Funk, Fatigue, and Denial
We all run up against that wall. The excuses are endless: I’m tired. I can’t have one good idea. I’m too busy. I’m not feeling all that great. Everybody needs something. We had guests. Work has been a bear. And on and on. I’m guilty too, not of all the above, but of enough of them to feel like a good head slap is in order. After all, what about “Keep going!” didn’t I understand? Didn’t I remember anything I taught? So it finally hit me today. I’ve been waiting for inspiration. I’ve been waiting for that great plot focus to build around. I’ve been waiting for War and Peace without realizing I have what I need to get on with it. It’s odd, since I already have around twelve chapters. Nonetheless, the doubts crept in and I stopped. No more. I’m pushing on no matter how lousy I think it is. Took me long enough. So my challenge for today is for you to share how it’s going. Where are you stuck and what are you going strong on? Even if all you’re writing are short pieces, are you at least collecting them in an organized way? What’s your balancing act?
Second Annual ALWAYCT Writing Festival: Blast the page!
Welcome friends and writers! Now is the time to challenge yourself to write something that you want to share and get careful feedback on. For our Second Annual ALWAYCT Festival there will be two rules: ~Limit your piece to 1000 words or less. ~If you submit, you pledge to share careful feedback on all the other submissions from your fellow writers. Your feedback should be more than, “I liked it!” Share suggestions for improvements and mention specific things that you thought were done well. We all want to learn. The rest is up to you. Select your own format and topic. Fiction, creative nonfiction, essays, poetry–you pick! Can it be an excerpt from a longer piece? Sure; just let us know that. Time frame? It’s open ended, but remember that I tend to post new challenges fairly frequently, so older ones start to drift off into the nether regions of this blog. Post soon! Am I going to comment on your submissions? I will if I decide to post something of my own. I look forward to reading your work. Blast the page!
Somebody is Really Mad
“Get out of my sight!” The door to the shed slammed in my face. I rubbed my hot right hand over my forehead and then my mouth. I had to decide my next move. And soon.
My Name is Elizabeth Grandstone Nesbitt
I work a forty-hour week on the assembly line in a factory that makes Weber barbeques. My life is….
The Moon
The moon ate my oatmeal and then spit it out. I watched from the window, grasping the nearest kitchen utensil. My eyes burned.
I Walked Down the Long Hall
I walked down the long hall with doors on either side. I wasn’t sure where I was, and the repetition of those doorways made me dizzy. The doors had numbers on them. My palm was bleeding for some reason.
Take Blahness and Make Us Want to Read On
You may remember being asked to rewrite this sentence to make it more vivid and interesting: The leaf was red. Now your challenge is to rewrite another blah sentence. This time, you are not limited to one sentence. Anything goes. (I am still reading variations on Martha and John at the bus stop, so I know the possibilities are endless.) I’m curious how far you can go to take this very dull sentence and surprise the heck out of us all. Lots of good writers here! Take the challenge. Aunt Alice ran.
How Many Times?
Life (hopefully) is long. While we’re here, we do so many things. It occurred to me that it would be fun to count them, or at least estimate. Here are how many times I think I’ve: –Changed my sheets: 2863 –Made meatballs: 136 –Been bitten by mosquitos: 613 –Blinked: 689,472,048 –Eaten sushi: 1 –Changed a tire: 6 –Felt like tearing my hair out while working: 1294 –Laughed even though I was all alone: 33,474 How many times have you done things? P.S. Excuse my absence. These winter months are very busy for online courses. Even so, I keep having ideas, so I hope you’ll try one more. –Ann
The Secret Life of Plants
Pick three: Potting soil that moves The pot leaked all over the parquet floor An agave cactus four feet tall Yellow leaves, hot pink leaves Icicles on the daffodils Tulip/lily showdown That little man with the clippers
I Have to Wonder What Happens Next
A day of meditation had not calmed his feelings, nor provided an answer to the questions he’d carried with him since he’d had his vision in the mountains.