Muse Attacks
Until I read Paul Guyot's post about being 70% through a project and then becoming obsessed with another story, I thought that was a habit unique to me and I was just a slacker who couldn't get things finished.
I guess it's just a writer thing.
I call them "muse attacks," where I become absolutely consumed not merely by the prospect of a project, but by the STORY. The character or the setting or something that just goes round and round in my mind like a runaway train and refuses to stop until I start writing.
Sometimes I can keep it at bay (especially when I have daytime obligations like, say, exams!) by jotting down a quick outline. Othertimes--no dice. Nothing will do but to write it. All of it.
The most recent attack I had was started by a dream, in a sci-fi-ish setting that I think is going to give rise to my first straightup sci-fi project. This is very exciting. I love sci-fi and fantasy but could never write one of my own because I couldn't come up with enough background detail. Research is one of my favorite parts of writing, that's why I do well with historical/mythological stuff. But for the first time, I feel like I have enough material out of the blue in my head to write a sci-fi story.
And that's just plain neat.
Now, as with Guyot, I have a dilemma. Do I continue with my historical fiction novel, even though it's still in the early stages of drafting, since I at least have the story in my head put together? Or do I jump straight into my sci-fi tale and see where it takes me? (And there's that Biblical fiction thing that I'm still hashing out the outline, but every time I read an article about Mary Magdalene and/or the Da Vinci Code, I get excited about it again.)
I guess it's just a writer thing.
I call them "muse attacks," where I become absolutely consumed not merely by the prospect of a project, but by the STORY. The character or the setting or something that just goes round and round in my mind like a runaway train and refuses to stop until I start writing.
Sometimes I can keep it at bay (especially when I have daytime obligations like, say, exams!) by jotting down a quick outline. Othertimes--no dice. Nothing will do but to write it. All of it.
The most recent attack I had was started by a dream, in a sci-fi-ish setting that I think is going to give rise to my first straightup sci-fi project. This is very exciting. I love sci-fi and fantasy but could never write one of my own because I couldn't come up with enough background detail. Research is one of my favorite parts of writing, that's why I do well with historical/mythological stuff. But for the first time, I feel like I have enough material out of the blue in my head to write a sci-fi story.
And that's just plain neat.
Now, as with Guyot, I have a dilemma. Do I continue with my historical fiction novel, even though it's still in the early stages of drafting, since I at least have the story in my head put together? Or do I jump straight into my sci-fi tale and see where it takes me? (And there's that Biblical fiction thing that I'm still hashing out the outline, but every time I read an article about Mary Magdalene and/or the Da Vinci Code, I get excited about it again.)
posted by Jocelyn Smith | 2:06 PM
2 Comments:
Hiya, Claire!
As for the enigma bit...well, I'll take that as a compliment.
However, as I've tried to demonstrate at Lee's blog, my stance regarding Copyright is anything but casual. It's based on law, the law as I have been taught it and as other scholars have interpreted it. It's very complicated, but the law usually is. (That's why lawyers and law students have such a high rate of nervous breakdowns.)
My stance on kiddie porn is also based on law--it's actually a little MORE conservative than the current laws. You couldn't nail a single fanwriter for obscenity or child pornography because virtual porn's not illegal. Go figure, right? I wish it was, believe me. And if JK Rowling and other authors can use their copyright holding to nail the pornwriters, more power to 'em.
And, my friend, snark is a pasttime enjoyed by persons of all walks of life, and I don't see why I should left out. My father calls me a connoisseur of human folly.
I hope you will post again, whatever your compatriots think. I haven't made it over to the Jammers, but I will, now that exams are over.
Best,
Jocelyn
Hi Amy,
Have we met over on the Goldbergs' blogs, or did you hear about me from Claire?
My cohorts in the Gilbert & Sullivan society are writing a big G&S parody. This spring was my first show with them, and I do love it.
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