Brought to you by Obert Skye from Leven Thumps and the Whispered Secret- Chapter 12
"Somtimes it isn't easy to know what to thinki. Sometimes people experience or see things, and they have no idea what to make of them. Your friend tells you that you have to see a movie because it is teh greatest thing ever filmed. So you get dragged to the theater and it turns out to be a story about a girl who writes things in a journal and the journal becomes her friend. And there is even a scene where the actress dances with thejournal, and the journal sings back. And when you walk out of the theater you not only doubt your friend's taste in movies, but you are beginning to doubt your choice of friends.
Somtimes it just isn't easy to know what to think."
DISCLAIMER: All rights belong to Shadow Mountain, Obert Skye, etc. I OWN NOTHING!
Friday, January 31, 2014
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Imagery Inquiry
Breathe, buzz, hint, spell
Sigh, speak, say, tell
Then the mountain shrugged
And the mountain yawned
Its voice was a hiss of steam
That sank into every
Dream, yes, sank deep in each dream
Night is calling, Away, come away!
Empty your mind of troubles and dreams
Empty your heart of all daylight things
Night is calling, Forget! But the day
Will not wait, not long now, won't delay
-Excerpts from Princess Academy, by Shannon Hale
What images and scenes do this little poems give you, friends?
Sigh, speak, say, tell
Then the mountain shrugged
And the mountain yawned
Its voice was a hiss of steam
That sank into every
Dream, yes, sank deep in each dream
Night is calling, Away, come away!
Empty your mind of troubles and dreams
Empty your heart of all daylight things
Night is calling, Forget! But the day
Will not wait, not long now, won't delay
-Excerpts from Princess Academy, by Shannon Hale
What images and scenes do this little poems give you, friends?
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Writing Tips: What To Do When You Don't Know What To Do
Picture this writers: you've just had the most brilliant idea known to mankind. Maybe you've already started writing it down. You're following your idea like you would walk through a tunnel- you're excited, ready... Everything is coming to you! And then it stops. You've got no where to go. You're fresh out of ideas.
I know you've all been there, or have done something along the lines. For those of you who might be unfamiliar we call it Writer's Block. It happens to the best of us. Don't worry! You've been through this. You will go through this some more.
But what do you do???
Many things. And some solutions will work better for others. I've scoured the Internet for ideas and they are helpful, but none of them seem to work.
Let me tell you this: writer's block is like the common cold. There is no cure. Just help.
I've discovered that there are generally two sides to writer's block. The first is the most common. It's when you run out of ideas. Or you don't have an idea to begin with. So here are some suggestions to get your creative juices running:
1. Writing Prompts- These tend to be helpful for those who lack any idea at all. There are thousands of websites with prompts, and you can get them from real life too. One of my favorite websites is http://creativewritingprompts.com/. So go check it out! I dare you to write every single one.
2. Ask Around- For those of you whose ideas have halted, talk to people. We all have that friend who can come up with ideas faster than they can talk. And if you don't, try Facebook. Try Twitter, or any other websites that you may use. Ask your family. Ask your enemies. Even if your friends aren't idyllic, most of them think differently than you do and will probably come up with something fantastic for you to try.
3. Point of View- For this I shall use an example from one of my friend's work. Here's the situation: an amateur spy is waiting for a certain package that should arrive by 6:00. But there's another agent who's working against him. This agent intercepts the package and...BLOCK! What do you do? Try this: look from your character's point of view. If you were this spy, and your package didn't arrive on time, how would you react? You would start to get suspicious, right? Wouldn't you have a look around. Maybe you find the agent. What would you do then? -See? There you go. A new lead.
4. Idea Drop- This is perhaps one of the hardest. A lot of times writer's block is caused by a resistance to ideas rather than a lack of. You might have the slightest glimmer, or spark of an idea. But you immediately dash it because it "won't work" or "it's bad". Stop complaining. Relight those embers. Just try one of them. It doesn't matter if it is horrible, it might turn out to be great! Take that idea, tend it, and eventually a fire will light!
