at least quotes from a number of decent books, and I did find a good point or two.
Of course, most of what I read was out of order, so it might be better than I thought, but it doesn't look like it would help me an awful lot. Of course I'm sure that some people will find this to be just what they need. If you're interested, leaf through it on Amazon and try to get a feel for it.
quote:To write I must be UTTERLY ALONE, surrounded by ABSOLUTE AND TOTAL SILENCE!
Given this information, you just might find this particular book to be extremely useful. It certainly seems to address such issues; I couldn't tell exactly how well.
Posts: 932 | Registered: Jul 2001
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posted
I find it helpful to listen to some form of ambient music. Something without words, just sounds, and with that, I ever just sit somewhere comfortable, or lay down, just thinking. Typically for me atleast, the music helps me concentrate on emotion and context, and I find my mind wanders into thoughts.
Also, repetitive labor, such as raking leaves, I find gives you time to think and lets your mind wander.
I think thats the best thing to do, is to let your mind wander and think. Give it time.
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You rake leaves, I clean horse stalls (when the horses are home - right now they're at a boarding barn so I can ride in an indoor arena during the winter). Cleaning stalls or mowing our two acres of lawn are both mindless tasks enough that I come up with a lot of stuff for my stories during those times. Another way I've gotten past a stuck place is just to imagine myself a fly on the wall and set my characters talking (in my head), or if I'm alone, I might act out the scene, talking for each character until the scene develops into something worthwhile. I enjoy wachgint them interact and listening to them talk anyway, and this way I not only get to know them better, but I often work my way through the stuck spot.
Yes, I DO listen to and even talk back to the voices in my head, LOL! Each is attached to a charming, fun person I like a lot (my characters), so why not?
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Go to the bathroom without a book. It's so dull, I'll count tiles, or find patterns in the shower curtain. Usually, both somehow lead to revelations about the story I'm writing.
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I've never seen the book in question, so I can't help there.
I believe I've yet to experience the classic writer's block--where you sit there and stare at a blank page/screen and nothing will come out.
My problems usually come in the form of procrastination/avoidance. I'll continually find one more thing I need to do before I sit down to get started ("Just let me go see if there's anything cool going on over at Hatrack. It'll only take a minute, and it's educational. Then I'll get started.")
To counteract that, I've developed a routine where I have certain times of the day that are my writing times, and I just make myself use those times. After a few months the routine became habituated, and I no longer think about doing other things during those times.
When inspiration/ideas are scarce, I'll plow ahead anyway. For me that's important, because I rarely feel so inspired I can't contain myself. Most days, it's work, and I approach it as such. I will say that once I break the ice and get started, it usually becomes more fun than drudgery. But not always.
Sometimes when it seems impossible to go on, I'll dig an exercise out of a writing book and work on it for 20 minutes. Working on mechanics outside of a story I've invested in will refresh my outlook.
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Your post was edited because the link to the book was so long that it made it necessary (at least on some screens) to scroll from side to side to read subsequent posts.
Posts: 13 | Registered: May 2006
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posted
I have seen that done deliberately in order to make a thread with a lot of long posts extremely difficult to read...but you'd have to be kinda a nut job to deliberately do it to your own topic on the first post.
Posts: 8322 | Registered: Aug 1999
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If you click on the *UBB Code in ON link to the left of the box that is there for when you want to post a new topic or a reply, you can scroll down to the format for including a link in a post without it making the webpage extra wide.
What Second Assistant did was use that format on your extra long link, and if you click on the edit button for your post, CoriSCapnSkip, you will see the formatting.
[This message has been edited by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (edited February 13, 2007).]
posted
When I have writers block I either bash my head on my key board until something pops into my little mind, or I get smashed during a barracks party and have my battle buddies tell me how I ended up in a wall locker the next morning with a splitting head ache, like someone pounded a gutter nail into my head. That usually gets the motor running again. Rommel Fenrir Wolf II Posts: 856 | Registered: Nov 2006
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