TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #27: Drunk with a Bicycle?

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Exhausted from nanowrimo? Or just the vicissitudes of Thanksgiving? Well, here's some words from Bradbury:

"We all need someone higher, wiser, older to tell us we're not crazy after all, that's what we're doing is all right. All right, hell, fine!"

So here's to us! A toast, a toast -- and maybe some jam?

"But it is easy to doubt yourself, because you look around at a community of notions held by other writers, other intellectuals, and they make you blush with guilt. Writing is supposed to be difficult, agonizing, a dreadful exercise, a terrible occupation."

Eep. I've got writing on me. Get it off, get it off!

"But, you see, my stories have led me through my life. They shout, I follow. They run up and bite me on the leg -- I respond by writing down everything that goes on during the bite. When I finish, the idea lets go, and runs off."

Ooo - ideas that bite, and pull our leg! Kewl!

"That is the kind of life I've had. Drunk, and in charge of a bicycle, as an Irish police report once put it. Drunk with life, that is, and not knowing where off to next. But you're on your way before dawn. And the trip? Exactly one half terror, exactly one half exhilaration."

Terror and exhilaration, and a heck of a bicycle ride.

Ray Bradbury, Drunk and in Charge of a Bicycle in Zen in the Art of Writing

Hey, hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Plenty of food, good circ...er, football games, and all that stuffing.

In the meantime, don't forget to . . .
write!
tink
blinded by the light . . .

TECH: Nanowrimo Notes #28: A Pithy Helmet?

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Now There Is Something You Don't See Every Day

Just look at it!

Are you still working on your nanowrimo? Or did you finish it off long ago? Either way, I think you'll find today's piece useful in provoking some extra words here and there. Some of them may even be printable :-) Or at least you can write them down and count them against today's quota, whether it is in your private journal or in the final hours of nanowrimo. So let's get started.

Okay. Today we're going to take a short trip to A Kick in the Seat Of The Pants by Roger von Oech. You might have thought he wrote A Whack on the Side of the Head -- and he did. A Kick is his second book about thinking. It might help to read the fine print on the front of the book which says, "the human body has two ends on it: one to create with and one to sit on. Sometimes people get their ends reversed. When this happens they need A Kick in the Seat Of The Pants."

Anyway, without getting into details, the book discusses four roles in creative thinking. The Explorer, the Artist, the Judge, and the Warrior. And for today's bonus, here's a list of topics from the Explorer (and very brief comments). But to claim your bonus, pick a number from 1 to 14. Go ahead, pick one. Got it? Now see what you picked.

1. adopt an insight outlook: be curious
2. know what your objective is: create a map for yourself
3. look in other fields: leave your own turf
4. look for lots of ideas: too much is not enough
5. one thing can lead to something completely different: don't be afraid to be led astray
6. shift your focus: pay attention to a variety of information
7. don't overlook the obvious: what's right in front of you?
8. pay attention to the small things: get out your magnifying glass
9. look at the big picture: what does it all really mean?
10. use obstacles to break out of ruts: break up your routine
11. slay a dragon: look for ideas in places that scare you
12. find the ideas you already have: remember where you've been
13. look for fun things: enjoyment is excitement
14. write it down: stake your claim to the new territory

Remember that the Explorer is looking for ideas, is going out to search for things. So take your problem -- your story, plot, characters, conflict, or whatever -- and consider using the approach that you just picked out. Look in other fields, don't overlook the obvious, think about ideas you already have -- whichever approach you picked, take a few minutes and try it. What would it mean for you to look in other fields? Well, which field have you been looking in? What other fields are there? You're writing a genre formula story? What about mixing in a little bit -- a subplot -- from another genre? Mystery, romance, fantasy, suspense? Or what about the non-fiction folks? Can you borrow a technique from them? Or jump right out into videos, movies, and whatnot? Anyone for anime? Slip slide into another field and see what you can borrow.

Okay?

And while we're tossing bits and pieces in to complicate the picture, here, pick a number from one to six. Got it? Now, you have chosen:

1. At lunch, your colleagues are running down the work of another colleague who is absent. Do you speak up for the absent coworker?
2. You want to landscape your property but find that trees cost too much. Do you drive into the woods and take some?
3. A childhood friend from overseas is in the country and wishes to visit you. You have not been in contact for 20 years and have little time or space. Do you extend your hospitality?
4. You are an adoption worker. A native child has been living happily with a white family for three years. Now his relatives want to take him back to the reservation. Do you let them?
5. You are waiting at a red light at 4 AM. There isn't a car in sight. Do you go through the red light?
6. You reserve seats at a local theater by phone (without paying). A few hours before curtain, you decide not to go. Do you bother to cancel?

There you go. Six scruples. Fun to think about, and I'm sure that the one you picked relates to your problem. It's the mysterious ability that you have for picking a scruple that relates. Just think about it for a few minutes, and I'm sure you'll see some relationships. Oh sure, there are some differences, and you may need to adjust things a bit, but I'm sure that the colors match :-)

So, there you have it. An Explorer's guideline and a scruple for the trip. Plenty to ponder, eh?

And . . . write!
tink
(about 800 words)
Jette, jette, jette -- and away they go!