The other side of writer's block often happens when you have already planned and plotted. You just can't write. It's like somebody put a dam up over your word flow. You just can't force anything out. Another metaphor: You're at one end of the pool and you know that you need to get to the other end. You used to be swimming in clear water, but now it feels like you're army crawling through cement.
I know the feeling well. There's not much you can do, but here's a few things to try:
1. Try the Prompts Again- If you can get yourself to start writing something else, you might find it easier to work on your project.
2. Write/Read/Watch Something Else- Distract yourself. Sometimes all you need is a break. You've been thinking and stressing too hard for too long. You've tied yourself in knots, give yourself a moment to unwind before you start again.
3. Skip It- If you are struggling to write a certain part, skip it! Move on the the next portion. The rest will come later. Don't stress about it, just go on.
4. Just Do It- So you might be army crawling through cement, and it might take you forever to make it to the other side, but you're still making a little progress! Remember that nothing is set in stone. Expect your writing to be horrid, and then edit later. Push past the denial, and just start writing.
If you have any more suggestions, or any ideas/questions feel free to comment!
I know you've all been there, or have done something along the lines. For those of you who might be unfamiliar we call it Writer's Block. It happens to the best of us. Don't worry! You've been through this. You will go through this some more.
But what do you do???
Many things. And some solutions will work better for others. I've scoured the Internet for ideas and they are helpful, but none of them seem to work.
Let me tell you this: writer's block is like the common cold. There is no cure. Just help.
I've discovered that there are generally two sides to writer's block. The first is the most common. It's when you run out of ideas. Or you don't have an idea to begin with. So here are some suggestions to get your creative juices running:
1. Writing Prompts- These tend to be helpful for those who lack any idea at all. There are thousands of websites with prompts, and you can get them from real life too. One of my favorite websites is http://creativewritingprompts.com/. So go check it out! I dare you to write every single one.
2. Ask Around- For those of you whose ideas have halted, talk to people. We all have that friend who can come up with ideas faster than they can talk. And if you don't, try Facebook. Try Twitter, or any other websites that you may use. Ask your family. Ask your enemies. Even if your friends aren't idyllic, most of them think differently than you do and will probably come up with something fantastic for you to try.
3. Point of View- For this I shall use an example from one of my friend's work. Here's the situation: an amateur spy is waiting for a certain package that should arrive by 6:00. But there's another agent who's working against him. This agent intercepts the package and...BLOCK! What do you do? Try this: look from your character's point of view. If you were this spy, and your package didn't arrive on time, how would you react? You would start to get suspicious, right? Wouldn't you have a look around. Maybe you find the agent. What would you do then? -See? There you go. A new lead.
4. Idea Drop- This is perhaps one of the hardest. A lot of times writer's block is caused by a resistance to ideas rather than a lack of. You might have the slightest glimmer, or spark of an idea. But you immediately dash it because it "won't work" or "it's bad". Stop complaining. Relight those embers. Just try one of them. It doesn't matter if it is horrible, it might turn out to be great! Take that idea, tend it, and eventually a fire will light!
The other side of writer's block often happens when you have already planned and plotted. You just can't write. It's like somebody put a dam up over your word flow. You just can't force anything out. Another metaphor: You're at one end of the pool and you know that you need to get to the other end. You used to be swimming in clear water, but now it feels like you're army crawling through cement.
I know the feeling well. There's not much you can do, but here's a few things to try:
1. Try the Prompts Again- If you can get yourself to start writing something else, you might find it easier to work on your project.
2. Write/Read/Watch Something Else- Distract yourself. Sometimes all you need is a break. You've been thinking and stressing too hard for too long. You've tied yourself in knots, give yourself a moment to unwind before you start again.
3. Skip It- If you are struggling to write a certain part, skip it! Move on the the next portion. The rest will come later. Don't stress about it, just go on.
4. Just Do It- So you might be army crawling through cement, and it might take you forever to make it to the other side, but you're still making a little progress! Remember that nothing is set in stone. Expect your writing to be horrid, and then edit later. Push past the denial, and just start writing.
If you have any more suggestions, or any ideas/questions feel free to comment!
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