Short list of stuff that kills writing:
Thinking.
I know, eh?
(A.M. Pief might know something about this one, classic overthinker 😉
But it’s true. Overthinking, overanalyzing, over-whatever cripples the best of us. Just go with the flow and let it all out as it were. Purge it out and fix the mistakes after, because if you’re busy writing along and suddenly stop and try to figure out the perfect synonym for chartreuse, you’ve lost the flow.
That train of thought has come to a screeching half.
And it’s terribly hard to get back on track. So keep that baby moving at all costs.
(A.M. Pief, I’m still looking at you.)
Kerouac said about writing “and after all what do I really know about it except that you’ve got to stick to it with the energy of a benny addict. …” (Remember, he wrote On the Road in three WEEKS, but spent years walking around with it in his head.)
Now, I’m not suggesting getting a single roll of paper for your typewriter and sitting sweating through t-shirts and writing for three weeks straight while high on amphetamines, but it if helps…
Kidding. Seriously, I’m kidding. (Drug police, please don’t shut this poor blog down.)
But honestly, let your poor tortured little draft get a chance to grow and blossom before you start pruning it to bits; you might be surprised at what comes up.
And remember (just to push the flower analogy further) a garden is made up of all kinds of flowers; and not all flowers (or stories) are for all people. Some folks like daisies, some like roses, and some (like me) have a thing for dandelions. Or thorns.
A story is just that. One story.
There’s places for all of them – out there somewhere, in a big publication, shared among friends, or only creeping around your own little head.
But it’s a story. A moment in time that you’ve tried to capture as best as you can. You’re not married to it (and even if you were, divorce is easy enough these days…)
If your story doesn’t thrill you, shelve it and move on, then give it a revisit in a while and see what a bit of tweaking does. This is where the fertilizing and pruning come in, and let your story grow into the shape you envisioned.
But remember, stories (and blogs posts) can be tricky things. Sometimes they come with a shape all their own, and you have to discover it, and in doing so, you let that poor story shine.
XO,
Twisted Sister
PS. If you’re still wondering about chartreuse, I’d go with good ol’ yellow if I were you. Just saying.
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Twisted Sister lit mag 