WIP Wednesday: My Pep Talk Rx

                                Prescription best used in life and in writing.

 

 

     I see this old slate board every morning (every time) I enter the living room and walk towards the kitchen.  It hangs by the kitchen windows, where it presides over much of my activities these days.  Anyone with a very young tot knows the kitchen becomes your second home (preempting my desk space many days *sigh* ).   Another topic for another day.

 

I gave myself this Rx many years ago when I worked in the Mental Health field.  The lettering I used often in my daily logs and note taking and the Rx I used everyday when dealing with both clients and the MH system which I worked.  One day at a time.

 

Keeping this simple message up in my home now, reminds me to stay focused and work on what is at hand and not obsess about things I can not control or whats still so far ahead for both my little family and for my writing.  It reminds me that big and important jobs can become so much more manageable when you just focus on one day at a time.

 

Good writing folks.

 

 

WIP Wednesday: Feeding My Muse His Visuals

Old inspiration board from a past story.

I am a visual person by nature.  In childhood I would save stones, twigs and bits of nature found on walks or cuttings from a favorite funny or colorful magazine.  I was drawn to it like other children feel compelled to toss a ball or skip.  I still have some of those bits. 

Over the years I have continued my stockpiling of nature, art post cards, magazine clippings, favorite quotes scribbled on bits of paper, snips of fabric or paper, pictures I or others have taken...the list goes on.....

So she's either one of those creative people or burgeoning hoarder you say?  Maybe a bit of both.  I do know if you follow this blog you are probably much like me in this compulsion--this feeding of our muses I will call it.  Am I wrong? 

Like me, does your imagination spin in some needed or unexpected direction with each new gathered bit?  Do you start new projects by one swatch of fabric or one quote of the day?  Did a painting help you know a characters world better or (in the realm of sound) did a song ever give you your characters soul?

So tell me, are you a muse feeding pack rat?  What things do you pin or tape to your wall or sit upon your shelf.  And if you have progressed like me, what images have you copied and pasted from the net to sooth that ever hungry muse?

For me each new long term project brings a new set of inspirations.  Here are a few of the collected bits I use for my novel, Ghost Mountain.

Good Writing Folks!

 

 

WIP Wednesday: Got Gadgets?

Gadgets.  Aside from our imaginations, gadgets are a part of all writers--all creators--tool box.  It may be something low tech like a paint brush, hammer or pen you most pull out of the box.  Or high tech gadgets like a digital camera, 3D printer (wildest dreams) or my little Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1. (Image above created during 3rd attempt using S Memo app.)  And like most of us, the combination of both low and high tech gadgets are whats needed to fully express our imaginings and brings forth our creations.

I started out very low tech (pencil, pen, paintbrush and hammer sort) and stubbornly held onto these creative tools for many years, ignoring the world of high tech like it was the enemy.  Time, high tech positive peer pressure and experience opened my mind to the wonderful would of technology, but I'm still very loyal to my old primitive friends.

The below is a example of one of my high tech gadgets taking on one of my low tech gadgets jobs.  

I often sketch out a geographical map for the fictional world I'm writing about.  I'm a visual person by nature and it sometimes helps in the structuring of my story.  Usually I would do this on the back of a paper tablet or a sheet of print out paper, to be crumpled into a binder or tacked to the wall at my desk.  This would have been fine and I will probably continue such creative planning and nest making in the future. 

But with the apps on my Galaxy Note 10.1 I can more easily share my vision with a wider audience of friends and fellow creators.  And frankly, this looks better than me taking a digital of my crumpled up paper on the wall and posting it.  Then again, I do like old school.  We shall see.  This is a process and I have just started this new avenue.

My second attempt at sketching, using the S Memo feature my new Galaxy Note 10.1. (For you Galaxy owners, I see Omni Sketch and Zen Brush in my near future.) 

So what gadget, low tech or high, helps in your creative process?  What gadget can you not live without.  What new gadget would you love to use or what old gadget do you keep coming back to time and time again?

Good writing folks!

WIP Wednesday: Forward...

...life is much more manageable when thought of as a scavenger hunt as opposed to a surprise party.

~~~Jimmy Buffett

Here's to ticking more off my scavenger list than I did last year.   Let the journey begin!